Modern board/card games
Discussion
mikeyr said:
ecsrobin said:
The Amazon carcassonne I got at he weekend for £15. It includes the river expansion which after watching the will Wheaton video I was going to purchase!
Me too!Only downside is delivery isn't due until next month
As for TTR the instructions are here: https://cdn1.daysofwonder.com/tickettoride/en/img/...
A few recommendations here
Puerto Rico - Good fun, but only played it once so far
Machi Koro - Really good fun car based game. Has the advantage that you can play as a two player. You build up an empire of properties which have different actions based on dice rolls. I like it as you can think you are miles away from winning but turn it around in a few goes.
Xia, Legends of a drift system - Really long winded and quite expensive. It does take a while to set up and you need someone who has read the manual. Good fun once you get going and end up flying directly into the sun a few times.
Power Grid - Delightfully German, you build up a collection of different power stations and build lines into different cities. You then have to make sure you can power all your cities at the end of each turn by buying fuel. It is really well designed with an elaborate marketplace for power stations and another for fuel.
Puerto Rico - Good fun, but only played it once so far
Machi Koro - Really good fun car based game. Has the advantage that you can play as a two player. You build up an empire of properties which have different actions based on dice rolls. I like it as you can think you are miles away from winning but turn it around in a few goes.
Xia, Legends of a drift system - Really long winded and quite expensive. It does take a while to set up and you need someone who has read the manual. Good fun once you get going and end up flying directly into the sun a few times.
Power Grid - Delightfully German, you build up a collection of different power stations and build lines into different cities. You then have to make sure you can power all your cities at the end of each turn by buying fuel. It is really well designed with an elaborate marketplace for power stations and another for fuel.
Rostfritt said:
Puerto Rico - Good fun, but only played it once so far
I bought this a coupe of years ago but found it very hard to get into,so it's not something we have persevered with, in favour of there games such as Ticket To Ride, Carcassonne, Stone Age which seem much more 'playable' / intuitive as beginners.We should try it again though, as it is highly related by those in the know!
I started a similar thread a while back, and this one has added further ideas which is great.
Can I ask the experts if there are any games in my want list that are similar to each other or games I already have:
Some I Have:
Carcassone
Scotland Yard
221b Baker Street
Want:
Ticket to Ride (similar to Carcassone?)
Settlers of Catan
Alhambra
Letters from Whitechapel (similar to Scotland Yard?)
Labyrinth
Forbidden Island
Can I ask the experts if there are any games in my want list that are similar to each other or games I already have:
Some I Have:
Carcassone
Scotland Yard
221b Baker Street
Want:
Ticket to Ride (similar to Carcassone?)
Settlers of Catan
Alhambra
Letters from Whitechapel (similar to Scotland Yard?)
Labyrinth
Forbidden Island
Edited by Adam B on Thursday 18th February 14:40
Forbidden Island has been great the last few days - kids have been playing it whilst on half term, and we've normally fitted in a couple of games as a family each night.
It's different, and brilliant, playing cooperatively - marked comparison to 'normal' games. Bloody tough too, so you're on your toes all the ways through.
It's different, and brilliant, playing cooperatively - marked comparison to 'normal' games. Bloody tough too, so you're on your toes all the ways through.
Adam B said:
I started a similar thread a while back, and this one has added further ideas which is great.
Can I ask the experts if there are any games in my want list that are similar to each other or games I already have:
Some I Have:
Carcassone
Scotland Yard
221b Baker Street
Want:
Ticket to Ride (similar to Carcassone?)
Settlers of Catan
Alhambra
Letters from Whitechapel (similar to Scotland Yard?)
Labyrinth
Forbidden Island
Ticket to ride is a must buy. It's a card game with the board element so definitely different and can get very frustrating if you enjoy collecting cards and someone decides to place trains early. Can I ask the experts if there are any games in my want list that are similar to each other or games I already have:
Some I Have:
Carcassone
Scotland Yard
221b Baker Street
Want:
Ticket to Ride (similar to Carcassone?)
Settlers of Catan
Alhambra
Letters from Whitechapel (similar to Scotland Yard?)
Labyrinth
Forbidden Island
Edited by Adam B on Thursday 18th February 14:40
Sorry but I am not really after reviews - all those games I mentioned are on my list because of your great recommendations 
I am really asking are there any games in my "want" list that are similar in style/strategy, to each other or games I have. If so I will buy the others first.
For example Whitechapel seems similar to Scotland Yard, in that many some players try to outwit the single baddie player and corner him, using clues
I am really asking are there any games in my "want" list that are similar in style/strategy, to each other or games I have. If so I will buy the others first.
For example Whitechapel seems similar to Scotland Yard, in that many some players try to outwit the single baddie player and corner him, using clues
Edited by Adam B on Thursday 18th February 17:02
Adam B said:
Sorry but I am not after reviews
All those games I mentioned are on my list because of your great recommendations
I am really asking are there any games in my "want" list that are similar in style/strategy, ot each other or games I have. If so I will buy the others first.
For example Whitechapel seems similar to Scotland Yard, in that many some players try to outwit the single baddie player and corner him, using clues
I see what you mean - Whitechapel is a bit like Scotland Yard, yes, albeit a lot more grown up feeling. 'Jack' moves on a hidden board and plays in secret to the other players etc etc so I suppose it is down to whether you like the mechanics or the setting more. Scotland Yard never really grabbed me but Whitechapel definitely does.All those games I mentioned are on my list because of your great recommendations
I am really asking are there any games in my "want" list that are similar in style/strategy, ot each other or games I have. If so I will buy the others first.
For example Whitechapel seems similar to Scotland Yard, in that many some players try to outwit the single baddie player and corner him, using clues
TTR and Settlers are sufficiently different from Carcassonne IMO - the three games aren't really that similar at all.
Going against the grain slightly, I hate TTR. My OH (German) loves it and plays it a lot with her family but I find that ultimately luck of the draw decides whether you win or lose rather than strategy (We're both pretty good though she is a bit better at it, and we find that who winds is usually determined by a couple of points that would have been swung with a few more cards). That drives me absolutely mental so I don't like it.
The other two are much more resource-based. In fact, Settlers is probably more like Carcassonne than TTR is in that respect.
I've not played 221B so can't help there...
Going against the grain slightly, I hate TTR. My OH (German) loves it and plays it a lot with her family but I find that ultimately luck of the draw decides whether you win or lose rather than strategy (We're both pretty good though she is a bit better at it, and we find that who winds is usually determined by a couple of points that would have been swung with a few more cards). That drives me absolutely mental so I don't like it.
The other two are much more resource-based. In fact, Settlers is probably more like Carcassonne than TTR is in that respect.
I've not played 221B so can't help there...
Anyone looking into 221b Baker Street should also look into Sherlock Holmes: Consulting Detective. It's not really a competitive game, more a collection of mysteries where you work together to piece together the mystery. No set time limit or even win condition, once you think you've gathered all the evidence, you put it together and then read the conclusion that Sherlock Holmes came to, gaining points for coming to the same conclusions and losing points for moving around the map more than he did, or getting it completely wrong.
Disastrous said:
TTR and Settlers are sufficiently different from Carcassonne IMO - the three games aren't really that similar at all.
Going against the grain slightly, I hate TTR. My OH (German) loves it and plays it a lot with her family but I find that ultimately luck of the draw decides whether you win or lose rather than strategy (We're both pretty good though she is a bit better at it, and we find that who winds is usually determined by a couple of points that would have been swung with a few more cards). That drives me absolutely mental so I don't like it.
The other two are much more resource-based. In fact, Settlers is probably more like Carcassonne than TTR is in that respect.
I've not played 221B so can't help there...
The knack with TTR is that you don't place any routes until you have to (ie someone is about to possibly block you out) - or you have pretty much have all the cards you need to complete you connections. If you are flexible on possible ways to connect the lack of a certain card colours should not be a issue.Going against the grain slightly, I hate TTR. My OH (German) loves it and plays it a lot with her family but I find that ultimately luck of the draw decides whether you win or lose rather than strategy (We're both pretty good though she is a bit better at it, and we find that who winds is usually determined by a couple of points that would have been swung with a few more cards). That drives me absolutely mental so I don't like it.
The other two are much more resource-based. In fact, Settlers is probably more like Carcassonne than TTR is in that respect.
I've not played 221B so can't help there...
Basically you really should not be giving away where you plan to go until your opponents don't have any time to react. Additionally always try to build the longer connections - building two 3 length routes as apposed to a single 6 routes wastes a turn and gives you less points.
Adam B said:
I started a similar thread a while back, and this one has added further ideas which is great.
Can I ask the experts if there are any games in my want list that are similar to each other or games I already have:
Some I Have:
Carcassone
Scotland Yard
221b Baker Street
Want:
Ticket to Ride (similar to Carcassone?)
Settlers of Catan
Alhambra
Letters from Whitechapel (similar to Scotland Yard?)
Labyrinth
Forbidden Island
I think everyone, bar 2, of those games either won or was nominated for the Spiel des Jahres... and therefore worthy of purchasing and playing ...Can I ask the experts if there are any games in my want list that are similar to each other or games I already have:
Some I Have:
Carcassone
Scotland Yard
221b Baker Street
Want:
Ticket to Ride (similar to Carcassone?)
Settlers of Catan
Alhambra
Letters from Whitechapel (similar to Scotland Yard?)
Labyrinth
Forbidden Island
Edited by Adam B on Thursday 18th February 14:40
... and as Spiel des Jahres games tend to be family games I suspect the Jury felt a game based around the murder of Prositutes might not be appropriate ;-)
With the exception to Scotland Yard & Whitechapel I really don't think there is that much of a similarity in the games.
You could argue that Carcassonne and Alhambra are both tile laying games and therefore similar - but to me that is just one mechanism - there are other mechanisms that just give each game a different feel - for instance the scoring in Carcassonne is according to where you have placed you meeples, whilst it Alhambra it is according to how many of each type of building you have and when the scoring cards come out.
As regards Whitechapel and Scotland Yard - I can't remember the last time Scotland Yard was played in any of the gaming groups I have played with - but Whitechapel I think has been played 2 or 3 times in the last year. I suspect the preference for whitechapel might just be to with the added complexity of the game over scotland yard - and I hope nothing to do with a prepensity/desire to murder prostitues!!
mikeyr said:
ecsrobin said:
The Amazon carcassonne I got at he weekend for £15. It includes the river expansion which after watching the will Wheaton video I was going to purchase!
Me too!Only downside is delivery isn't due until next month
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