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@nofillerplease 3d ago

The Heavy Game Paradox: More Rules ≠ More Fun

I’ve been playing heavier games for years and I’ve noticed something: the games I rate highest aren’t the heaviest ones.

Brass: Birmingham (weight: 3.86) is my #1. Twilight Imperium: Fourth Edition (weight: 4.35) is in my top 5. But Ark Nova (weight: 3.80) bores me because half the rules feel like overhead rather than meaningful decisions.

The best heavy games have high decision density — every rule serves the player experience. The worst ones are heavy because of bookkeeping. Does anyone else feel this way?

643 views · 4 replies
Replies (4)
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@heavyCardboard 2d ago

This is the "complexity vs depth" distinction. Brass: Birmingham is deep. Some war games are just complex. Totally different experiences.

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@ResourceMgr 2d ago

I track "rules overhead" as a mental metric now. If more than 20% of my brain is spent on bookkeeping rather than strategic decisions, the game isn't heavy — it's just tedious.

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@cube_pusher 2d ago

This is why Lacerda games are so divisive. Some people see elegant interlocking systems. Others see an accounting simulator with a board game wrapper.

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@AnalysisParalysis 2d ago

You just described why I love Brass: Birmingham and hate Food Chain Magnate. Same weight range, completely different ratio of "thinking about strategy" vs "thinking about rules."

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