Old Star Wars Card Game

By TheHil, in Star Wars: The Card Game

spalanzani said:

Has anyone else ever stepped back and taken a look at just how immersed in the past Star Wars fans tend to be? Everything was always so much better way back when, and whatever is out now, or upcoming, is always never going to be as good as what was once, way back when. I suppose the ultimate expression of all this is how the Classic Trilogy is much, much better than the Prequel Trilogy, and as such the Prequels should all be burned in the fires of hell, or whatever it is... (I was almost going to say "Mustafar" then, but that would just be too ironic)....

You have some great points in there. I guess I would only respond by saying that if something was perfect to start with, then sometimes the new is far inferior to what came before. In reference to the films themselves, the reason that IV-VI are superior is because with Star Wars (1977), Lucas was a hungry young filmmaker who cared about the story because he didn't have the effects to do what he envisioned, and the screenplays for V and VI were written by Lawrence Kasdan and neither was directed by George Lucas. Also, the producer, Gary Kurtz, was known to disagree with George Lucas and point out when things weren't quite great, yet. He quite halfway through the production of Return of the Jedi, and was replaced by, THE-BIGGEST-YES-MAN-TO-EVER-HAVE-LIVED, Rick McCallum. Just look at the behind the scenes documentaries to the prequels. You can see it on people's faces that they think George's ideas are ridiculous, but they don't say anything.

In regards to the Card Game, Decipher's version of Star Wars was so brilliantly conceived that when WotC came out with theirs it was a big "Seriously? This is the Card Game?" It was abysmal. Now, I am looking forward to FFGs LCG version very much (as I'm sure everyone else here is). It looks like it will be a lot of fun. I think that people are talking about the Decipher one simply because we're bored and nostalgic because we have no NEW news on the upcoming game.

I hate to continue the praise for Deciphers Star Wars CCG here on FFG's Star Wars LCG forum. However, I have to agree with the consensus. Star Wars CCG was the best CCG I have ever played. It wasn't perfect. Toward the end, it started to creep a little toward overly complex side. Up through Death Star II, they were pretty solid. After Hoth, it started to get a little overwhelming for new players. Still, nothing beats deploying DLOS Vader (and some Storm Trooper fodder) to a (//) battlefield where your opponent doesn't have any presence and force draining the heck out of them while they struggle to build up a enough troops to take you out.

What a great game. While I don't think we can compare it to SW:LCG, Decipher set the bar pretty high for a Star Wars card game.

Definitely. I only ever collected the Decipher CCG through Death Star II. I avoided everything that they added after that. The EU cards just looked bad, and the Defensive Shields made the game almost unplayable for people who were purists like me. Also, the SWCCG Player's Committee has released several Virtual Sets. I tried to play someone on Holotable (the online player) and they used defensive shields and virtual cards and I was basically done by the end of the second turn. So, yeah. If they had stopped with Death Star II or just kept it OT only, it would have continued to be a great game.

I have to admit, all this talk of the CCG has me thinking a trip to ebay may be in order shortly!!! lengua.gif

I think mostly it has to due with the fact that in the case of Star Wars the old stuff is FAR superior. Its not the same in many franchises the new Star Trek blew away pretty much all their recent efforts for example. As, for why people are getting nostalgic about Decipher's SWCCG here its probably due to the fact it was one of the best selling/most respected CCGs ever made so it would be hard not to bring it up. Especially when FFG hasn't given us much to talk about. Would love to see some demo cards, or anything really. Hint Hint... lengua.gif

But on a side point comparing an LCG to A CCG is apples to oranges. They are a different beast entirely. I would love to see someone use the WARS engine for a card game someday, but I doubt it would work for what FFG has in mind. Maybe as a seperate project if this sells well. Additional hint hint... lengua.gif

@herozeromes: My group that still plays SWCCG only allows Premier through DS2. The last time I played in an open tourney I got absolutely destroyed by podracing. PODRACING! enfadado.gif

To the best of my understanding Decipher rushed out the Episode 1 sets tin an attempt to sway Lucas from pulling the license. He did it anyways when he bought a percantage of Hasbro (I believe it was) which owned WOTC. So we tend to consider those sets as a horrible mistake and we do not allow them. I also have never supported the player council and thier virtual sets. So if you are looking at that stretch of productio run from Premier through DS2 it was the greatest run of CCG play in my life. Hopefully this one will do a bit to replace some of the bitter ending it had...

It's not so much looking at the past through rose-colored glasses. As has been stated above, the Star Wars CCG was just brilliantly conceived. The gameplay was great, the cards were well-designed. It allowed for growth, and the addition of new mechanics.

Even the episode I stuff was usable. Sure the game suffered from power creep and it became overly complex near the end of it's run (which is why I am a fan of closed tournaments). I would trust FFG to make a great game, but I would like them to re-do the game using the WARS engine.

Such a great system deserves to have another chance. It's a shame that a beautifully designed game system is left to die.

I was also a huge Decipher Star Wars CCG player back in the day and it was one of the greatest games I've ever played.

That said, times have changed and I'm ready for something fresh. I'm really excited for this game after reading the reports from people who demo'ed this. I've been loving these new co-op LCG games FFG has been making. If this new Star Wars game is similar to the Lord of the Rings LCG but takes place in my all-time favorite universe (Star Wars) I will love the heck out of it.

That pretty much sums up my feelings towards the game, as well! LotR has been providing me with many hours of fun since I stumbled across it back in September, and at this point I'm thinking even if FFG were to merely paste SW cards onto the exact same mechanics of LotR, I'd surely be in heaven!

I suppose I am at something of a disadvantage, having never played the CCG, though it does seem that everyone bar none has nothing but praise for the game. The TCG is a more curious beast, as it seems to polarize fans who either despite it utterly, or think it had a bad press, but then a replacement to anything that was so universally loved is bound to do that. I just hope that the LCG comes after a sufficient lull in Star Wars card gaming that people don't outright hate its guts before they even so much as hold a card in their hands.

I feel quite sorry for a game that is condemned while still in the womb, metaphorically speaking. And when people start to talk about not bothering with it simply because it may be delayed, there really is no hope...

Well, I think that Dune ccg was the best card game and Star Wars ccg just the second best ;-) IMHO

But yeah it was good game and oboy a complex, with all those special rules. Sabbac, asteroids etc. It is not only negative thing. It allowed very thematic game play. Allmost everything that you could do in movies was available in the card game. Guite amasing actually!

The virtual sets are giving some new interesting ideas to SW ccg society, but it is a fine line of making interesting and powerfull cards, without making them too powerfull. We still play it from time to time, but when faq is several hundred pages long, it is not the easiest to grasp. Total remake with more balanced cards would be nice, but It is hard to say if it would sell well enough? It may be too complex for new players...

Well, in anyway I am guite happy to see an co op alternative in SW universum!

May the force be with the old master and new padavan!

Well, actually NetRunner was the best CCG ever...

spalanzani said:

I just hope that the LCG comes after a sufficient lull in Star Wars card gaming that people don't outright hate its guts before they even so much as hold a card in their hands.

I am a rabid fan of the Decipher game, but I do feel that this one will be equally entertaining at the very least. The ability to play solo (no pun intended*) is really exciting, as I have trouble convincing people to play what is, essentially, a dead game.

*Upon further reflection, I have to admit that, were this not a Star Wars game, I would have chosen to use alone instead.