Publisher: Good Games Publishing
Player Count: 1-5 Players
Game Length: 60 Minutes
Complexity 2/5

As a competitive New York City dog walker, building an efficient business is the key to success. But when your business involves unpredictable 4-legged canines—each with their own unique preferences and personalities—you’ll often have to juggle the needs of the pets while still trying to stay on schedule in this thematically bright and family friendly board game. 

In Bark Avenue, you’ll be walking a variety of real-life dog breeds around the blocks of New York City, picking them up, giving them plenty of exercise and fun before dropping them back home. You’ll need to keep plenty of dog treats on hand and maybe a coffee or 2 to keep up with these energized pooches. Do a good job and you’ll receive great reviews as you watch your business grow and seek to become the most prestigious dog walker in NYC.

ON YOUR TURN

Bark Avenue is really about the dogs. There are 81 unique and beautifully illustrated dog breed cards in the game. While I don’t want to downplay the strategy, the real joy of the game will come from your appreciation of the dogs and their unique traits.

On your turn, you’ll be picking up dogs across the city. Each available dog has a home address where you’ll meet it. Once a dog is in your care, you’ll move across a map of New York City that’s based on real world locations.

Each dog has its own “speed” or movement available per turn as well as the length (or number of turns) it will need to be walked. Certain dogs will only get along with specific sized dogs and some dogs will want to just walk alone. There are ways to mitigate these challenges, but you’ll typically need to incorporate careful planning to ensure any dogs walked together will play nice.

While each dog will earn you a specific amount of money, garnering tips can certainly help out your cause. Owners love it when you take photos of the dogs, cater directly to the dogs needs (be it playing ball, visiting fire hydrants or splashing in water). This is also the only game I’ve ever played that rewards you for your dog taking a poop.

You’ll need to plan each dog’s journey so you’ll be able to drop it off at the right time. Miss your return appointment and you forgo tips and positive reviews.

The game plays over 17 turns, each turn introducing an event, change in the rules or modifying the available dogs. As your business rating increases, you’ll have access to bonuses such as extra dog treats or the ability to walk more dogs at once. In the end, the player with the most money is the winner.

ARTWORK & COMPONENTS

As I mentioned previously, the dog artwork is bright and cheery. The game’s 81 unique dogs are all based on real-life foster dogs across the United States. The dog illustrations are fun and really well done and will definitely appeal to dog fanatics. Additionally, the game board showcasing a stylizing layout of New York City helps further immerse you in the theme.

The game delivers what you’d expect from a high quality production. The rulebook does a fantastic job explaining the game and referencing the game’s more detailed aspects.

PROS & CONS

Vibrant, high quality artwork

Fun, friendly theme

Despite a bit of a learning curve with the iconography and some of the game’s cards, I was pleased with how easy the game was to learn.

Easy to teach

Theme matched well with the turn actions

Turns sometimes felt overly simple and little ho-hum

Efficiency puzzle where choices never felt too challenging leaving me a bit underwhelmed by the overall mechanics

WHY WOULD YOU LIKE THIS GAME?

There is no mystery here, this is a game for dog lovers. I’ve got a number of dog lovers in my family and we’ve played every dog game you can get your hands on. Taking everything into consideration, this is one of the best dog-themed implementations I’ve played. The developers certainly knew where they were going and did a great job catering to a pet-friendly audience.

WHAT IS THE BEST THING ABOUT THIS GAME?

I sound like a broken record, but the variety of dogs in the game is truly the best part. They’re all so bright, friendly and charming, it completely transcends the entire experience.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Bark Avenue is a rare game where the charm coming from the theme saves what could have been a somewhat lackluster experience. The actual actions of moving around the board and grabbing bonuses often felt like I was repeatedly moving in a circle. But that’s really the life of a dog walker and finding a puddle for Nova, my Teacup Pomeranian, to splash in or walking through the park to play frisbee with Nico, a Bernice Mountain Dog, brought the game to life. The colors and the dogs and location provides a really friendly and fun thematic experience even if you’re not met with the most thoughtful or engaging decisions.

That being said, I think Bark Avenue does a nice job bringing a slightly more challenging experience to a genre of board games that are typically very light and simple. To be truly effective in the game, you really need to engage the planning and it will sometimes require a little thought to make sure you’re running your dog business smoothly. It’s certainly not overly complicated for anyone over age 10, but it will require strategy. In the end, I think many are going to find a sweet spot in the game’s overall experience.

I was pleasantly surprised by Bark Avenue and the wonderful theme really won me over. It seems to be flying under the radar a bit and that may be due to so many similar themed games hitting the market, but Bark Avenue definitely has a lot of quality, standout points. This may be the best dog-themed game I’ve played.

Publisher: Pandasaurus Games
Player Count: 2-6 Players
Game Length: 25 Minutes
Complexity 2.25/5

In 2002, rapper Missy Elliott dropped a line that strangely describes Faraway when she spouted “Put your thing down, flip it and reverse it.” In Faraway, you’re going to be putting your thing down… then you’ll flip and reverse it. It’s really quite that simple.

Far from the modern music scene, players will be adventuring to a mysterious land full of strange characters, wonders and secrets… gaining fame as you seek balance in an ever shifting landscape.

In reality, you’re building a tableau of drafted tiles earning points through a variety of different combinations. The twist is after 8 tiles, you’ll reverse the entire order of tiles forcing you to score in reverse. It’s quite a trip for us linear thinking folks.

ON YOUR TURN

It’s the scoring twist that really helps Faraway standout. The game’s actions alone are fairly rudimentary: One any turn, players will simultaneously choose a tile from their hand and play it sequentially in a line in front of them. Players then draw new tiles from a community pot based on the lowest number tile played. If players played a tile larger than their previous tile, they gain a bonus card. Rinse and repeat.

I realize this is all very ambiguous, so let me briefly dive into the tiles that make the game run. Each tile in the game is unique, featuring a number, color, cool illustration and a combination of icons, scoring functions and scoring requirements. For example, a card may give you 2 points for every rock played, but you need 3 plant icons to trigger the action. On top of that, the card may have its own rock icon earning you an immediate 2 points if you’re able to meet the prerequisites. Bonus cards offer additional icons and scoring conditions to supplement your pursuits.

Enter the TWIST! 

A game consists of playing 8 tiles. Once the final tile is played, players will flip over all their tiles and reveal them one at a time in reverse order. Each tile will be scored based on what’s visible. So when you hit that tile giving you 2 points for each rock, you’ll need to have 3 plants visible as well as any rocks you hope to score. What this ultimately means is that you’ll have to rely on some pretty serious planning and a bit of luck to lock up your big time scoring ambitions.

We love to process things in linear fashion, so when a game like Faraway challenges the status quo, it can be a little jarring. Despite my best teaching efforts, Faraway is a game you have to play once to truly grasp. The idea of planning for the future so you can activate actions in reverse order will force you to look at Faraway in a different way.

ARTWORK & COMPONENTS

Each tile in Faraway is uniquely illustrated in a very stylized and vibrant look full of personality and flavor. The artwork does a nice job defining the game’s vibe. Whether the art is “your” style or not, it certainly helps Faraway stand out visually.

As far as components are concerned, you’re getting a stack of 68 tile/cards and 45 bonus cards. It’s a small box that doesn’t have a large footprint.

PROS & CONS

Unique scoring twist gives Faraway a fresh spin

Simple decisions feel weighty and challenging in the moment

Simultaneous play and simple turns make this a quick play

Card variety will force you to think on your toes and take unique paths each game

Game plays great at all player counts

Luck factor will occasional lead to a dud of a game

I often get stuck with cards that “lead nowhere”

WHY WOULD YOU LIKE THIS GAME?

This is a game for players in the market for a think-y, quick playing card game that feels fresh and different. It’s easy to teach, but the learning curve adds to the game’s mystique. Once the game’s “ah-ha’ moment hits, you’ll be singing the praises of Faraway.

WHAT IS THE BEST THING ABOUT THIS GAME?

The best thing the game has to offer is its spin on scoring. It’s a very simple twist, but I love how it forces you to plan and think differently. I imagine there’s a deeper metaphor about looking at life from a different angle, but for now, I’m just going to enjoy turning my cards around and scoring in reverse.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Faraway has been a huge delight and another solid, quick-playing, family-friendly game from the fine folks at Pandasaurs Games.

The game plays at a rapid pace, but the choices and turns feel deep and important. Each game, the lay of the cards will introduce some wrinkles on your standard strategy keeping you on your toes and keeping the game fresh. Every once and awhile you’ll get a dud. The tiles won’t fall just right and your luck may fail you. The upside is each game is over before you know it and you’re ready to go again.

It’s always refreshing to discover a new twist on board gaming and Faraway provided that for me. Unique in its ability to appeal to gateway gamers and more seasoned players, Faraway provides some serious mass appeal and fun. I highly recommend Faraway to any and everyone interested in board/card games.

Publisher: Tettix Games
Player Count: 2-6 Players
Game Length: 15-30 Minutes
Complexity 1.75/5

Competitors gather yearly at a secret location unbeknownst to the common man to participate in the Global Abomination Association’s monstrosity creation contest. Why do they do this? It’s simply: to create the most hideous abomination the world has ever seen! Muuuhahahaha!

Hideous Abomination is a fast-paced, family-friendly, tile-laying and set collection game full of bizarre creatures, underhanded interaction and Frankenstinian achievements and awards.

I had the opportunity to review the game’s first edition a couple of years ago and I was truly curious to see what upgrades, changes and enhancements have been made. You’re welcome to read my original review HERE, but I’ll cover all aspects below for players new to the game as well as those looking to see if this new edition demands a place in your collection.

ON YOUR TURN

I was originally drawn to Judson Cowan’s Hideous Abomination thanks to the silly theme and strange artwork. Cowan’s providing double duty here serving as both the design and illustrator. The game features a monstrous 190 card deck featuring tons of different illustrated monster styles broken down into heads, hands, tails and various other limbs and structures. While this might seem disgusting… it is, but in a cartoony, humorous and family-friendly sort of way.

Light on rules, Hideous Abomination provides easy access to a game that can be introduced in less time than it takes to read this entire review.

In Hideous Abomination, you’re constructing your own unique creature out of spare monster parts and earning end game awards for a variety of things such as having the most attached eyeballs or fingers.

On your turn you roll the monster dice and do 1 of a series of actions ultimately ending with the opportunity to add a spare part tile card to your creature (or possibly an opponent’s).

The primary die roll actions mainly revolve around gaining new monster parts. This can be accomplished by drawing from a community pool or from the tile deck.

Additionally, you might roll the opportunity to dig through the discarded tile deck or steal a part from an opponent. There are limitations on what you can and can’t steal, but this can definitely cause trouble for your opponents. The final die action is to draw an award card.

Award cards introduce new end-game scoring objectives throughout the game. Each game starts with 3 grand prize scoring objectives, but it’s not crazy to have 7, 8 or 9 new awards to pursue before the end of the game. These awards are awarded to the player with the most of something. The most hands, heads or ears for example.

Stolen body parts can lead to embarrassing holes in your creation that you’ll want to repair. Having a part stolen earns you bolts to help anchor down other parts to keep them from being swiped later on.

The game ends when the first player has closed off all open part tiles protruding from their monster. Now, these tiles can be played on your monster, but it might be more fun to play them on an opponent’s to mess with their hideous plans. Either way, once a creature is complete, players add up awards and any additional points and a grotesque champion is crowned.

WHAT’S NEW IN THE 2ND EDITION?

For the most part, Hideous Abomination looks very similar to the 1st edition. A new monster die has been added, but the main changes have to do with the game’s actions.

The biggest game changer is how end-game awards are revealed. Previously, you randomly chose a number of awards to go along with the standard grand prize awards. Here new awards are revealed throughout the game challenging you to pivot and adjust your plans. I think this makes the steal action a bit more relevant here than in the previous edition. Quick upgrades might be necessary to earn those last few award points and this may mean stealing from an opponent. While this might seem mean, we’re stitching random body parts together to form an abomination… so checking your moral compass at the door is sorta mandatory. Overall, this new addition forces you to be aware of your opponents progress and results in more player interaction.

The stealing action now provides bolts to the victim to minimize future thievery. This is a nice change to the eyeball and piles of bolts used previously. While it stinks to lose a critical monster part, the bolts are a fine consolation providing security and peace-of-mind towards other valued parts.

The potential for an increased number of end-game awards also increases the time spent on end-game scoring. This was a small issue in the previous version and can possibly expand here. While this can be annoying, it certainly isn’t a deal breaker and, in some cases, provided nice suspense when determining a winner. There are simplified rules that ignore awards and give victory to the first player to complete their abomination as well as an even more simplified version where you just draw tile cards blindly from the deck.

Lastly, the box has been reshaped from the previous cube to a flatter, more traditional shape. I do kinda miss the previous cube – it was certainly unique, but I can see the new shape finding a more comfortable place on your gaming shelf.

ARTWORK & COMPONENTS

The silly and strange monsters created by designer and illustrator Judson Cowan are the heart and soul of the game. There are 190 different illustrated monster parts and they all carry unique personalities. Stitching these random parts together to form your own abomination is a visual delight for both young and old.

Component-wise, there isn’t a whole lot in the game besides the creature and award decks. The cardboard bolts do a fine job anchoring down your tiles and the cards aren’t too thin. The monster die is a uniquely crafted die that rolls a bit funny, but adds to the aura of the game.

The rulebook is a breeze to read and digest guaranteeing quick on-boarding to your first play.

PROS & CONS

 This is a quick game that appeals to both gamers and families with kiddos

 Easy rules and an easy to read rulebook make learning a breeze

 The creative monsters provide a lot of personality

 The number of different monster cards along with the numerous end-game awards encourage lots of replay-ability.

 Plenty of opportunity for a bit of “take that” player interaction

 Seeing your completed abomination is equally hilarious and satisfying

 Small box game fits on any shelf

 End-game scoring can take a minute

 Stealing monster parts from your opponent could be upsetting for younger gamers

WHY WOULD YOU LIKE THIS GAME?

Players looking for a simple game with endless replay-ability and an incredibly fun theme are going to find the most enjoyment here. Hideous Abomination is great for families and kiddos.

WHAT IS THE BEST THING ABOUT THIS GAME?

The best thing about the game is seeing your completed hideous abomination. Every monster is going to be unique making it fully your own—pursue your own monstrous style. The wonderfully silly artwork brings every monster to life—telling its own story.

FINAL THOUGHTS

On the surface, Hideous Abomination is a simple tile-laying, set collection game. It’s easy to teach, quick to play and works for gamers of all ages. What elevates Hideous is the wonderfully creative, whimsical and engaging monster illustrations. Suddenly I’m motivated to see what kind of strange creature I can build this time around. Scoring based on the number of fingers my monster has? How many tails I’m able to attach? Pure genius!

The added interaction is just enough to keep everyone on their toes between short winded turns while the finished product is truly satisfying whether you win or lose. The dice rolling element adds variation to the turns, but never really creates a true, luck-based advantage.

The 2nd Edition does a good job upping the interaction as well as providing added surprises throughout the game by randomly revealing end-game scoring awards. I wouldn’t say it’s 100% necessary to upgrade from the first editions, but it does tighten things up and creates a more enjoyable experience overall.

My 7-year-old daughter LOVES Hideous Abomination. With a library of hundreds of games at her disposal, she regularly drags Hideous Abomination to the table. Sometimes it’s to engage in a battle… Other times it’s just to sort through the tiles to find the right combination of monster parts. So I’m probably biased for that reason alone, but Hideous Abomination is a delightful game for our family that’s full of fun and delicious monster surprises. I whole-heartedly recommend this one!

Publisher: Greenest Games
Player Count: 1-4 Players
Game Length: 40-80 Minutes
Complexity 2.25/5

Set in a futuristic world of bizarre characters, cyborgs and robots, criminals are still going to seek to bring trouble to the common people. Hijacking a plane is their latest pursuit of anarchy, but the police were able to surround the plane and keep it on the runway. Now it’s your turn. As a hostage negotiator, it’s your job to seek the release of the hostages and even challenge these criminals to surrender before the swat team goes in guns blazing.

In this semi-cooperative, dice placement and set collection game you’ll be using your limited turns to gather resources, gain passenger cards and engage the hijackers as you seek the most points through a variety of different means. Are you going to work together with your fellow hostage negotiators to gain more time or are you going to move fast and save who you can before it’s too late? Check out the review below to find out if Hijacked brings is the right pressure cooker for your board game table.

ON YOUR TURN

With only a limited number of turns available until the police breach the plane, you’ll need to use your dice efficiently to save hostages, break down the hijackers and most importantly, score the most points.

Armed with only 2 dice per turn, players will roll them and place them to activate a variety of locations around the board to build their winning approach.

Resources such as crypto, medicine, intel and food can be gathered and used to meet passenger needs or bribe hijackers.

While I understand the reasoning behind the actions, I wouldn’t necessarily call the game very thematic from a mechanical approach. Visiting the passenger card section requires you to play a certain value to reveal the passenger card and the passengers adjacent. This represents connecting with that passenger and the nearby passengers. You can then gain that passenger card if you can pay a necessary resource and if your trust level is high enough (more on that in a minute). If you choose not to grab the passenger, you can discard them for a single point. Afterwards you can take an additional action which might be reserving one of the newly revealed adjacent cards by placing a dice on the card and hoping your opponents don’t roll a higher number.

You might choose to build trust with the passengers. This mini game is community driven since all players can contribute. Taking this action allows you to play a push-your-luck cube drawing game where you hope to pull the right color out of a bag. You can choose to stop, but winners go big… or fail hard. Drawing green cubes builds up your trust allowing you access to more passengers while drawing red cubes can even end up costing you points.

I mentioned this is a semi-cooperative game. Aside from the trust section, players can also delay the police by working to match one another’s point total at the exact same moment. This is a tricky task, but if achieved, everyone receives a rewards and the police are pushed back giving everyone an extra turn. The bigger challenge isn’t getting everyone on the same page to pursue this, it’s actually getting everyone on the exact same point total which can often feel a little out of reach.

Aside from gathering an extra dice for a future turn (if it’s available), players can reserve their very own hijacker and talk them down over a series of turns. Each hijacker provides a unique set scoring objective, so when persuaded to leave the plane, that player has access to those end game scoring points.

There are some corporate objectives available, but the primary scoring objectives come from gathering sets of passengers to earn passenger and pilot tokens. When a player has been able to negotiate the release of 3 passengers and 1 pilot, the end game is triggered. That is unless the police have breached the plane prior ending the game immediately.

ARTWORK & COMPONENTS

Artwork from Macedonian illustrator Mihajlo Dimitrievski (The Mico), while not his best, brings a lot of personality and flavor to the game. Each passenger card features a uniquely illustrated character. The hijackers look pretty hardcore and give the game an edge. The fully-illustrated board falls a little flat for me. The composition seems half-baked and could have been presented in.a more dynamic way.

Components are pretty standard with an assortment of wooden tokens, meeples, playing cards and dice.

The rulebook can get you through the game, but it is a little confusing and often feels a little backwards. Be sure to read through it in it’s entirety before attempting to grasp any concepts.

PROS & CONS

 I love the unique theme… it immediately drew me to the game

 The artwork is solid and has a lot of personality

 The semi-cooperative nature, while minimal, does provide some thematic interaction presented a unique way.

 Once you get a good grasp of the rules, turns move by quickly without much downtime

 Actions feel disjointed from the theme. While the designer did their best to bridge the gap, I never really felt like I was saving passengers or negotiating with terrorists.

 Even though I appreciate the semi-cooperative element, it ultimately falls flat. Over the course of multiple games it was nearly impossible to bring all the players together at the same time to trigger the co-op bonus.

 My biggest con is that I often felt like there weren’t any actions available worth taking. Yeah, I could grab another resources or discard a passenger card for a point, but it often felt very programmed. I wanted more demanding and beneficial choices.

WHY WOULD YOU LIKE THIS GAME?

If you dig the theme and you’re looking for a brisk euro that isn’t going to press you too hard, Hijacked might be in your lane. The unique theme and solid artwork will certainly stir up some interest as well.

WHAT IS THE BEST THING ABOUT THIS GAME?

The idea behind the game is very intriguing. This is a theme that is waiting for the right game. Hostage Negotiator from Van Ryder Games is the only other hostage negotiation game that I can think of and it didn’t quite hit it out of the park.

FINAL THOUGHTS

I went in really wanting to love Hijacked. After a couple stumbles with the rules, we were able to get on track and experience the game as it was intended. Visually, the game is solid, and that along with the engaging theme, sets an intriguing stage.

Overall, the game plays at a nice, brisk pace and different objectives (saving passengers and pilots, building leverage and convincing the terrorists to give up their life of crime) seem motivating. It was the lack of consistently engaging choices that left me a bit empty.

The variable setup is intended to provide new game experiences, but when you’re just rolling dice, it doesn’t necessarily matter. With limited choices and only 2 die per turn, I often felt I didn’t have anything to do. This is unfortunate, because the looming S.W.A.T. breach that ends the game doesn’t give you a lot of time to waste. This led to players often passing on the passenger set collection challenge and just dumping cards for a minimal score… While I guess something is better than nothing, it was incredibly disappointing settling for a minimal score.

Resource management is loose and you’re at the mercy of the passenger deck to help you match up the right cards with the right resources. I honestly just wasn’t that interested in freeing passengers mainly because building card sets doesn’t feel like freeing passengers. The same could apply to talking down the terrorists. It all felt overly simplified and disconnected.

The game ends quickly enough and even if you achieve the end-game triggering objectives, it leaves you a bit unsatisfied. I feel like there might be something cool going on, but the game really needs to be tightened up. Perhaps it would benefit from some additional play tests. Unfortunately, Hijacked just didn’t engage me like I was hoping it would and while it might be good for a couple plays, it’s not something I can recommend.

Publisher: Lucky Duck Games
Player Count: 2-5 Players
Game Length: 30-60 Minutes per Session
Complexity 2.25/5

Let’s get this out of the way… I’m a card-carrying “It’s a Wonderful World” super fan. I’m 50 plays in (which is like 200 for board game reviewers) and I feel I can quickly read my hands, form a strategy and make the most each game has to offer. I regularly play both solo and multiplayer and there aren’t too many surprises the game can throw at me. So I’m always excited for new challenges when it comes to my favorite engine builder.

Leisure & Decadence was originally available through the Heritage Kickstarter. This isn’t a legacy game, but rather a series of campaigns that build on one another and can be reset to play again and again. Once you’ve completed all the campaigns, you can integrate the various pieces back into the regular game… but more on that later.

WARNING :: Major Spoilers Ahead

I’ve decided to do a fully-transparent review. This will mean revealing some of the expansion’s secrets and narrative. If this doesn’t appeal to you, you probably shouldn’t read any further. I just feel I can’t do the game justice by staying cryptic with my findings. So without further ado, let’s dig into It’s a Wonderful World: Leisure & Decadence.

INEVITABLY, CULTURES CHANGE

It’s a Wonderful World is a story about building the perfect balance as you seek a utopian society. This means weighing industry, war, science and prosperity. But what happens when prosperity is achieved and there’s more time for recreation and personal enjoyment? That is exactly what Leisure & Decadence hopes to tackle. There has always been a dark underbelly, an almost satirical narrative that streaks through the futuristic achievements, fantastical findings and bizarre societal changes in It’s a Wonderful World.

Taking a cue from some of the great civilizations through history, we can see that when the need to work for preservation and the pursuit of progress fades and prosperity runs rampant, the population indulges in self and often collapses under itself. Take Imperial Rome. Their defeat wasn’t from an external invader, but from their own sloth. This is exactly the social question Leisure & Decadence proposes.

Of course there is still a balance to be found in resources and cards, but the pursuit of knowledge and production has been replaced with leisure and decadence. Culture even becomes a resource in the game and celebrities stand alongside the capitalist and military moguls of the base game.

NEW MECHANICS

Leisure and Decadence takes place over 5 campaigns. Each campaign reveals new story narratives as well as new mechanics and mini-games. These mini-games will divide your attention, change your goals and force you to completely rethink your tested IAWW strategies. Some will come and go while others will stick around offering you new pursuits through the campaign tied into the campaign’s story. Many of these additions create new modules you can later tie into the base game as you see fit.

So what are these new mechanics and do they have legs as legitimate game modules?

The first campaign introduces a simple “Cultural Production” card. It functions like a beefed up development card with a space for 1 of each resource. Once you complete all 5 resources, the card upgrades earn you supremacy bonuses during production, recycling bonuses and eventually 15 victory points. This is a cool, fun little addition that can create new dynamics between players and create new priorities when it comes to production.

Winning or losing also have an effect on players moving forward. Victory often provides additional cards to supplement your game in a positive way while losing does the same with a penalty card—or one with a lesser benefit.

The second campaign introduces new leisure components. These are revealed through a series of Secret Boxes that are a lot of fun to open. With the first mini expansions, players can now invest in culture as a resource. This pink resource is represented on a new set of development cards shuffled into the deck. Players work a small tech track that when upgraded earns the player a celebrity token and celebrity multiplier. It’s a Wonderful World typically plays very stingy on points… the culture production blows that up. Big time points can be scored when you pursue these limited resources.

I won’t itemize each campaign, but the biggest game changer aside from the culture production is the introduction of workers. These 4 workers must be placed on production cards prior to the production round. Production earned during this phase can only be placed on the cards with workers on them. This is a whole other layer to the typical production strategy. Planning completely changes and really makes you focus specifically on what you want to fulfill—there is limited room for mistakes. To compound things even further, each card featuring a worker gains an additional resource of your choice at the end of the production phase for that specific card. It’s really a fun and cool dynamic that changes the way you think about production and planning.

One of the later campaigns also features a “voting” system where players can choose to follow the path of freedom or justice. The result determines the game’s final campaign. During the final campaign, depending on how players previously voted, they will use a new empire card. I really enjoyed this as well. Instead of a standard initial production that remains consistent through the game, players will be losing or gaining resources on their empire card as the round progresses. Players choosing freedom also choose laziness. They start with 5 resources on their empire card, but their lack of production and laziness forces them to lose a resource of your choice each round. Likewise, the just side starts players with a limited number of resources, but gains 1 of their choice each round thanks to their good work ethic.

ARTWORK & COMPONENTS

Artwork and components are on par with what you’d expect from It’s a Wonderful World. The artwork is really solid and the cards are full of wild and bizarre ideas and culture functions. There is a lot of “stuff” in the box and there is tons of value.

PROS & CONS

Interesting storyline is satirical and thought provoking

The new mechanics generally enhance what you love about IAWW

New pieces embrace the spirit of IAWW creating fun, new approaches to the game’s strategy

Campaign can be reset and played again

New modules can be used as you see fit in the base game

Campaign isn’t terribly long and could be played in one sitting

Fans of IAWW may not appreciate the added complexity to the game

The culture resource, while fun, felt terribly overpowered. Culture production cards are limited, but I never felt like they were that rare. We couldn’t pursue them.

Solo mode works great for the expansion, but there were some aspects that were a little gray on the rules and the challenge wasn’t quite as obvious as in multi-player games.

I’m not 100% sold on the long term use of the campaign modules outside of the campaign

WHY WOULD YOU LIKE THIS GAME?

If you’re a fan of It’s a Wonderful World and you’re looking for a fun new experience that changes things up just enough to create new engagement while still embracing the game you know and love… this is probably for you.

WHAT IS THE BEST THING ABOUT THIS GAME?

The best thing about the game is revealing the next secret box. Each secret box could contain anything, from meeples, to game boards and tokens (and do). The first box really sets the tone and once you open the next box, you know something is going to change.

FINAL THOUGHTS

I had a blast playing through Leisure & Decadence. I mentioned in my introduction that I’m a huge fan of It’s a Wonderful World. This is 100% my favorite pure engine/tableau builder. I love the choices and variability depending on how the cards are revealed. Leisure & Decadence brings a number of new mini-games that seamlessly tie into the base game. Some are better than others, but together they are fun and interesting and provide new twists and turns. This is a great, accessible and relatively short campaign that builds on the IAWW lore.

I also really enjoyed the social narrative. I believe our culture is incredibly lazy and I do worry about our future. I don’t believe automation, technology and shortcuts make us better as a whole. Entertainment has become its own religion and over-indulging has led to neglecting responsibility and each other. Leisure & Decadence stirs a conversation that can actually challenge you and make you think. Maybe filling our down time with endless pursuits of pleasure and entertainment aren’t the solution… of course this doesn’t apply to playing board games.

Publisher: 25th Century Games
Player Count: 2-6 Players
Game Length: 20 Minutes
Complexity 1.5/5

Originating in Japan in the 1970’s, Gashapon are toy vending machines similar to any you might find at your local grocery or department store. The glass container gives you a peek into the possible prizes that can be won with just a coin and twist of the handle… so basically gambling for children… but we love it! 

Gasha attempts to mimic this experience by allowing players a peek into the riches a card choice can deliver. In this family-friendly, set collection card game, players will be trying their luck at gaining sets of toys that can later be exchanged for bonus actions and victory points.

ON YOUR TURN

The game takes place over a number of rounds where players take turns choosing 1 of 2 actions: draw 2 cards or exchange sets for rewards.

The game area consists of 4 stacks of gasha cards and 4 available set rewards.

For a simple game, Gasha is highly tied to its theme through the cards and mechanics. Each gasha card gives you a peek into the toy featured on the backside of the card by showing you 2 or 3 possible toys earned by drawing the card. Of course, just like engaging a gashapon, you may or may not end up with your desired toy, but this clue does help you in your pursuit of certain sets.

Cashing in sets to earn reward cards is your 2nd potential action. Reward cards feature specific toy requirements necessary to achieve a point reward. Choosing this action simply means exchanging the required set for the reward card. Reward cards also feature tickets with certain colors where pairing two same-colored ticket sides together earns you a bonus token that can in-turn earn you additional points or feature bonus actions.

Games continue until one of a variety of end game conditions are met. Players then add up their points and the winner is crowned gasha champion for the night.

ARTWORK & COMPONENTS

Artwork in Gasha leans heavily on it’s Japanese influence presenting a variety of illustrated toys is a light-hearted, anime-style. The game features 110 cards and a few cardboard tokens. It doesn’t seem like a pricey game and the production isn’t over the top. The rulebook is short and easy to follow.

PROS & CONS

Fun, simple choices make this one great to play with kids

The theme is very strong, successfully emulating a traditional gashapon machine.

Secondary reward card choices potentially earning you bonus tokens adds an additional layer of engagement

Super accessible game that can easily be picked up in minutes with no prior knowledge of the rules

Quick play time keeps the games light and brisk

Playing up to 6 players, Gasha works for larger families

While I’m surprised by how well the theme is integrated, the game is ultimately forgettable thanks to a lack of depth and replayability

Gasha tries admirably to bring variability to each game, but the differences each play brings with available reward cards or new bonus tokens feels minimal.

WHY WOULD YOU LIKE THIS GAME?

If you’re looking for a light-weight, family-friendly game to play with the kids, you can definitely do worse than Gasha. There is just enough strategy to challenge young kids new to gaming as well as keep adults interested.

WHAT IS THE BEST THING ABOUT THIS GAME?

The best thing about Gasha is how the theme is tied into the mechanics. It really feels like you’re playing a gashapon machine. I enjoyed being able to see the potential outcomes of each card beforehand. This helps mitigate the luck factor and creates a fun, push-your-luck mechanic.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Gasha is a fairly harmless game. It’s light, quick and provides some fun decisions. I’m not really excited about the theme, but I really appreciate the thought that went into bringing the theme to life. The turn choices do create some fun moments that I think will work well for younger kids just getting into gaming. Gasha wouldn’t be my first choice off the shelf, but I’ve enjoyed all my plays. My kids really like the silly toys you can earn and the game’s accessibility and quick pace guarantees I won’t lose anyone before we’re through (parent’s will understand this one). If the theme seems interesting and you’re in the market for a light, portable, quick card game, Gasha is a decent distraction good for a few laughs.

Publisher: 25th Century Games
Player Count: 2-4 Players
Game Length: 30-60 Minutes
Complexity 2.25/5

Earn prestige as you seek to become a Master Gardener in Gartenbau, a horticulture journey of garden cultivation, timeless floral beauty and deceptively deep planning.

Gartenbau is made up of a number of mechanics that include a rondel track, tile drafting and placement, tableau building and endgame objectives. Points are king and scoring accumulates from a nifty, 3-tiered tile-laying system where the points increase the higher you stack. While Gartenbau is a more casual gaming experience, there may be more under the surface than a bright bouquet of sunflowers. Check out our review below and see if Gartenbau will satisfy your green thumb.

ON YOUR TURN

The creators behind Gartenbau made an interesting choice when it came to the presentation. All the floral artwork in the game comes directly from vintage seed and flower catalogs of the late 19th century. These lavish illustrations provide a unique look into history, but also set a rich tone for the gameplay.

The goal of Gartenbau is to score the most points and you attempt to achieve that by mastering the horticultural art of flower presentation. As you cultivate your garden, you’ll plant seeds, buy flowers and achieve dynamic, floral groupings.

On your turn, you’re met with 3 choices: Do you visit the seedling market, the plant market or place flower tiles? Your garden will ultimately serve as a tableau for compounding points so it’s necessary to get your engine running right by making good choices early. And there really is an emphasis on making the right decisions and doing so early in the game since careful planning of your garden is critical. To make the process a bit more streamlined, each player chooses a set of flower tiles that present goals that payout in various ways when applied to your garden at later points in the game.

A great way to explain the overall game-flow is to explain the tile-laying/building process. Your garden always starts with seedling tiles. These tiles are drafted when you choose to visit the seedling market. You have the opportunity to select the top tile of that location and place it immediately adjacent to tiles in your garden. These seedling tiles aren’t worth points, but they each feature 2 random flower symbols. These symbols are important since you’ll need to pair 2 specific symbols in order to visit the plant market (which we’ll explain shortly). Optionally, you can choose water and sunlight tokens instead of choosing seedlings. Each location on the board has a different combination of water and sunlight tokens often creating some interesting decisions and nice tension. The value of these tokens come into play as you visit the plant market on later turns.

The game board essentially has 2 rondel tracks. The first moves you around to visit the seedling market, while visiting the plant market moves you briefly off that primary track and away from blocking any opponent’s next move. The plant market allows you to purchase flowers which will then be placed on top of seedling tiles creating a second tile layer in your garden. You gain these tiles by paying a specific number of water and sun tokens and matching adjacent seedling tile symbols already played in your garden. As more plant tiles of each plant type are selected, they increase in value. So waiting to buy a certain plant tile may make sense, you also run the risk of missing out completely. These plant tiles also serve as a countdown to the end of the game and when they’re gone, they’re gone.

The 3rd turn option also coincides with the 3rd layer of your garden. Prior to the start, each player receives a set of flower tiles providing a variety of scoring opportunities. Each of these tiles requires a set of 2 specific flower tiles to activate. Once you’ve achieved a tile goal, you can choose to place it on top of the proper flower tiles. This does provide bigger end game scoring opportunities, but also cancels out the points from any covered up flower tiles. While it’s typically worth it, this can create some interesting choices, especially if you gain the higher value plant tiles closer to the bottom of the stack.

The flower tiles all carry different, creative scoring conditions. Some will give you points for certain exposed plant tiles in your garden, while others might score points for individual “holes” in your garden tile system. Of course some will just give you big chunks of points, but it’s up to you to target your goals early so you gather the right tiles or at least consider your contingencies since the perfect seedling tile isn’t always available when you need it.

There are ways to advance further around the play area or even share a space with an opponent (which normally isn’t allowed), but the heart of the game is drafting and purchasing tiles in a carefully planned, efficient method to net the most points. Once the endgame is triggered, players get an additional turn, scores are added up and the player with the most points earns the title of Master Gardener.

ARTWORK & COMPONENTS

I previously mentioned the vintage artwork used in Gartenbau. It has an eloquent, timeless style that feels just as relevant and attractive today as it did over 100 years ago. The artwork really lays the foundation giving the game a charming presentation overall. The quality of the components are great and there isn’t anything cheap to detract from the experience. The game’s 2 cardboard wheelbarrows aren’t necessary, but who doesn’t want 3-D cardboard wheelbarrows in their game?

The rulebook is really well done and makes an accessible game that much easier to jump into.

PROS & CONS

 Beautiful, vintage artwork and fun, quality components provides a great table presence

 Simple ruleset makes teaching the game a breeze

 Quick playtime in under an hour works great for many families

 Satisfying tile system feels good and presents some interesting decisions

 Simple rondel board can feel a little limiting, but forces you to work within your choices. There are ways to circumvent the movement rules, but they are limited.

Planning is key. While this is a fairly simple game, success is achieved through intentional pursuits and strategy and intense engagement.

 It can be frustrating missing out on the seedling tiles necessary for your plans, but this is the game and executing your contingencies can be exciting or a real bummer depending how you feel about it.

 The game takes up a fair amount of table space and you have to get creative with how you layout your garden tiles.

 Turns are played fairly quick, but the game overall, moves along at a slower, methodical pace. If you have someone who really wants to think through their turn, it can feel a lot longer between turns than it really is.

 While there are different goal sets and rule variants to keep things fresh, the replay-ability may lean too heavily on the charming theme and presentation.

WHY WOULD YOU LIKE THIS GAME?

The charming presentation is going to draw you in and even keep you to some extent. Fans of horticulture and vintage art are going to find the appearance of the game equally appealing. This is a game that’s easy to learn, has simple turn mechanics, but also provides a bit of bite. Success depends on your ability to plan and execute within the game’s restraints.

WHAT IS THE BEST THING ABOUT THIS GAME?

The best thing about Gartenbau is the tile-laying system. I really enjoy setting my garden foundation, building it up and then seeing it come to fruition by achieving my flower tile goals. There are also some interesting decisions as you try to pair symbols and maximize points, but in the end it feels very satisfying.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Gartenbau is the type of game where you come for the aesthetics and stay for the substance. The big, bright sunflower at the center of the board serves as a beacon calling out to all who appreciate the vibrancy and energy of nature. It’s when you really dive into the strategy that you uncover a fun, engaging system.

It’s a gateway-style game that’s easy to teach, learn and jump into. The limited rule set is smooth and simple without the wrinkles that over complicate many games. The actions, while straightforward, provide plenty of interesting decisions.

The tile-laying aspect to the game could easily have felt tired, but the planning and strategy force you stay engaged and focused keeping it fresh and interesting. Building up your garden through this multi-tiered tile system looks and functions great. When you’re finally able to lay that flower tile on the 3rd level, there is a real sense of satisfaction. While this seems like the pinnacle of your garden mountain, there were many times placing that final tile, even though available, wasn’t always clear cut. There are a number of different ways to score and it’s not always by racing to build your flower tiles. There are enough variabilities built into the game to keep you on your toes and keep the game from becoming too formulaic.

All that being said, I’m not sure how repayable Gartenbau really is. It does a lot of things other successful games are doing right now… but it does them very well. There are a number of different objective sets to help chart a unique course from the beginning. While these objectives are each unique on the surface, the differences aren’t all-together THAT different. So while I can plan for different approaches and pursue different goals the game does have its limits.

At the end of the day Gartenbau is good fun. It looks great and that adds a lot of value to a game that does some new things, but also a lot of old things really well. I think there is a ton of value here that should appeal to a large cross-section of gamers who like their games lighter with a little bit of bite. The mechanics and choices blend together nicely and if the theme appeals to you, I can’t see anyone being too disappointed they invested in Gartenbau.

Publisher: Ludus Magnus Lite
Player Count: 2-4 Players
Game Length: 20-30 Minutes
Complexity 2/5

Cultural trends have the ability to consume the attention and passions of the people. In 19th century London, a curious populace engaged in the search for the strange, bizarre and rare, collecting artifacts, writings and trophies to captivate their contemporaries. In Chamber of Wonders, you’re racing against friends as you travel the far reaches of London in an effort to secure the most amazing wonders, luring the community and build your status as the most accomplished collector of all things fantastic.

Players will engage in a modular, set collecting, worker placement experience where you’ll attempt to gather cards and partake in a variety of mini-games all with the goal of scoring the most points in a very limited timeframe. Efficiency and luck will play a major role as you not only attempt to fill your museum with different items, but you’ll do so in a way that makes the best use of your opportunities. Find out our thoughts and determine if Chamber of Wonders if your next board game adventure as we dive into the game below.

ON YOUR TURN

Despite its opulent and involved presentation, Chamber of Wonders is a very quick and straightforward game.

Variability sits at the heart of the game. Chamber of Wonders begins by selecting 4 unique locations to serve as the 4 locations your team of agents can visit. Each of these locations are represented by 3-dimensional standees displaying its real-life, historical counterpart. Each location is dual sided, with its own separate action you can tie into the game. From there, you’ll choose 4 contact cards representing dealers and shady business types you have the opportunity to engage with during the game. Each of these characters has their own unique action guaranteeing the potential for a completely new gaming experience each game for quite some time.

Depending on the variable setup, players will receive a number of coins and wonder cards to start the game.

Ultimately the winner of the game is the player to score the most points over a limited number of turns (8 or 9 depending on the player count). The primary means of scoring comes from playing your wonder cards in your display cabinets. There are 6 different card themes and they all score slightly different.

On your turn, you’ll place one of your agent meeples on 1 of the 4 London locations. The timing of this placement is key since you can only visit each location once at the most per game. When placed, you’ll activate the action associated with the space and have the option to visit 1 of the 2 adjacent contacts, performing that action.

Each location’s actions vary dramatically and activating the location at the right time can be key to your overall strategy. Each location acts as its own mini-game with its own unique mechanics. Some locations will allow you to sell chamber cards, while others will allow you to gain cards through bidding, trade, theft of push-your-luck style actions. These locations also typically engage the other players at the table limiting downtown between turns. The contacts have similar effects to the locations, but are optional and exclusive to the active player.

Once the active player has completed their location actions, every player has the opportunity to fill one of their display locations with chamber cards. This might mean a single card or a set of cards. For example, the more unique books you play at one time, the more points that display location scores at the end. Some cards have bonuses that can add to end game scoring or hinge on the items in yours or your opponents display cases. Hanging onto your cards as long as possible is key, but you’re also taking the risk that another player won’t have the opportunity to swipe the cards out from under you before you have the chance to play them. Of course, missing an opportunity to play cards with such a limited number of turns can be devastating.

When the final player plays their last agent meeple, players count up the points from their collected artifacts, add up any bonuses they’ve achieved and subtract any remaining wonder cards still in their hand. The player with the highest score wins the game and earn the title of “most envied, amateur museum curator.

ARTWORK & COMPONENTS

Chamber of Wonders, like most Ludus Magnus Kickstarter productions, boasts a dramatic table presence. The 3-D location cards give the game board real height and depth. The artwork is a little dark giving London a more mysterious, seedy feeling. The typography and graphic design sets the stage and theme to transport you safely back to the 19th century.

The display cases could have just been standard cardboard placeholders, but they’re actually 3-D spaces that have to be constructed. They definitely give the game more visual interest, but add substantially to the game’s overall footprint.

The rulebook is well laid out and clearly communicates the wide variety of actions in the game.

I think my only major complaint is actually two-fold: The icons in the game don’t always easily clarify the actions they’re associated with. Because of the iconography and extensive variety of actions associated with them, it would have been natural for each player to have a good player aide, but that was not included. I’ve heard there is an app in development, and it may mainly pertain to the solo mode, but I’m holding out hope it will include the much needed digital player aide.

PROS & CONS

 Great table presence with the 3-D game components

 Card artwork has tons of personality

 Multiple game modules create variety and true replay-ability

 Little downtime between turns thanks to simultaneous actions

 Multiple gameplay modes for different player counts

 Number of expansions to add more variety to the game

 Restricted worker placement mechanic does require you to plan out your turns to guarantee the best outcome

 Limited actions create urgency and places importance on each decision throughout the game

 Fairly large table presence doesn’t feel completely necessary

 No player aide

 I often felt my actions were predetermined ahead of time by the cards I drew limiting my strategic choices

 My game enjoyment varied depending on the chosen module combinations

WHY WOULD YOU LIKE THIS GAME?

Gamers looking for an impressive looking game without too much complexity will enjoy what Chamber of Wonders provides. Additionally, if you’re looking for a game with tons of variability and replay-ability, this has all been built in without having to buy countless expansions. While it’s primarily a worker placement game, there are many hints of other mechanics throughout the game such as bidding, card drafting and push-your-luck elements.

WHAT IS THE BEST THING ABOUT THIS GAME?

I would definitely have to say the game’s ability to provide different game play experiences by combining and contrasting different components is it’s strongest feature. You have the ability to customize the game as you see fit. This also means for different player counts since some location mini-games work better with 3 or 4 players while others provide plenty of impact at 2. This is something you can refine as you work your way through the game.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Chamber of Wonders is a fun and ambitious project when it works. I say “when it works” since my enjoyment of the game varies greatly depending on the locations and contact characters I combined. This was really only resolved over time as I became more familiar with the actions, how they worked individually and how they contrasted. It became a science to properly balance each game while still providing new and interesting experiences.

The gameplay itself is relatively simple. The location mini-game/actions only take a moment to resolve and you’re primarily managing a handful of cards in an effort to compliment your museum and build sets. There is a fair amount of interaction with limited downtime and the game plays at a breezy pace.

As an art director, I’m a huge fan of creative and decadent board game staging. I love building 3-D cardboard pieces that add dimension and engagement to games. Chamber of Wonders brings a lot of that character to the overall experience. The artwork and uniquely die-cut London locations sets a strong tone to the game. I do have to wonder if it might be a little overkill in this situation in relation to the game’s depth and length. It certainly doesn’t take a ridiculous amount of time to set up and tear down, but in a 20-30 minute game experience, it does feel a bit off-balanced.

The personality in the chamber cards was a nice surprise. There are so many strange and humorous wonders to collect. You might end up adding the Necronomicon to your book library, the Holy Grail beneath a countertop display, the hide of Gamera who appeared in Japanese sci-fi films and even a nod to Ludus Magnus’ successful Black Rose Wars game.

Normally it wouldn’t make a huge impression, but the lack of a player aide was a real struggle. While everything is clearly presented in the rulebook, I found myself often flipping between pages to re-verify different actions. I do think this could have been supplemented with more intuitive iconography. Perhaps its just me, but I felt the icons didn’t do a great job telling the story of the action it represented.

I do think there is plenty of fun to be had here, but the excitement was fairly limited in my experiences. The game’s arch was fine, but I was often left desiring more interesting decisions. I wanted to have more choices and choices that mattered to my end-game standing. It’s really a race to get as many cards in your hand as quickly as possible to open up your scoring opportunity as the game unfolds. You might have 6 or 7 more cards than your opponents, but they may not mesh well together. In those cases, you’re quickly working on liquidating the cards so they don’t count against you in the end game. Now if there wasn’t a great option available to sell cards regularly you’ll have to adjust your strategy early and expectations for scoring.

There is an asymmetrical addition to the game where players each receive a special ability card. This certainly helped drive strategy, but if my ability was only needing 2 monster parts as opposed to 3 to make a set, but I never get the right monster parts, it can be frustrating. Despite some occasional missteps, I certainly liked the game better with the ability cards added in.

I also had the opportunity to preview the Sherlock Holmes themed “A Chamber in Red” expansion. This adds a fun Holmes/Moriarty dance around the location board where ending up on a space with Moriarty unmonitored by Holmes (Dangerous Area) forces you to draw a misdeed card that may cause trouble at the end of the game. It also adds a Baker Street location and Dr. Watson contact card that interacts with the misdeed cards. This is a nice, thematic addition to the game that fits in nicely with the time period and fun personality of the game. If you find yourself enjoying Chamber of Wonders, you should definitely add this expansion.

Chamber of Wonders is a beautifully produced game with a lot of replay-ability. The gameplay is fast and often straightforward to a fault. The choices didn’t always hit the mark for me and it feels a tad overproduced for the weight and style of the gameplay. The artwork and artifact choices bring a lot of personality and joy to the experience and I completely respect the creativity that went into the production. I do think it plays best at 3 or 4 players and if you have the right group who enjoys quick plays, bidding and silly, push-your-luck style mechanics, this could be a lot of fun. While Chamber of Wonders doesn’t receive my complete seal of approval, going in with the right expectations and seeing where the true value of the game lies, has the potential to make memorable experiences at the game table.

Publisher: 25th Century Games
Player Count: 2-4 Players
Game Length: 20-30 Minutes
Complexity 1.5/5

In Longboard from celebrated board game designer, Reiner Knizia, players will attempt to design the coolest and biggest surf boards on the beach. Create sets of the same color boards while considering community goals as you race to the finish line.

ON YOUR TURN

Longboard is a fairly casual, set collecting, card game set in the world of big board surfing with a simple ruleset. Each player will be drawing cards and building sets toward goals that ultimately trigger the endgame. The game ends when a player has built 4 surf boards with 1 containing at least 7 cards.

The game revolves around a big deck of surfboard cards divided by color and number. The game has 4 colors (or suites) and a wild suit divided into numbers 1-8. Each player’s play area is divided into 2 spaces: your Supply and Build Area.

On your turn you have 1 of 3 possible actions: Increase your supply, Start or Extend a board or Swap a card and use it.

Increasing your supply allows you to draw a new card from the deck into your available supply. Starting or Extending a board allows you to move a card from your supply into your build area. Swapping a card allows you to steal a card from another player’s supply as long as you exchange it with a card or cards of greater numerical value.

The catch to building your surf boards is each card must be of equal or greater value than the previous card played in that stack.

Some board cards feature stickers that provide points at the end of the game. This is the primary path for victory. Once a player does achieve 4 boards containing at least 4 cards each with 1 board containing 7 cards, players add up their stickers and a winner is declared.

ARTWORK & COMPONENTS

This isn’t a complex game when it comes to components. The 110 card deck is colorfully illustrated providing an almost retro, 60s surfer vibe and a nice backdrop for the game.

PROS & CONS

 Easy setup and straight forward ruleset make this one highly accessible.

 Fun theme feels integrated well into the mechanics

 Quick game game time

 Gameplay isn’t complex, but does provide some interesting decisions

 Community objectives provide added layers to the game without bogging down the flow with unnecessary complexity.

 Objectives provide some variability, but game can start to feel same-y after a few plays

 End game is decided by the players so game length can vary based on group strategies

WHY WOULD YOU LIKE THIS GAME?

This is a light-hearted game that is easy to teach and plays quickly. The theme is going to appeal to a wide audience and it’s great for families and inexperienced gamers. Building your surfboard gives you a thematic and satisfying sense of accomplishment. There is just the right amount of luck to keep surprises coming and enough strategy to help players feel clever. Longboard works great for casual game fans with limited time or a limited attention span.

WHAT IS THE BEST THING ABOUT THIS GAME?

The best thing is watching your surf boards grow. It’s instrumental in showcasing the theme and brings a lot of pride to a player. It’s a simple thing, but sometimes you just need to build a really long longboard.

FINAL THOUGHTS

It’s hard to be critical of such a good-natured design. The mechanics are clean, simple and straightforward and it plays quickly… It’s obviously the product of an experienced designer.

The choices bring a little tension and are relatively interesting. I think my biggest critque is that I don’t feel overly impressed one way or another making me wonder if this one might be too forgettable. I’ve honestly enjoyed my 5 or 6 player with the family up to this point. It’s a good gateway game that serves as a nice distraction that no one has been against playing. I dig the theme and think it brings a fun, quirky backdrop.

While you can steal from your opponents supply, player interaction in the game is really limited and a little too pleasant for my tastes. It doesn’t quite have that bite that really draws me into a card game and I like to cause a little more trouble for my opponents. So while it is great for my kids, it doesn’t quite check those boxes for me.

If you are looking for a lighter, friendlier card game with a fun theme tied in… you should definitely give Longboard a look. It’s a good time for the right audience and plays quickly enough to satisfy non-gamers by not overstaying its welcome.

Publisher: Stonemaier Games and Bezier Games
Player Count: 2-7 Players
Dedicated Solo mode: No
Game Length: 45-60 Minutes
Complexity 2.25/5

What the king wants.. the king gets! As a master builder it’s up to you to provide the Mad King Ludwig with a castle that suits his greatness. But you won’t be working alone. A castle of this magnitude will require two master builders, each working diligently to produce the most monumental monument to the king.

Between Two Castle of Mad King Ludwig is the product of a mash-up between two of the industry’s biggest publishers: Stonemaier Games and Bezier Games. Previously, Stonemier had produced Between Two Cities and Bezier did Castles of Mad King Ludwig, so it made sense to the powers that be to mix the two together and see what happens.

This is a tile drafting game where players are not building just one castle, but two, cooperating with your opponents to the left and right of you at the table. Each tile represents a room in the castle and features their own unique scoring opportunities where placement, and type matter. Bonuses can be earned, but balance is key in this unique setup. Let’s find out if you’re up for the task of the Mad King himself.

ON YOUR TURN

Each player begins the game with a stack of tiles and castle throne room sitting between them and their neighbor. Between Two Castles of Mad King Ludwig introduces a unique concept I really haven’t seen anywhere else. You’ll be cooperatively working with the opponent on your left and the opponent on your right to build the castle between the two of you.

The game takes place over two rounds, with each round made up of 4 turns. Each turn is played simultaneously where you draft two tiles from your stack, pass the stack onto the next player and play a single tile on each of your castles. Your opponents will do the same adding a total of two tiles to each castle each turn.

Each tile represents a type of room available to be built in the castle. You’ll have the opportunity to build bedrooms, eating areas, gardens and dungeons to name a few. Each tile also features unique symbols and a unique scoring ability that will either depend on the placement in the castle or how it relates to other types of rooms throughout (example: earn 2 points for each utility room in your castle). Tiles will dictate whether they can be played above ground or below. Bonuses can be earned by playing 3 of a kind in your castle which can create expanded scoring opportunities and even a combo or two.

Once the second round has been completed, players score each castle and the lower value of the two you worked on is your final score. The player with the highest score is the ultimate master builder and everyone else ends up in shackles, in one the newly crafted dungeons.

ARTWORK & COMPONENTS

The artwork here is fairly well done as a whole, but the tiles are pretty small and definitely take away from the impact the art could have had overall on the game. In fact, all my complaints stem from the small size of the tiles. The icons and symbols throughout are really hard to read. This can really be a problem if your play area isn’t ideal, giving you easy access to both of your adjacent castle-building projects.

The tile storage solution is really solid and makes setup and tear down super easy—I love the thought and consideration that went into this.

The rulebook does a good job communicating each tile’s actions. There were only a couple times I had questions about a tile’s scoring requirement, but they are all pretty intuitive and easy to figure out.

PROS & CONS

 Simple gameplay is easy to teach and pick up for new players

 Great storage solution make for an easy setup

 Fun theme and unique gameplay

 Good for both families and gamers

 Effectively managing two castles can be a bit much

 While the scoring is cool in itself, it is a pain to compile at the end of the game

 Gameplay feels a bit dated and dry

WHY WOULD YOU LIKE THIS GAME?

This is a tile-laying game with a strong puzzle-y element. Players who enjoy abstract games with a stronger theme are going to get the most out of this one.

BEST THING ABOUT THIS GAME?

The best thing about this game is the unique, cooperative gameplay. While there is only a single winner, players must work with their neighbors to build the most point-tastic scoring castle.

FINAL THOUGHTS

On the surface, Between Two Castles of Mad King Ludwig is a fairly simple game. During your turn, you draft two tiles and place those tiles. You continue this over 8 turns and that’s it.

The theme does a good job of selling a bigger idea with more backstory that draws you into this world. The tiles have a lot of personality and setup is a breeze, so there is a lot to like from the get-go. I haven’t had the opportunity to play either of the predecessors to Between Two Castles of Mad King Ludwig, so I’m coming in without any expectations or preconceptions.

The semi-cooperative nature of the game really stood out. I love the idea of working with another player in our own little mini game. While I’m sure there are a few, off the top of my head, I can’t think of another game that works quite like this one does.

I’m also a huge fan of open drafting. I love the pick and pass concept especially in games where the hand or tile stack will come back around. That’s likely not the case here since you’re typically playing 3 or more players and the most you’ll see your original hand again is once. In this case, you’re hoping to leave your neighbor with tiles that will benefit and even compliment  your mutual castle. There aren’t any rules to communicating this, but we typically refrained from making suggestions to our neighbor just to keep things civil.

Each tile features some unique scoring path you’ll need to meet to earn points. This might mean how you align tiles within your castle such as placing them next to a certain tile type or surrounding it with another or how many of a certain type live in your castle at the end of the game. This may have been unique when it was first released, but feels a little standard and dated at this point (5 years later). I’m ok with this concept for a single castle, but it feels a little more chaotic than it should when you’re trying to manage two separate castles. As your castle’s grow there is more to keep track of and it becomes a little much for me. When you collect three tiles of the same type, you’re able to earn a bonus. This is a nice addition to the game, but I likely missed out on a few of these because it’s difficult to keep up with all the tiles you and your partner have played.

My biggest struggle is the size of the icons on each tile. It’s critical to be able to easily identify these for strategy and scoring direction, but the icons are so small it’s often hard to make them out sitting between the two structures. There is a lot the developers wanted to include on each tile (artwork & icons) while facing the limitation of keeping them at a decent size. I understand the challenge, but that doesn’t make the players actions any easier. The tiles are a bit of a mess from a functionality standpoint and that definitely affected my enjoyment of the game.

In the end, I really appreciate what Between Two Castles of Mad King Ludwig is trying to do. It has that nice polish you get from a Stonemier or Bezier game, but it struggles a bit due to some unfriendly concepts. The scoring at the end, while satisfying to an extent, is so tedious that it really deflates any momentum and good will built up over the course of the game. I LOVE the easy setup and clean up and that may be the game’s saving grace. It’s also highly accessible, being easy to teach and could be a lot of fun for gateway gamers looking for a “think-y challenge”. For me, it ends up feeling a little dated and creates speed bumps that bog down the flow and my enjoyment of the game. It’s a game that I wouldn’t be opposed to pulling off the shelf, but I’ll likely recommend two or three others that fill the same void, but do it just a little bit better.