Vs. System 2PCG: AEW

I dug Vs. System back out and, as these things tend to go, persuaded another victim to spend money on it. Ten games across Vs. System 2PCG: AEW and The Boys were enough to remind me how readily this system pulls you back in. AEW is a standalone introduction: the wrestling theme gets a chuckle, but the game itself is rather flat and plain.

It does the introductory job very well, though. A typical AEW deck has roughly a third of the rules and iconography found in the other sets, so you can explain it in five minutes and have the person opposite playing competitively within half an hour. The rulebook gets a B, incidentally: brisk and clear, without making you hunt for symbols while someone is already hitting you.

That simplicity also brings the rough stuff. Games can snowball, with one player accelerating while the other tries to identify the precise moment the match slipped away. The Boys is more carefully considered, with slightly deeper deckbuilding and better contests; once AEW has taught your opponent in the shallow end, this is where you can push them in and let the proper tangle begin.

Neither set, however, reaches The Marvel Battles once the table is full of its thousands of available cards and more tournament-minded decks. That is where things get properly lively, and Marvel still feels like the game’s natural home. AEW remains very good value for money and an excellent way to bring someone into Vs. System; for it to stick, you merely need players and time — the two rarest components.