For anyone wondering about the mentioned fan made content at the end, if you want more value out of your IA investment, I would highly highly encourage looking into the RAIV variant on boardgamegeek.com. It's basically a set of cards and materials that allows you to play the regular content without an Overlord player. It's not as convenient or automated as an app, but it's very well done, and allows you to play with all content to date.
I built Imperial Directive to function like the official app and it lets you play through all of the Core missions and Twin Shadows. I may be biased but I find it to work pretty well :) Check it out at: imperial-directive.herokuapp.com
Apps to handle RAIV cards. You don't even need to print anything out to play. alvinltlo.github.io/IA-RAIV-EventDeckHelper/ alvinltlo.github.io/IA-RAIV-MissionHelper/
I agree with this. I had it but sold it after my group finished the core box campaign. I've been thinking about getting it again for solo play but it's just too much set up for me these days. Outer Rim looks good but I don't want to do the scoundrel thing all the time. Great review!
Pretty much agree with all of this. Imperial Assault had great potential and we'd probably have kept it had there been more content for the base game but there's no way we're getting another big box expansion just for a few missions. Didn't know about the fan-made stuff when we got rid of the game. And yes the AI was fiddly - I think a lot of competetive games adapted for coop have this problem. I've always thought Star Wars would be ripe for a Legacy of Dragonholt-style game.
I sold my copy since I didn't get the felling of playing StarWars and already have Descent and other similar games. Also I like more Fantasy than Sci-Fi with exception of some themes. Played the first app campaing with the base box and didn't grab me so I had to give it a pass.
In some ways I liked the Descent app more, even though I prefer Imperial Assaults mechanics. Running those mostly melee-based enemies was so much simpler than these stormtroopers!
I enjoy the game I was lucky enough to get the base game for less than half price a few years ago at Barnes and Noble and that name it worth while but yeah the one scenario for 100 dollars wouldn’t be close to enough value. Also wanted to give you heads up your number 3 point which was a mix came up as pro on the video. No big deal just something I noticed
Wait Wait Wait .... You said "download" fan made content ... Is there an app I can download to run the fan made automa or are you just referring to downloading a PDF off of BGG? I would love an automa app to play through the main campaigns. On a separate note, I own all three "big" box expansions, but none of the smaller ones. I pre-ordered one of the raid playmats from Miniature Market so I could play the raid modes but who knows where they are now. Would you say the raid mode is worth it if all I have to buy is say the Twin Shadows expansion?
There was an internet implementation of RAIV at once point someone was making, but I don't think it was ever finished. So sadly, I think it is "download and print" if you want to play that one fully! As for Twin Shadows, it's like a lot of my suggestions in this video. If you think you will ONLY use it for the raid, I'm not sure it's worth it. Raid is fun, but it's always the same map, same tokens to interact with. The only variety is your characters, the items you can buy, and the enemies that spawn. So if you want Twin Shadows for more enemies, heroes, and equipment, and Raid is a bonus, go for it! Otherwise, not so sure...
@@OneStopCoopShop Were you referring to Imperial Directive? It's finished as in the Core missions and Twin Shadows work but everything past that the AI was too hard to design so I decided to stop working on it then.
I think it’s a good game, but BGG rankings are also largely based on exposure. This is from one of the biggest publishers, got tons of advertising, and has an incredibly famous IP behind it. Long story short… you probably don’t need to pay much attention to BGG rankings ;)
@@OneStopCoopShop Old comment, just wanted to say that even though IA is one of my favorite coop/solo dungeon crawlers of all time (with IC2, not LotA), I agree BGG rankings are misleading for this very reason. Though I do think that if a game has a strong ranking on BGG, it means it is "good" at least. Exposure alone won't work if the game is trash, so the game has to be, at minimum, appealing to a lot of people. So there's that. On the other end of the spectrum, just because a game has a very LOW ranking on BGG really doesn't necessarily mean it is bad; as a game with low exposure can, of course, still be a great game.
I think “App Review” would have been a better description of what you’re getting at here according to your description. Also I was disappointed you didn’t really dive into explaining Raid and Campaign and how those are different. I don’t see how you can make organization a con when you were supposed to be reviewing just the Core box? Felt odd, any game is going to need extra organization at some point if it has tons of content so that’s true for most games. Also you said hundreds and hundred to own everything and that’s true if you include figure packs, but to be honest you can pick up some of the box expansions for anywhere from $20-40, so if you shop patiently and wisely you can get 3 for maybe a $100 or so and you have tons of replay able content and if you pick Hoth and Jabbas you can have the extra app campaigns too. Appreciate your thoughts though!
Also a slight nit pick, but you did show some cards from expansions in there- just so anyone watching knows and doesn’t get confused if they purchase and think they are missing stuff :)
@@thewelcomemat7094 I tried to make it clear that I was just reviewing solo/co-op play, and whether the system is good value for this. Sorry if I gave the impression that I was just covering the core game. And yeah, the clips were from my playthrough yesterday. I said in that video that I have several expansions. I don't include those kind of little details in the reviews, since they are only 5 minutes long :)
It's so strange, I love (pre-Disney) Star Wars, and I love board games, but I have zero interest in a Star Wars board game (this or any other I've seen).
I liked the LCG (just wish they had done a coop one), outer rim was decent, and Rebellion is friggin amazing, just hard to get to the table. I’d also like to try the fan-made coop play with X-Wing one of these days.
For anyone wondering about the mentioned fan made content at the end, if you want more value out of your IA investment, I would highly highly encourage looking into the RAIV variant on boardgamegeek.com. It's basically a set of cards and materials that allows you to play the regular content without an Overlord player. It's not as convenient or automated as an app, but it's very well done, and allows you to play with all content to date.
I enjoyed it, though some missions don’t work too well, especially when the imperials are defending. They just aren’t smart enough.
I built Imperial Directive to function like the official app and it lets you play through all of the Core missions and Twin Shadows. I may be biased but I find it to work pretty well :) Check it out at: imperial-directive.herokuapp.com
Apps to handle RAIV cards. You don't even need to print anything out to play.
alvinltlo.github.io/IA-RAIV-EventDeckHelper/
alvinltlo.github.io/IA-RAIV-MissionHelper/
I agree with this. I had it but sold it after my group finished the core box campaign. I've been thinking about getting it again for solo play but it's just too much set up for me these days. Outer Rim looks good but I don't want to do the scoundrel thing all the time.
Great review!
@@tempestfury8324 I agree. That's where my review and shelf life ended up on it.
Great review, highlighted important things I was curious about, much appreciated, thanks Mike!
You're welcome! Glad you found it helpful!
Pretty much agree with all of this. Imperial Assault had great potential and we'd probably have kept it had there been more content for the base game but there's no way we're getting another big box expansion just for a few missions. Didn't know about the fan-made stuff when we got rid of the game.
And yes the AI was fiddly - I think a lot of competetive games adapted for coop have this problem.
I've always thought Star Wars would be ripe for a Legacy of Dragonholt-style game.
I still think the value is amazing, IF you’ll play with all the modes. And yeah, you can definitely feel that the AI was added afterwards.
Yes to Legacy of Dragonholt - Star Wars!
I definitely got burned out on descent by the amount of stuff I felt I needed, and the set up was a nightmare. Seems like this is similiar
My favorite exprience with the descent app was when I turned off EVERYTHING and just played core :). Such a pure and simple experience.
I sold my copy since I didn't get the felling of playing StarWars and already have Descent and other similar games. Also I like more Fantasy than Sci-Fi with exception of some themes. Played the first app campaing with the base box and didn't grab me so I had to give it a pass.
In some ways I liked the Descent app more, even though I prefer Imperial Assaults mechanics. Running those mostly melee-based enemies was so much simpler than these stormtroopers!
Have you tried the Imperial Commander app? This one intrigues me as someone wishing for a co-op Star Wars game who is also a fan of dungeon crawlers.
I have not, but I've heard good things!
Another great 5 in Five! Love these!
Thanks Tom! I have a bunch more coming soon. Kickstarter previews seem to be slowing down :)
I enjoy the game I was lucky enough to get the base game for less than half price a few years ago at Barnes and Noble and that name it worth while but yeah the one scenario for 100 dollars wouldn’t be close to enough value.
Also wanted to give you heads up your number 3 point which was a mix came up as pro on the video. No big deal just something I noticed
That's a great deal! The game is definitely worth it for that!
And yes, good catch on the animations. Darn it! Guess it'll have to be a pro now ;)
Wait Wait Wait .... You said "download" fan made content ... Is there an app I can download to run the fan made automa or are you just referring to downloading a PDF off of BGG? I would love an automa app to play through the main campaigns. On a separate note, I own all three "big" box expansions, but none of the smaller ones. I pre-ordered one of the raid playmats from Miniature Market so I could play the raid modes but who knows where they are now. Would you say the raid mode is worth it if all I have to buy is say the Twin Shadows expansion?
There was an internet implementation of RAIV at once point someone was making, but I don't think it was ever finished. So sadly, I think it is "download and print" if you want to play that one fully!
As for Twin Shadows, it's like a lot of my suggestions in this video. If you think you will ONLY use it for the raid, I'm not sure it's worth it. Raid is fun, but it's always the same map, same tokens to interact with. The only variety is your characters, the items you can buy, and the enemies that spawn.
So if you want Twin Shadows for more enemies, heroes, and equipment, and Raid is a bonus, go for it! Otherwise, not so sure...
Give Imperial Directive a shot. I built it to play all of the Core missions + Twin Shadows :). imperial-directive.herokuapp.com/
@@OneStopCoopShop Were you referring to Imperial Directive? It's finished as in the Core missions and Twin Shadows work but everything past that the AI was too hard to design so I decided to stop working on it then.
That’s it! Thanks for the link, and your hard work on it.
@@felttable Looks like you might have completed Return to Hoth as well. Are there instructions on BGG on how to set it up? I'm very intrigued.
why is this game over at BGG on RANK: OVERALL 53THEMATIC 19 ? isn't this a little too high for what it is?
I think it’s a good game, but BGG rankings are also largely based on exposure. This is from one of the biggest publishers, got tons of advertising, and has an incredibly famous IP behind it.
Long story short… you probably don’t need to pay much attention to BGG rankings ;)
@@OneStopCoopShop that actually makes a lot of sense when you put it like that, thank you for the feedback :)
@@OneStopCoopShop Old comment, just wanted to say that even though IA is one of my favorite coop/solo dungeon crawlers of all time (with IC2, not LotA), I agree BGG rankings are misleading for this very reason. Though I do think that if a game has a strong ranking on BGG, it means it is "good" at least. Exposure alone won't work if the game is trash, so the game has to be, at minimum, appealing to a lot of people. So there's that.
On the other end of the spectrum, just because a game has a very LOW ranking on BGG really doesn't necessarily mean it is bad; as a game with low exposure can, of course, still be a great game.
I think “App Review” would have been a better description of what you’re getting at here according to your description. Also I was disappointed you didn’t really dive into explaining Raid and Campaign and how those are different. I don’t see how you can make organization a con when you were supposed to be reviewing just the Core box? Felt odd, any game is going to need extra organization at some point if it has tons of content so that’s true for most games. Also you said hundreds and hundred to own everything and that’s true if you include figure packs, but to be honest you can pick up some of the box expansions for anywhere from $20-40, so if you shop patiently and wisely you can get 3 for maybe a $100 or so and you have tons of replay able content and if you pick Hoth and Jabbas you can have the extra app campaigns too. Appreciate your thoughts though!
Also a slight nit pick, but you did show some cards from expansions in there- just so anyone watching knows and doesn’t get confused if they purchase and think they are missing stuff :)
@@thewelcomemat7094 I tried to make it clear that I was just reviewing solo/co-op play, and whether the system is good value for this. Sorry if I gave the impression that I was just covering the core game.
And yeah, the clips were from my playthrough yesterday. I said in that video that I have several expansions. I don't include those kind of little details in the reviews, since they are only 5 minutes long :)
It's so strange, I love (pre-Disney) Star Wars, and I love board games, but I have zero interest in a Star Wars board game (this or any other I've seen).
I liked the LCG (just wish they had done a coop one), outer rim was decent, and Rebellion is friggin amazing, just hard to get to the table.
I’d also like to try the fan-made coop play with X-Wing one of these days.
I deffinitely recommend Rebellion
@@marciojavi3219 I've played it. Definitely an amazing recreation of the original trilogy.
The line of sight mechanics in this game are what I dislike most about this game 🤢 Journeys in Middle Earth is way easier to understand.
Yeah, it's pretty wonky. I GET the line of sight rules, but not sure I LIKE them :)