February 2, 2018: The Munchkin CCG Rocks The East Coast: A Prerelease Report

We're back from a whirlwind tour of North America, teaching gamers how to play the Munchkin Collectible Card Game! Phil already reported on his Wisconsin journey, so those of us who journeyed to the east coast decided to talk about our events as well. First up is Ariel with her Florida report:

Over the weekend, I traveled to the Sunshine State to show gamers there the Munchkin Collectible Card Game – and the trip was a success! (Both because I got to teach lots of people to play and because I got to eat Cuban food.)

My first stop was Cool Stuff Games in Maitland (near Orlando), where the game got a uniformly positive response. These players came because they're fans of Munchkin, so there was a slight learning curve adjusting to a game with all-new rules. But once they got them, they were off, bluffing, hiring Monsters, and Kaboom!-ing with the best of them.  

I also hit up Sci Fi City Orlando to teach another group of excited players. One of them wrote a review of the experience on Boardgamegeek.com that says it all: The event was a lot of fun! A few of these players were grateful to hear that the Munchkin Collectible Card Game is a two-player experience, since before now, there wasn't a way for a couple to get some Munchkin time in at home when it's just the two of them.

My trip was through Baltimore and Washington, D.C., where I visited The Board & Brew, Games and Stuff, and the Compleat Strategist. I wanted to quickly give a shout out to the SJ Games fans who drove multiple hours to visit my demo at Games and Stuff, where we just kept demoing and teaching to whoever wanted a seat! By the end of the event, players were teaching other players, and everyone was having a blast! 

I also had the opportunity to visit Rick and the Game Trade Media crew in their Baltimore offices, where I got a behind-the-scenes tour of some of their incredible memorabilia, as well as their amazing recording studio. We even streamed a quick gameplay and booster-pack opening video for their Board Games and Beyond segment, which you can check out on Facebook. 

Rhea had a similar great time in Canada at Planet X Games, as well as Face to Face Games and Millenium Games in upstate New York.

These were packed events, with players taking home their choice of starter deck, and a lot of fresh faces that knew about Munchkin but were playing their first CCG, or vice versa. If you missed out, don't forget to let your local store know you want to preorder! You can use our preorder sheet; simply print it, fill it out, and give it to your local game store. That will not only reserve your game, it lets your store know that people are interested, so they know that they will get good use out of their organized-play kits. 

-- Hunter Shelburne