Jimmy Okolica
United States
Washington Township
Ohio
-
Who I am/ Who Might Find This Useful
My gaming habits have changed over the past year and these days I tend to play very few solo games or games with my kids; instead, most of my plays are 2-player with my girlfriend (who is an avid gamer) or Agricola on Sundays or occasional games with groups on Friday night. As a result, my focus has been much more on games that are a bit more meaty, play well with 2 and can be played with more on occasion.
So the most important things for me are: (1) meaty (I'm looking for games with tough choices and meaningful decisions), (2) number of players/ scalability, (3) playing time, (4) re-playability (doesn't have to go on forever, but at least 20-30 games before it gets old) (5) player interaction (I don't mind multi-player solitaire but my girlfriend like the competitiveness and opportunity for screwage), (6) downtime (7) mechanics (something different to help me justify getting it) and (8) the extras - theme and components (not necessary but a nice touch).
Number of times I've played: 10 (8 2-player games; 2 3-player game)
Overview
A 15 - 20 minute puzzle game. 16 tiles are revealed one at a time. Each player places an identical tile in their city evenutally forming a 4x4 grid. Each player may optionally place one meeple on the just placed tile or move an already placed meeple one square. At the end of the game, yellow Attractions with at least 1 meeple score points for the size of the attraction plus the number of red Terraces adjacent; green Parks with at least 1 meeple score points for the size of the park plus the number of blue Waters adjacent; and red Terraces with a meeple score points for the number of unobstructed (not blocked by a red Terrace or yellow Attraction) orthogonal blue Water and green Parks.
Meaty (1 = luck-fest, 10 = brain hurts when done)
For a 15 minute game, I'd call it meaty. Each turn you've got to weigh the odds of waiting for a better tile versus placing it where it will do the most good at the moment (potentially limiting yourself if something better comes along). Also, you've got to decide whether to place a new meeple or keep your short and dwindling supply in reserve and move an existing meeple to a better scoring location. Given that you're placing 13 tiles (after the initial 3 during set up), each turn is a bit less than a minute. So, I'd say it's relatively meaty. Score: 8
Number of Players/ Scalability (1 = only works with 3+ players, 10 = great with 2 and with more)
This is multi-player solitaire so it plays as well with 2 as 3 or 4 (or more if you've got multiple copies of the game). Score: 10
Playing Time
15 minutes? Talk about a perfect filler or an easy way to end the night after a game of Farmers of the Moor. And since it's multi-player solitaire, add as many players as you'd like; it won't take any longer Score: 10
Re-playability (1 = 5 times and I'm done, 10 = 50 games and still going strong)
I've played this 10 times in about a week. I can see this game easily hitting 50 plays in the next month or two, especially when adding in solo plays. Sure, I can see it getting repetitive after about 50 - 100 plays but it would be real easy to then create an expansion with new tiles. I suspect this will have long term re-playability although I may burn out on it periodically. Score: 10
Player Interaction (1 = multi-player solitaire, 10 = messing with your opponent is the key to success)
Multi-player solitaire. The only interaction is accusing your opponents of copying you. Score: 1
Downtime (1 = I have time to do my taxes between moves, 10 = I don't have time to make my moves on BGO)
Maybe 20 to 30 seconds a turn if you're playing with someone prone to AP (like me). The game is over in 15 minutes... how much downtime could there be?Score: 10
Mechanics (1 = been there/done that, 10 = I've never seen that before)
While I don't personally own a puzzle game like this, I know they exist. In fact, I think you could consider it a cross between Take it Easy/Take it to the Limit and Carcassonne. That said, the mechanic is definitely more unique than not. Score: 8
Extras
This was the only area I was disappointed. Overall, the components are good. The meeples are like Carcassonne and the tiles are actually a bit bigger and thicker than Carc. However, I would have liked to see each set of 24 tiles with a color to match the meeples on the back. Yes, it's a small thing but the additional production cost would have been minimal and I think it would have made the presentation nicer. Still, it's really just a little nit. Score: 7
Summary:
This game will be coming with me everywhere. It replaces Hive as my go-to filler because it handles up to 4 (although it is bulkier to carry). The mechanics are fresh (for me) and there's enough brain burn to keep me interested for a while to come. Personal Score: 9
-
B Mendez
United States
Eau Claire
Michigan
-
You might enjoy Factory Fun
-
Andy Andersen
United States
Newark
Delaware
-
Thanks for the review.
-
Kathy Sheets
United States
Port Saint Lucie
Florida
-
Thank you very much! Your concise overview explained the scoring questions I had. I don't know why I was having so much trouble 'getting' it.
-
|
|
