Off The Page Games
- Daniel Nixon
- 10 minutes ago
- 3 min read
In 2020 Jay Cormier, an accomplished game designer already, created Off the Page Games He's also a big comic book fan. A perfect future Yeti, amirite? Off the Page Games (OTPG) creates board games based on creator-owned comic books. While we have plenty of Marvel and DC themed games in the board game space, Jay is helping bring the lesser-known comics to a larger crowd.
Mind MGMT: The Psychic Espionage "Game"
Type of Game: Hidden Movement, Deduction
Number of Players: 1-5
Age: 13+
Designer: Jay Cormier and Sen-Foong Lim
Artist: Matt Kindt
Mind MGMT is a hidden movement game, where one player, the Recruiter, moves secretly around a board confusing their opponents and hoping to not get caught. The rest of the players, Rogue Agents, try to deduce where the Recruiter has been or is, leading to their capture and winning the game.
A great cat and mouse game where, as the Recruiter, you are laughing or dying inside as you hear the Rogue Agents discussing their theories of where you are or have been and their plan to catch you. Being an Agent provides just as much fun as you get into the head of the Recruiter and use your abilities to pinpoint what part of the board he "definitely is in. Trust me!!!"
Harrow County: The Game of Gothic Conflict
Type of Game: Asymmetric Combat, Action Selection, Territory Control
Number of Players: 1-3
Age: 12+
Designer: Jay Cormier & Shad Miller
Artist: Tyler Crook
Harrow County was the first game I encountered that made me aware of OTPG. Previously, I had first heard of Harrow County the comic when I asked fellow CBY contributor Jimmy Gaspero for some good new-to-me comics to check out. Cullen Bunn and Tyler Crook's epic tale was one of the first he mentioned. Within days I was finished and while looking around for all I could find about it, I came across the game and knew it was a game Jimmy and I needed not only to play, but to bring attention to our readers.
An asymmetric strategy game, where players play as the many characters in the game fighting to save or destroy the people of Harrow County. Action selection is used to help you on your mission with a hex-based board and a cube tower built into the box!!!! Highly tactical and potential for a third player to jump in.
See our full review here!
Corps of Discovery: A Game Set in the World of Manifest Destiny
Type of Game: Deduction, Puzzle,
Number of Players: 1-4
Age: 14+
Designer: Jay Cormier and Sen-Foong Lim
Artist: Matthew Roberts
Lewis and Clark and the Corps of Discovery are tasked with exploring the vast unknown West by President Jefferson. Find travel routes, new scientific discoveries, find trade partners and kill minotaurs. All common knowledge.
A co-operative deduction game, based on Manifest Destiny written by Chris Dingess, has the players exploring a map of resources, each with their own placement rules, hoping to complete an overall objective. The resources will be used to complete challenges that will quickly expire as the days go on.
Two chapters are provided in the base game with different maps, components, mechanisms and goals. Additional expansions are available as well incorporating traitors, new monsters and fog!
Cryptid Creator Corner, co-host Jimmy Gaspero, spoke with Jay about Corps of Discovery, 2nd edition and also Corps of Discovery DUO, the latest from Off the Page Games.
Grendel: The Game of Crime and Mayhem
Type of Game: Many
Number of Players: 1-4
Age: 14+
Designer: Alara Cameron and Sen-Foong Lim
Artist: Matt Wagner & Others
Taking place during the Seaboard Massacre, the four factions( Grendel, Argent, the Mob and the Police) all fight for control of New York City.
Each faction has their own mechanism.
Grendel: Bag pull
Argent: Push your luck
The Mob: Dice allocation
The Police: Rondel
Control of the three areas of NYC are fought over and victory points obtained. Another unique component by OTPG are the building see saw structures. Where each faction is placing weighted tokens in them. When one has enough weight in it and "pops" players enter the Mayhem Phase, with the player having the majority goes first. After the Mayhem Phase, points are given to the factions, also uniquely. After the third Mayhem Phase, the game ends and the player with most Victory Point wins.
I only play tested two rounds of Grendel at PAX Unplugged this past year, but I'm already itching to play again and think this will likely take over as my favorite OTPG game.
