OT - Hockey & Golf for Table-top Gaming

[JonInMiddleGA]

I don't know how many Tabletop Gamers (aka TTG) there are left around here but I suspect there are at least a few. Heck, that's where non-graphic sims pretty much got there start after all, so I'm gonna post this FWIW.

If you don't mind rolling dice & keeping details on {gasp} paper, I recommend considering Classic Golf and Classic Hockey from Decisive Action Sports.

They're "quick-play" games, meaning much of the skills are abstracted into a few simple ratings. Roll the dice, consult the rating & cross-reference on the appropriate chart & obtain the result. Sounds simple but the outcomes are pretty doggoned realistic.

I've spent most of my waking hours since Saturday morning with Classic Golf & have to say that I'm feeling like this is as good a bang-for-the-buck I've gotten out of a game in a long time. And that's for someone who doesn't particularly like golf and hasn't done much with true TTG's in a long time.

The learning curve is pretty easy, the possibilities are vast and after watching Scott Simpson hold off 4 challengers in the final round of the 1980 Tucson Open last night, I can tell you that there's immersion.

Every PGA "season" from 1980-2002 is included in the deluxe package ($29.99 incl. S&H), as well as Ryder Cups & Presidents Cups. Figuring 30-60 minutes per tournament (I'm getting faster as I go, so it's hard to say), and every PGA tournament per year, that's at least 800 tourneys & 400-800 hours of gaming for $30. Not too bad IMO.

And yet, as good as I think the game is ( and I haven't even mentioned the packaging & layout) I probably wouldn't have mentioned this here if I weren't so impressed with the customer service.

It's a husband & wife team, with Darlene covering the bases for husband Bruce while he's on active duty in Kuwait. She answered questions by both email & phone last week, accepted a request for a shipping upgrade, followed up by email again and refunded an accidental overpayment in less than 6 hours (I would never have known the difference, btw). Meanwhile, I wake up this morning to a thank you note from Capt. Bruce in Kuwait & details about future plans for updates. That just blew me away and left me feeling even better about my buying decision.

Admittedly, chart-and-dice aren't everyone's cup of tea. But if you still like the suspense of needing a 6-6 roll, give this developer some consideration.

Decisive Action Sports

[Tekneek]

Sounds interesting. What sets did you order?

[JonInMiddleGA]

I ordered the deluxe package for Classic Golf, and added on the 2002 PGA & Euro tour updates for $2 each.

Shortly after placing my order, I got a $4 refund with a note from Darlene to explain that the webpage hadn't been updated to reflect that the 2002 data was now included in the deluxe set at no additional charge.

Impressive honesty, IMO, since I would have never known the difference nor even thougt twice about it.

The package is above average for the genre, IMO. The data & instructions come in a ring binder on regular paper, the game charts are on heavier stock & are easy to read. There's also a few manual scoresheets although I spent a little time to set up a few Excel worksheets to manage those for myself.

[Tekneek]

I'm not sure where this falls on my list of priorities, but I am definitely going to add these to it. I really am not into golf, but the game sounds like fun.

[RPI-Fan]

Get hockey then Tekneek.

(BTW, I'm fairly certain you're a fan, based on some posts over on the Islanders Fanhome forum)

[Tekneek]

Oh, I should have said I would get them BOTH. Hockey because that is my favorite sport, and Golf only because the game sounds interesting.

By the way, that could have been a different Tekneek, ya know...

Seems like it has been a while since I've posted over there.

[RPI-Fan]

Yea', the posts I recall from you were from the middle of last season at the latest.