The Re-Review: Quick Ones

Through the Ages: A New Story of Civilization

• 1 play with 2 players
• Played before

This was the first time I’ve played the game online at boardgaming-online.com and while the interface there leaves a lot to be desired, it has the updated rules and it’s still the same great game I know and love. I seem to have a knack for doing poorly at the beginning and really pulling ahead in the end. Also, most of my games have me largely ignoring military and floundering a bit in the beginning as a result. Still, the power of fast food and Bill Gates let me pull from behind in this game.

Highly recommended.

Cash ‘n Guns

• 1 play with 8 players
• Played before

There’s nothing quite like an eight player game of Cash ‘n Guns. Everyone is getting shot and taking risks and grabbing all the loot. Add in the unique player powers and you’re having a great time, really. I have to remember how good of a game this is and bring it out more.

Recommended.

Codenames

• 2 plays with 10 players
• Played before

I still really enjoy Codenames with it’s endless replayability and teachability. It handled 10 players with aplomb and I really have no qualms about playing with that number, even with new gamers.

Highly recommended.

Dale of Merchants

• 1 play with 4 players
• New to me

I picked this game up based on Tom Vasel’s review. It looked like a nice simple deck builder of sorts, but one with player interaction, a progression curve, and some variability in the setup leading to different games. I’d say it has that, but it’s not entirely fair for me to judge the game quite yet because I botched a rule when teaching that really threw off the game: we didn’t take bonus actions with the bonus action cards, making them kinda worthless. Still, the game seemed interesting and I liked the building of stalls and the ebb and flow of your deck.

Tentatively recommended.

Battle Line

• 2 plays with 2 players
• Played before

For some reason, this game doesn’t get play that much and when it does it’s several games all at once. It is a good game, a great one even. I love how well the game depicts a line clashing soldiers and the back-and-forth between them. I would say that this game feels more thematic then it looks though. Yes, you get the feeling of being in battle when you’re trying to figure out how your line can push through in one place or poke a bunch of holes in the enemy line, but creating sets gets away from the theme pretty fast. Still, it’s a great game.

Recommended.