A Tale of Two GridZones

I am pleased to report that progress is moving fast on the new editions of GridZone!  Editions? That's right.  Not a type-o. This time, GZ will come in two flavors:

• Turf Wars 2nd Edition
  In this upgrade, matchups (by position) and ball distribution are more balanced. Interceptions and sacks get a slight increase too.  Readability of the charts has been improved. I've also decided to go back to the team sheets. Over time, the team card format just didn't feel right for gridball. Otherwise, the game remains the same.
• Classic GridZone
  In the past decade, some of you may remember the evolution from the original, card-driven GridBall (2o13), followed by the transition to a dice-based model (also 2o13). I've heard from a handful of guys who still prefer the simplicity of the old game over the more complex matchups in Turf Wars. The original game mainly referred to one Key Player per play and used his skill level as a dice modifier to get the final result. So your eyes don't have to search around as much to resolve a play. The Classic version will bring back that experience while making it more consistent with the Turf Wars expression of the sport.

I enjoy both games.  It's kind of like switching back-and-forth between Strat Basic and Strat Advanced.

In Classic, each unit features 7 distinct ranks, this streamlines the randomness of determining player involvement. There are 3 star ranks, followed by two diamonds, and two spot ranks. For all ranks, solid black is the higher-ranking symbol.

The advantage of this model is that players appear at their actual position in formation, instead of the left-to-right order used in Turf Wars. Notice #72 Bryson Parrish. He's the center and the anchor for this O-line. Also, each team will have a Ball Distribution table, indicating receptions and carries on plays in which the Key player was someone else.

So there is a quick look at where things are headed! I am getting pumped to get this game back out there. I didn't realize how much I missed it until I started working on it again.  Both editions will likely be released in PDF in two or three weeks. From there, I'll think about taking pre-orders for a print run.