TIGSource: GUBS

GUBS

Alehkhs — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 00:00:00 +0000

If you are looking for a computer game that is indie to the core, look no farther than “GUBS: Pixel Edition.”

What makes this an indie-game of indie-games is the past of the project. “GUBS” started around 1992 as a series of doodles in the margins of a child’s homework. That child, a young Cole Medeiros, went on to make a home-made deck of cards created with pencil on squares of index-card. The cards depicted small creatures that would take the title ‘Gubs,’ and other cards depicted the world of these creatures.

Through the game that took shape over the following years, with cards being added and scraped, a story began to take shape, of Gubs and the timeless wars fought between them. With each new version, Cole would play GUBS with his brother Alex and their friends, trying to find a balanced game.

As the years passed and the game developed, Cole looked into printing a professional deck of his cards. After years of trying different processes and even sending sample decks to publishing companies, Medeiros decided to self-publish the game, and in 2007, the “GUBS: A Game of Wit and Luck” went on sale as a finished project.

Of course, this is a site for “computer” games, and so the story obviously does not end there.

In 2008, Medeiros’ close friend, Matthew Griffin, one of the developers behind the game “Wanderlust: Rebirth,” began the process of developing “GUBS: Pixel Edition.” Simply a single, 7MB executable, “GUBS:PE” contains an impressive amount of polish, containing all of the official art-work from the card-game, as well as a very intuitive interface. Cards are drawn and played with a smooth “click/drag” system. Players of “GUBS:PE” are pitted against two very-competent computer-controlled players (with two levels of difficulty), and within a few quick games, even the most-unfamiliar player to the card-game world will understand the rules. What they may not understand however, is the true depth and complexity of the game.

GUBS’ plays like how I would imagine a cross between card games like “Magic: The Gathering” and “UNO” would play. Each player plays and protects their cards while at the same time attempting to steal or discard their opponents’ cards. Yet, GUBS is not a card-collecting game. Each game is played entirely out of one 72-card deck, evening the playing field as far as “who has what” is concerned.

The rules of GUBS are fairly simple, whoever has the most free or “barricaded” Gubs on the table at the end of the game, wins. However, it is GUBS’ very concept of “end of game” makes each round excitingly frantic: within the deck, there are three “letter” cards, which together spell out “GUB.” When the title is complete on the table, the game is done, and scoring takes place.

Until the three letter cards are drawn, players fight to not only protect their own Gubs, but to steal, trap, or kill those of their opponents. As each player takes their turns, they can draw new cards and play or discard those they already have. “Lure” cards allow you to take Gubs from another player’s hand. Various “Barricade” cards can be placed over Gubs on the table, protecting them to an extent, but even these barriers can be overcome with certain cards. Natural disasters, monstrous creatures, espionage, traps; all these fates can be set against your Gubs. A player might go from having the best hand to having nothing at all in a single draw of the deck. Better yet (and inducing even more paranoia), each player can keep up to 8 cards off the table and hidden from their opponents’ view. Remember though, if a Gub is not on the table (or trapped) at the end of the game, then it counts for nothing.

GUBS:PE is also perhaps the most unique “share-ware” I’ve ever seen. I say this because while GUBS:PE is entirely free to download and play, and if you are content with the computer-controlled opponents (which are very competent at crushing you game after game),then you will be content simply with GUBS:PE. However, there is a “Buy” button on the main menu, and if you are interested in playing against friends, then this is for you. The button leads not to a purchase form for GUBS:PE though, but rather, allows you to purchase an actual GUBS deck.

Concerning the physical deck you will receive should you wish to play GUBS with friends, it is just as polished and colorfully illustrated as the ‘Pixel Edition’ would have you believe. In fact, there are several alternate images for some of the more common cards, and seeing these new illustrations was a pleasant surprise. The cards themselves are of good quality as well, and I was quite satisfied with the overall experience, from GUBS:PE to having a deck to play with against my friends and family.

Truly, it has been awhile since I have been so addicted to such a casual game, let alone a card-game, and I find myself wondering why this doesn’t just come as a default on my computer, right next to Solitaire and Minesweeper.

Game Page

"GUBS" by Matthew Griffin

Mon, 09 Mar 2009 09:09:40 +0000

My sarcasm detector did not go off… I assure you the AI (and shuffling of the deck) is really happening. =P

You are right about the game being luck-based, though. You can play a flawless game and still end up getting skunked due to bad draws. Still fun, though. =)

"GUBS" by rick

Mon, 09 Mar 2009 08:03:59 +0000

this is just a luck based game…and the AI is just a trick….its not the AI playing cleverly but the AI dealing crappy cards to you…Once i played a whole game without even one protection card…And the concept of game ending when you fine GUB… :(…..But the game is insanely addicting…

"GUBS" by Jotaf

Sun, 08 Mar 2009 20:50:43 +0000

Love it! I offered to translate it to Portuguese. I can assure you that the translation should be top-notch. I sent you a message through the contact form.

"GUBS" by Chris

Sun, 08 Mar 2009 03:02:44 +0000

OK, I’ll check out Kanga games.

I usually try to buy directly from the author first, but I suppose international orders are expensive to ship individually.

Thanks for fixing the form.

"GUBS" by Cole Medeiros

Fri, 06 Mar 2009 20:33:03 +0000

Contact form should be fixed. :) Sorry about that.

"GUBS" by Lucas Kanebley Tavares

Fri, 06 Mar 2009 19:36:34 +0000

I’ve been having a similar problem to Chris, the contact form’s been giving me 404’s.

I take it it’s from this line: Though I could be wrong, I think “testsite” shouldn’t be there.

Other than that. I’m Brazilian, you said that you didn’t charge anything extra for international shipment, but do you know how long it would take to arrive? I know people who are going to the US this week, if I ordered to their hotel, how long do you think it would take to get there (I suppose domestic shipping would be quicker). The recipient would be on Wilmington, Delaware.

Thank you

"GUBS" by Cole Medeiros

Fri, 06 Mar 2009 18:17:11 +0000

If you’re in Japan, try buying the game from Kanga Games. They are in Taiwan.

Sorry the Contact form is not working for you. I will try to figure out what is going on.

"GUBS" by Chris

Fri, 06 Mar 2009 13:33:31 +0000

I tried to go buy it, but I ran into a problem. I use a U.S. credit card to buy stuff on-line, but I live in Japan. PayPal won’t let me use a shipping address in a different country than my account.

You guys need to fix the contact form, I still get a 404 if I try to send a message. As much as I love TIGS comments, they’re not my preferred method of communication.

"GUBS" by Ohnemus

Fri, 06 Mar 2009 01:16:07 +0000

well the trick is to use lures early and often so that you’re consistently risking somebody else’s gubs.

Now in person, when you can’t tell at a glance exactly how many cards your opponents have, and how many cards are left in the deck, I’m sure playing defensively is a bigger risk. On the computer though you have much better data to guess how likely a clover merchant, plague, letter or whatever is likely.

don’t get me wrong I’m not saying my strategy is the best, for one of course, it only works if the other players are playing a more balanced defense/attack. and of course it’s important that there’s only three players, with 4-6 players the chances of that third letter coming up before you get a chance to play your gubs jumps etc. I’m just saying that in the confines of the computer version a defensive strategy is extremely effective.

"GUBS" by Cole Medeiros

Fri, 06 Mar 2009 00:49:32 +0000

That is definitely one strategy, but in practice its not always reliable because 3 cards in the deck can make you lose your entire hand (4 if you count the wild card). Plus the eight card limit can sneak up on you, forcing you to play or discard cards at bad times. Overall this can make you a lot less effective than the player that is constantly risking a few Gubs (almost putting them into play as decoys.)

"GUBS" by Ohnemus

Thu, 05 Mar 2009 22:30:31 +0000

Vs. the computer is actually pretty easy, just hold as many gubs as possible in you hand until the first 2 letters have been drawn, then play just enough to win at any given moment. During the rest of the match just play as many hazards as possible.

on easy that’s good enough to win 3/5 of the time and tie 1/5.

on expert same strategy applies but it’s more like win 1/2 the time.

I suspect in person though that doesn’t work so well because everyone can play like that.

"GUBS" by Cole Medeiros

Thu, 05 Mar 2009 18:04:06 +0000

Haha, the game can definitely be difficult. If you figure out some optimal strategies, your chances are greatly improved… but as you can probably tell, theres a good amount of luck involved.

I can generally beat the computer 1 out of 3 times. But with the Advanced AI turned on in the options I have a tough time trying to beat them. :)

"GUBS" by Sam-R-us

Thu, 05 Mar 2009 16:51:57 +0000

Dog, this game is hard!

Like, I think I’ve only managed to tie the computer, not win yet!

"GUBS" by Bleagle

Thu, 05 Mar 2009 16:16:51 +0000

@Mitch: I have to agree with you, but im at my moms house for 2 months or so and she only has an “old” Ibook G4 (no Intel). Now I really get to know how bad Mac support is. Im missing some great titles.

"GUBS" by Edward Green

Thu, 05 Mar 2009 14:29:31 +0000

If you have ever played a certain CCG in the Golden Era before it got confused with lots of new mechanics then Gubs feels a bit like that.

There are enough Combo’s and interrupts to keep the game interesting with different numbers of players too, and a good balance between recycling of cards and discarding.

"GUBS" by Cole Medeiros

Thu, 05 Mar 2009 10:01:20 +0000

I’m glad you guys are enjoying the game! Contact me through the website if you have any more questions or comments.

Cole Medeiros

"GUBS" by Ezuku

Thu, 05 Mar 2009 05:40:42 +0000

@anonymous

Yep, like Bootcamp

"GUBS" by Mark

Thu, 05 Mar 2009 04:40:16 +0000

cool

"GUBS" by Cole Medeiros

Thu, 05 Mar 2009 01:24:11 +0000

Thanks for all the comments!

Just to answer some questions I noticed, we do ship internationally and the price is the same as those decks shipped domestically.

We focused on a single player computer game mostly for simplicity’s sake. Also I wanted to emphasize that playing GUBS with other people around a table is the ideal experience. The table talk and back and forth of the game really shine.

For more reviews about the game, check out: http://www.boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/31808

"GUBS" by Anonymous

Thu, 05 Mar 2009 01:06:12 +0000

Yep, PHeMoX, and it goes both ways. Windows buyers miss out on a lot of good mac stuff.

"GUBS" by PHeMoX

Wed, 04 Mar 2009 22:53:53 +0000

Not so true, there’s a good bunch of Mac games these days.

Of course, needless to say, there’s plenty you’ll miss out on.

"GUBS" by Mitch

Wed, 04 Mar 2009 20:44:26 +0000

@Bleagle:

You knew when you bought a Macintosh that games weren’t an option.

"GUBS" by jsut

Wed, 04 Mar 2009 20:10:44 +0000

@Jacob

I get the impression they want people to buy a deck if they want to play with other folks. It’s a good idea – somewhat like providing a demo version.

"GUBS" by Jacob

Wed, 04 Mar 2009 19:33:59 +0000

Would the iPhone version have multiplayer? Maybe hotseat even, since you could just pass it around.

"GUBS" by Bleagle

Wed, 04 Mar 2009 19:31:37 +0000

Mac and Iphone versions would be great! And if you have time include PPC support, too : )