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Avalon Hill, 3M Parker Bros. Business European Mystery Politics Space/Fantasy |
SAMPLES
FROM THE WINTER 2000 GA REPORT
VINCI Vinci is a grand design that captures the ebb and flow of empires across the face of Europe...12 civilization counters are drawn randomly, two at a time, and placed on the "Civilization Menu" located at the top of the board. These pairs represent the unique character of a particular civilization...The active player may choose the first civilization or, if he prefers, a later positioned civilization. But here is the catch. If picking a later civilization, that player must pay Victory Points for the privilege!...Conversely, civilizations skipped get a token placed on them. If a subsequent player picks that civilization, he gets that civilization AND 2 VPs for each token on it! This brilliant device makes apparently weak civilizations attractive - a clever and important balancing mechanism.When a civilization first appears, the player receives pawns equal to the two red numbers found on the civilization tokens chosen plus 3 to 8 additional pawns (depending on the number of players in the game)...An empire expands by moving into any adjacent province. It generally costs at least 2 pawns to expand...At the end of his turn, a player earns 1 VP for each province under his control (with bonuses possible). But now Vinci adds a new concept: an empire in "decline". At the beginning of a turn, a player may simply declare his own empire in "decline". This allows that player to choose another civilization from the civilization menu and enter it into play on the following turn. Empires in decline may still earn VPs for the player but are no longer "active"...The empire in decline option is one of those decisions where timing is everything!...This is yet another impressive feature... If games of territorial conquest are your meat, Vinci is a feast. Certainly it is a strong candidate for Game of the Year honors. Highly recommended.---Herb Levy
THE SETTLERS OF NUREMBERG Settlers of Nuremberg commemorates the 950th anniversary of that city's founding...Settlers of Nuremberg includes a large mounted mapboard divided into two sections. The main section depicts the countryside surrounding the city. The second map is a blow-up of the city proper. The hexes on the countryside map correspond to the mountains, forests, hills etc. and produce the same resources as in basic Settlers. From here on, the two games diverge...There are five designated roads already indicated on the countryside map... players build and place toll booths...hoping to gain control of each road...and earn one VP for each road controlled....Workshops can be built...only on 12 designated places on the city map board. Production of finished goods (paper, suits of armor, compasses etc.) earns a player gold coins. Coins earned are DOUBLED if a players own a workshop that can produce those kinds of finished goods... Three gold coins, combined with one brick, can be used to build a section of the city wall that encircles Nuremberg, earning the player 1 prestige point. Building a tower on the wall costs 3 gold coins, a brick and a wood but earns 2 prestige points. Once a player has earned 3 or more prestige points, he can earn a seat on the city council. These seats can be worth 4, 3 or 2 VPs.... Victory is attained by being the first to earn 13 VPs... Settlers of Nuremberg is the most challenging and enjoyable version of Settlers that I've played. It is not, however, a sociable game like basic Settlers and therefore appeals to mostly to avid gamers rather than to family groups... --- Steve Kurzban.
ANDROMEDA Andromeda is a new game from 1998's Game of the Year award winning designer Alan Moon...Andromeda...[is] a novel contest in which the odds and the constant adjustment of the odds play a heavy role. The attempts to establish economic centers involves a gimmick some have described as a "cosmic ashtray". This black device is placed over the stations... and is shaken back and forth with on finger covering an "exit". Then the device is carefully withdrawn to reveal one cube. If it is another player's cube, it is sent back to Earth. If the cube belongs to the player making the attempt, he successfully establishes an economic center... Obviously, luck attributable to the device plays some role but there is ample opportunity to adjust the odds... failures to establish economic centers result in an improvement in the odds for the next attempt.... This ability to chnge the odds is the most brilliant aspect of Andromeda....This is an entertaining contest that usually plays in a little more than an hour.....----- Al Newman
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...players are attempting to establish "economic
centers" on satellites of various planets in the Andromeda
planetary system. These economic centers are the major focus for
garnering Victory Points... Players begins with four stations on Earth
and approximately 20 more placed randomly on the even planets of the
Andromeda system. A deck of 84 cards...provides the principal mechanisms
of collecting sets of planet cards for moving stations, acquiring
technology and bigger ships, and attempting to establish economic
centers....Besides economic centers, VPs are also available from three
other sources...the player's advancement in technology...each of the
player's stations (small colored wooden cubes) left on Earth is worth 1
VP...players receive a number of VPs...for credit cards held (unused) at
game's end.