Rivets is a post-apocalyptic board wargame published by Metagaming Concepts in 1977.
Rivets is a post-apocalyptic board wargame published by Metagaming Concepts in 1977.
Rivets is a two-player game featuring combat between robotic tanks, taking place after the human race has been annihilated. [1] The game posits that gangs of semi-intelligent robots roam the landscape, fighting with other gangs over sources of spare parts. [2]
The microgame, packaged in a ziplock bag, comes with [2]
The two players agree on a point value for their gangs, and secretly "buy" various robot models up to the point limit.
The players program their robots' movements in secret and reveal their moves simultaneously. The winner is the player whose robot gang survives the combat.
Metagaming Concepts pioneered the concept of the minimalist ziplock-packaged microgame in 1974. Three years later, the MicroGame line published Rivets, a microgame designed by Robert Taylor with artwork by Brian Wilson. [2]
In the inaugural edition of Ares Magazine (March 1980), David Ritchie was not impressed by this game, finding it boring and predictable, saying, "If it all sounds slightly silly ... it is. This one is simple, and should be played by players with the average intelligence of an electric can opener. An average game lasts three-quarters of an hour." He concluded by giving Rivets a very poor rating of 3 out of 9. [1]
In the October 1980 issue of Fantastic , game designer Greg Costikyan called the game "one of my personal favorites ... It was a cute game." [3]
In Issue 36 of Phoenix (March–April 1982), S.N. Goodwin found too many acronyms in the rules, using as an example, "If a BCPC attacks a TB (PTA RBs) and rolls an AR on the CRT, do you treat it as NE?" Goodwin also found the thin counters and the small map "the worst features of the game [...] hopelessly small for sustained e.g. Club, play." However, he thought the actual game was challenging and enjoyable, calling it "quite exceptional value in terms of its sustained interest value." He concluded "Even if you don't like [science fiction], for £2 why not give this one a try?" [2]
In Issue 27 of Simulacrum, Brian Train noted, "There is enough variation in the types of robots, combined with the ability to re-program them during the game, to keep trying out new strategies and force mixes for some time." [4]
In Issue 35 of Warning Order, Matt Irsik commented, "Definitely one of the more quirkier sci-fi games you'll ever see.[...] A lot of fun." [5]
G.E.V. is a science fiction board wargame that simulates combat in the near future between supertanks and other futuristic weaponry. The game was designed by American game designer Steve Jackson as a sequel to his Ogre board game when he was working for Metagaming Concepts. When Jackson left Metagaming to form his own company, he took the rights to both G.E.V. and Ogre with him, and all subsequent editions have been produced by Steve Jackson Games.
WarpWar is a science fiction board wargame published by Metagaming Concepts in 1977 that simulates interstellar combat. It was the fourth in Metagaming's MicroGame series.
Melee is a board wargame designed by Steve Jackson, and released in 1977 by Metagaming Concepts. In 2019, Melee was revived and re-released by Steve Jackson Games.
Chitin: I is a science fiction microgame published by Metagaming Concepts in 1977 in which bands of intelligent insects vie for resources.
StarGate is a science fiction board game published by Simulations Publications, Inc. (SPI) in 1979 in which players wage combat via spaceships.
Annihilator & One World are two board wargames released in one package by Metagaming Concepts in 1979 as the 14th addition to its MicroGame line.
Hot Spot is a science fiction board wargame published by Metagaming Concepts in 1979 that simulates the battle for possession of a molten planet.
Vector 3 is a science fiction combat microgame published by Simulations Publications, Inc. (SPI) in 1979.
Holy War is a science fiction board wargame published by Metagaming Concepts in 1979 in which two groups battle each other inside a pocket universe.
Ice War is a board wargame published by Metagaming Concepts in 1978 that hypothesizes a Eurasian attack against American oilfields in Alaska.
Olympica, subtitled "The U.N. Raid on Mars, 2206 A.D.", is a science fiction microgame published by Metagaming Concepts in 1978.
Black Hole is a science fiction board wargame published by Metagaming Concepts in 1978 as part of its MicroGame line.
Invasion of the Air-eaters is a science fiction near-future board wargame published by Metagaming Concepts in 1979 in which aliens invaders attempt to replace the oxygen in Earth's atmosphere with sulfur dioxide.
Ram Speed, subtitled "Naval Warfare in the Bronze Age", is a two-player microgame published by Metagaming Concepts in 1980 that simulates naval combat between galleys in the Mediterranean during the Bronze Age when the preferred method of attack was ramming a ship.
Dimension Demons is a science fiction board wargame published by Metagaming Concepts in 1981 as part of its MicroGame line.
The Fury of the Norsemen is a two-player board game published by Metagaming Concepts in 1980.
Helltank is a science fiction board wargame published by Metagaming Concepts in 1981 as part of its MicroGame line. The game simulates combat in the future between a supertank and more conventional forces.
Trailblazer is a science fiction microgame game published by Metagaming Concepts in 1981 that simulates interstellar trading. Critics found the game tedious, with an unexpectedly large amount of bookkeeping involved.
Starleader: Assault! is a science fiction microgame published by Metagaming Concepts in 1982 that was designed to introduce the rules of combat with firearms for a forthcoming science fiction role-playing game that did not get published before Metagaming went out of business.
Sticks & Stones is a board wargame published by Metagaming Concepts in 1978 that is set in the Neolithic Age.