"Is Wargaming a Good Spectator Sport?" Topic

That's like – "Want to hear about my dream?"

I'm a big fan of Wil Wheaton's Tabletop. YouTube link

If someone can make an entertaining series about board games, I imagine it could be done with minis. The game would have to play fast and the video would need to edit out a lot of the boring stuff.

Watching someone else play live sounds incredibly boring, however.

It isn't a sport but certainly historical wargames can be presented in a way that is entertaining and informing for casual viewers.

Not for grumpy old TMP minis gamers, perhaps, but one always assumes they are content in their little worlds already.

Given a good topic, it is all in the presentation.

Phil

Nope. Watching wargaming is about as much fun as watching golf. That's why I don't understand the UK concept of the demonstration game.

I don't want to watch, I want to play.

If I am learning about a game, then I am interested in watching how it goes. Game reports interest me if I can glean how game mechanics work from the report. They also interest me to see how the rules handle the famous battle being played. Stuff like that. However, I would not really be interested in reading just to see the spectacle.

Only if heckling is involved….

Heckling and beer.

Well, I like 4/5 of the "only" votes, so let's call that a "yes".

And as Phil mentioned, definitely moreso beyond the old grumps crowd. Playing miniatures games at the FLGS which does mostly card and board games tends to draw spectators, especially the pretty games. X-Wing always draws them!

I could answered yes to several of these.

I vote 'no', but then I also do not like watching sport either. If I am not participating then it holds little interest for me. I look at games at shows and can be inspired by them, but I would not stand and spectate for the duration of a whole game.

I would say yes. I say that because when I am NOT playing, or visiting the traders so as to exchange gold for base metal, I take the time to examine other gamer's work and listen to how the rules are used.

I make it a point to steal liberally from other rules sets when I find a concept I like, or a mechanism I want to experiment with. I do the same with terrain, asking about how this or that was made, type of paints used, weathering, etc.

But you can learn a lot just by watching. Not just the good things, but who the poor game masters/umpires are, what set(s) of rules aren't working well or have too many charts, and so forth.

So I vote yes, with those caveats.

Yes, but the game needs to look good and it has to be a system I am either interested in getting into or one I already own and love.

I love reading and seeing a well done AAR that was played on a well terrained table and played with nicely painted minis.

No. I generally watch while my army gets trashed, and I can't make an activation roll. Seriously, I hope the answer turns out to be yes, because I like doing AARs.