I explained that I got to know Nexus Ops through learning about the StarCraft board game, precisely because the two are often compared, and frankly, after that point of acquiring that great game StarCraft, I had no real incentive to get Nexus Ops, since the name sounded a little childish to me. Or in more accurate terms, unappealing, as I have a certain taste and preference which guide my choices, since I believe and rate works based on their proximity to perfection. But the comparisons between the two seemed to suggest the game was roughly on level with StarCraft in terms of type and feel, so I went for it and bought it from the only remaining hobby store in my country, that I know of, after the closure of the one I frequented in the past, which was in Serene Centre.
I got the game, which was about $80 I believe, and had to navigate pass the obstruction of having the shop owner pronounce the name different. According to dictionary.com, I have the proper pronunciation, so it is rather a shame that I had to mispronounce it to get myself understood. Not because the guy was bad at English, he was rather good at it in fact...it is just that I am too good at it. And with enough extolling, we come to the point where I have to make a request. You at once see how anal I can be, while that quality constitutes why I am so perfectionistic.
The plastic bags those models for the game came in? I tore them in a way that wasn't as ideal as I want them to, and I am hoping I could have the entire board game exchanged with someone else, who has it in a pristine condition. But enough talk about miracles that will never happen. We need to talk about this best board game everrrr...
So I played Nexus Ops, and the first few times I had more interest in playing it instead of StarCraft precisely and mainly because it was the new game. However, like my one-time board game buddy then, he preferred StarCraft for its greater complexity, of which I shared a similar view and sentiment. At that point I neither agreed nor disagreed with him, because I had issues with the combat mechanic for StarCraft, although as I have mentioned, I grew to see its merits, and even like it as rather succinct and concise. I agree, and the reason I lost him as a playing-buddy, is because he got his ass served in every single damn game we played, even in that situation where he tabled me on Nexus Ops, only to realise we still count the winner by Victory Points. And guess who had more of that?
The reason I kept winning, if you haven't realise, is because of my focussed advance on always aiming to fulfill my Secret Mission objectives, which is really the whole point of the game. "Great strategy comes from a great mind." -personal quote. The two are closely related anyway, for intelligence is the prime director of intelligent decisions and actions.
So we get onto it. I realised, given that my predisposition is as a designer foremost, that the mechanics of Nexus Ops allowed for some interesting additions, if possible, and that it had a flaw that was present because it had to work this way, which is that all the Factions within the game were the same, in every possible margin, except for their starting resources of Rubium. I saw potential and room for a designing hand there, and it has been characterised at some level then, that a lot of my creative heights are best achieved by working within already established systems. Not that I can't come up with something original of course. But, just to understand, this is usually easier, given that there is a structure already in place, so there is a focus of direction, that just needs a tweaking or reworking of numerical values and rules.
So, this brings us to my own board game, of which I already have several of, at least in a conceptual stage, but for this board game, derived from Nexus Ops, it is my most fully-developed board game idea, and I call it Chaos Stone. And for those of you who noticed, there is some influence from Warhammer, which is actually the background that I come from, in regards to my exposure to such games. I suppose I should be concluding my post here, given that I am at the juncture of going into a full and indepth exploration of the game in question, my brainchild "Chaos Stone".
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