So, on Wednesday 24th, I played a 3-player game of Pandemic: Iberia, at a local boardgame cafe. Prior to this, i have played "vanilla" Pandemic 4 times, and won on 3 of those attempts.
Well, the Iberia version feels somewhat trickier. We thought we were doing well with setting up our rail network and getting on with purifying water, but we had only researched 3 of the 4 diseases by the time the city cards ran out (hence ending the game)
Yesterday, I was able to play 3 games:
Coimbra - I found this very enjoyable, although it helped that I managed to get the hang of it early on, ending the game as the winner! we played a 4-player game of it so I was very happy with this result. It has a number of gameplay mechanics to grasp, and i formulated a plan early on, basically maximising the victory points I earned at each move/action I did. There's worker movement, card buying, and several resource income tracks that can also score victory points at the end. A good variety but not so much as to overwhelm.
Spirits of the Rice Paddy - this is actually one of mine, from one of the earliest Kickstarter projects I backed. Prior to this I've played it twice, and won both of those times, however this time it didn't go my way (particularly with the Spirit cards) and i ended up losing! it was a 3-player game (which it was both previous times, although with different people). I have actually got a brief review of Spirits written, i just need to post it here. With Spirits of The Rice Paddy, there is quite a bit to it but it doesn't take too long to get the hang of it. The most important gameplay element is the management of water in your field/paddies (both in and out) and corresponding actions at each stage. There isn't a massive amount of player-to-player interaction, it's more about maximising your rice growing and harvesting capabilities.
Thanos Rising - We started a 3-player game of this co-op, Thanos-themed game, but I had to leave before the end. We weren't doing too badly at that point - 3 villains dead and I think only 2 heroes. It did feel very difficult for the heroes to win it though, as Thanos is very powerful (in the spirit of the comics, I guess!) It's a card and dice game, the dice have various symbols which you use to either try and recruit heroes to your team (each player has their own team), which then give you more dice and/or special abilities, or to attack villains, a successful attack gaining you a single-use bonus tile. Heroes and villains both take multiple damage before they die. Thanos is controlled by 2 special dice, which each player rolls at the beginning of their turn. These can result in things like adding a part to one of the Infiinity Gems (when a gem is complete, it goes into his gauntlet and reveals a special ability he can use)
All in all it was an enjoyable day!
Well, the Iberia version feels somewhat trickier. We thought we were doing well with setting up our rail network and getting on with purifying water, but we had only researched 3 of the 4 diseases by the time the city cards ran out (hence ending the game)
Yesterday, I was able to play 3 games:
Coimbra - I found this very enjoyable, although it helped that I managed to get the hang of it early on, ending the game as the winner! we played a 4-player game of it so I was very happy with this result. It has a number of gameplay mechanics to grasp, and i formulated a plan early on, basically maximising the victory points I earned at each move/action I did. There's worker movement, card buying, and several resource income tracks that can also score victory points at the end. A good variety but not so much as to overwhelm.
Spirits of the Rice Paddy - this is actually one of mine, from one of the earliest Kickstarter projects I backed. Prior to this I've played it twice, and won both of those times, however this time it didn't go my way (particularly with the Spirit cards) and i ended up losing! it was a 3-player game (which it was both previous times, although with different people). I have actually got a brief review of Spirits written, i just need to post it here. With Spirits of The Rice Paddy, there is quite a bit to it but it doesn't take too long to get the hang of it. The most important gameplay element is the management of water in your field/paddies (both in and out) and corresponding actions at each stage. There isn't a massive amount of player-to-player interaction, it's more about maximising your rice growing and harvesting capabilities.
Thanos Rising - We started a 3-player game of this co-op, Thanos-themed game, but I had to leave before the end. We weren't doing too badly at that point - 3 villains dead and I think only 2 heroes. It did feel very difficult for the heroes to win it though, as Thanos is very powerful (in the spirit of the comics, I guess!) It's a card and dice game, the dice have various symbols which you use to either try and recruit heroes to your team (each player has their own team), which then give you more dice and/or special abilities, or to attack villains, a successful attack gaining you a single-use bonus tile. Heroes and villains both take multiple damage before they die. Thanos is controlled by 2 special dice, which each player rolls at the beginning of their turn. These can result in things like adding a part to one of the Infiinity Gems (when a gem is complete, it goes into his gauntlet and reveals a special ability he can use)
All in all it was an enjoyable day!
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