USD ($)
EUR (€)
Luke Pickles
April didn’t feel as much of a gamey month for me. I had a whole host of other things happening so I didn’t feel like I had the time to get down and play as much as I usually do. But it turned out, that’s not the case! 82 plays of 44 games is pretty good going. A lot on Board Game Arena but still, it all counts!
The three big standouts for me though were for a whole host of different reasons. Firstly, Final Girl, the solo only horror game where you take on the role of a “Final Girl,” the last survivor against the killer. I went up against Inkanyamba in the Slaughter in the Groves expansion and managed to win by the skin of my teeth! I’m not a fan of the horror genre, but I am getting more into my solo games this year and Final Girl really impressed me. Definitely one to keep going back to.
Woodcraft was next, a game all about making stuff out of wood and using a clever action selection system that makes the actions left behind more powerful as the game goes on. I love the theme and the art style, and even though we played the game wrongly, making the game a lot harder, I wanted to get the game on the table immediately. I loved how tight the game felt, with just 14 turns to do everything in. Brilliant!
The last one was Tiletum – the ugly duckling of a game. The games artwork is very beige and Euro-y but the game behind the artwork is a whole lot of fun! I can’t pin down what I enjoyed about it but I definitely want to give it another go very soon.
Matthew Thomasson
Another month has gone by and a host of games have been played. However, only a few can be talked about here, so lets crack on.
My most played game (in terms of hours and plays) has to be the Pokemon: trading card game, specifically Battle Academy. My son has recently discovered Pokemon with a passion and taken to the card game like a Squirtle to water. It has the trading card game troupes of booster packs and deck building but the Battle Academy has three pre-built decks that you can play straight out of the box. Whilst not a complicated game to learn it has a very good tutorial that walks you through the first few turns. Very accessible and a great IP based game that is not only fun but also has some strategy. You can stick with the surface level of play and pre-built decks or go deep into the deck building side, the choice is yours. Take a team of Pokemon and battle it out with your opponent to see who can win the most prizes. It has support cards which can give you the advantage as well as Pokemon evolution and weakness/resistance damage. We have been having a blast with this one.
Caverna, a classic from Uwe Rosenburg has seen a lot of table time in the past month, mainly down to the expansion - Forgotten Folk - which introduces asymmetrical player powers. The core game itself is great but the expansion adds a decent amount of content to keep it fresh. Players will be growing crops, constructing buildings, mining, gathering resources and going on expeditions all in a bid to score the most points. It is very sandbox in its nature and you the player can choose what you want to do. This is one of my favourite Uwe games.
Other honourable mentions include Marvel United, Terraforming Mars: Ares Expedition, Ark Nova, Akropolis and Earth (more on that in a future feature). It has been a mixed month of quick playing games and Euros and I have loved every minute.
Kirsty Hewitt
This month we have been playing some older favourites. You know, the games which over time move to the back of the cupboard. I love shiny new games too, but sometimes it's nice to give some older games some love!
Riverboat has some nice choices but also a great flow. The different phases of each round are clearly set out. They also make sense - you plant crops, harvest them, and use the income to hire boats. I like the small decisions that you have to make and the impact they have on your strategy in the game.
Village is a game which didn't gel with my family. But when I moved out, I "acquired" it, and it's never going back! Village still feels a lot different to a lot of other games out there. Taking actions by taking coloured cubes which can then be used in other actions later is a neat idea. I also like the consideration of which workers you age, trying to get the most out of them before they leave the board. But not leaving it too late there are no spaces left in the village chronicle!
Wingspan has also been on the table quite a bit this month. Wingspan is always enjoyed as a five player game when we visit my family. But we hadn't played it as a two player game for a long time. This month we righted that and ended up playing back to back games. Wingspan with five is good fun, as you get a lot of things from other people. Whilst there is not so much interaction with two players, it plays quickly and, especially with the European expansion , there is plenty to do.
I have enjoyed my month of older games. Looking forward to seeing what May brings!
Matthew Wilson
This month I discovered Voyages, a nice little printable roll and write from Postmark games. With nothing more than a printed sheet of paper, a pen and three six sided dice, players take to the high seas in search of treasure and the right to call themselves the most successful captain. Me and my friends i play games with always love a good roll and write and Voyages has quickly become our new go to.
The game has you use the shared dice rolls to work out which direction, and how far you will travel on the map. Each play starts to plot their course across the ocean with their pen and can begin to collect the various icons on the map. Collecting cargo allows you to sell it when you reach a port, exploring unnavigated areas of water allows you to rack up points for the end of the game, and gathering more sailors to join your crew lets you manipulate dice rolls to help you better navigate the seas. Once all players have the hang of it, its a speedy little race to plunder the seas, sell it all for profit, and claim victory as a wealthy captain. Voyages is nice and simple to teach, but has enough going on to keep it interesting. It is a game of staring deeply at 3 dice on a table, calculating what's your best option, while all the while keeping an eye on your opponents sheets to make sure they aren't running away into the lead too much.
The game includes multiple maps, each with their own ruleset, and Postmark says that buying it now will include all future content made for the game which is pretty cool. Depending on how many friends you have, and how much ink you have in your printer, Voyagers is playable for one to a hundred players. If you like nautical adventures and crossing boxes off on a sheet of paper, then I highly recommend Voyages.