Pyramid Review
Deadwood
Published by Cheapass Games
Designed by James Ernest
$5.00
If you're already familiar with the games of James Ernest and his Cheapass friends, you probably don't need any convincing to get you to buy this game. If you haven't played their games before, Deadwood will make a great introduction to the company's knack for creative game mechanics, elegant simulations of "real-life" situations, and quirky humor.In Deadwood, each player is a worthless bit actor on a schlock Western movie studio, trying to make as much money as possible in four days. This capitalist drive makes the actors willing (sometimes even eager) to assume such roles as "Singing Dead Man," "Wandering Cow," or one of the most common roles, "Man on Fire." On the board, each player is represented by a six-sided die with the top number indicating the rank of the actor, and consequently the difficulty of the roles that actor can take on. For instance, in the film Breaking in Trick Ponies, the role of "Man with Cheese" requires an actor with a rank of six, whereas the "Fraternity Pledge" has a rank of only two.
Players can increase their rank if they have enough money, have worked in enough films, and have had a decent run of luck. But having a higher rank does not guarantee higher pay -- it only increases the chance of a high payoff. Almost all of the strategy in the game involves rank. Every time you increase your rank, you have to pay out a pretty hefty sum of money. Having raised . . .
This article originally appeared in the second volume of Pyramid. See the current Pyramid website for more information.
Article publication date: July 23, 1999
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