Recommend me a board game?

[Polite_Nate]

You’re up! It’s us and two random dudes because QT3 hates being cool guys.

Oh man, almost forgot about this one. Why does everyone else hate fun?

If there are people on the fence, this game is basically a board game adaptation of managing your capital city in Civilization (Sid Meier’s that is.) With a bit of an abstracted military layer on top. The rules are online somewhere no doubt, and I’m happy to help new people out (not that I’m an expert.)

[Wendelius]

I need some advice for a new boardgame. My 14 year old son has been enjoying Smallworld, Settlers of Catan, Fortune and Glory, Carcassonne and other recent games to hit the table.

But now he’d like to try something different. He’d like to try a game involving money, trade routes possibly, something where you have to build an economic empire/fortune maybe.

We generally play those games with 4 players (me, 2 14 year olds and a 10 year old) and they tend to lose interest if the game reaches an hour and a half or 2 hours.

I know the requirement is vague. But do you know of any games which might fit the bill and be approachable and tempt the 10 and 14 year olds?

Wendelius

[Giaddon]

Race for the Galaxy? Puerto Rico?

[Wendelius]

Race for the Galaxy? Puerto Rico?

I haven’t played either, though I had the feeling the name Puerto Rico would come up. It sounds like that kind of game. :)

Thanks for the suggestions, I’ll go check out those 2. Any additional suggestions welcome so I can find the best fit.

Also, quick question (not a requirement): Do those 2 rely on game card text? I’m thinking it might be nice if the game could also be playable with my French speaking mother who loves trying new boardgames.

Wendelius

[Mike_Cathcart]

I’d go with Acquire and then later on Power Grid. Brass is the best example I’ve played of what you’re asking for but the ten year old won’t be able to play it. It’s good with 3 but I’m not sure if that’s an option for you.

[Djscman]

I only played Galaxy Trucker once and got my ass kicked, but the build-your-own-spaceship mechanics, fighting off plague and pirates and asteroids, and making more money than the kid behind you might be what he’s looking for.

[Mike_Cathcart]

I think you mean Galaxy Trucker? It’s great but it doesn’t sound like what Wendeilus was asking for. Or maybe I just misunderstood him.

[Giaddon]

Also, quick question (not a requirement): Do those 2 rely on game card text? I’m thinking it might be nice if the game could also be playable with my French speaking mother who loves trying new boardgames.

Wendelius

Funny you ask. Race for the Galaxy actually drops almost all card text in favor of an icon-based visual language. As long as you go over what the icons represent, she should be able to understand what 99% of the cards do by looking at the icons.

[Reldan]

Puerto Rico has some themes that are perhaps not suitable for younger children (you import brown “colonists” to work your plantations, divvy them up like property, and don’t pay them anything).

Power Grid fits the bill if the 10 year old is a mathlete. Traders of Genoa has some very interesting mechanics and is all about making money and cutting deals with other players. 7 Wonders is probably the lightest empire building game I can think of.

Steam actually might work nicely - it literally is everything you are asking for - but it’s on another level of complexity compared to Settlers or Carcassonne so be forewarned. It’s probably one of the best games out there though that’s all about routes, money, and building up an economic powerhouse in a competitive setting (and has the fun of placing down tiles to build tracks to create your own railroad empire).

[Reldan]

Funny you ask. Race for the Galaxy actually drops almost all card text in favor of an icon-based visual language. As long as you go over what the icons represent, she should be able to understand what 99% of the cards do by looking at the icons.

Which is something that some people love and others abhor. Learning the icons is a bitch.

[Benhur]

FFG just announced a new/old game… Netrunner as a LCG. I think I still have some old Netrunner cards around here somewhere.

http://www.fantasyflightgames.com/edge_news.asp?eidn=3272

Can someone explain to me the difference between Infiltration and Netrunner? Don’t they take place in the same Android universe?

[Case]

Can someone explain to me the difference between Infiltration and Netrunner? Don’t they take place in the same Android universe?

Yes, but they’re very different games. Infiltration is the simpler, and takes more of a push-your-luck mechanic. It also supports 2-6 players.

Netrunner is an asymmetric, 2-player game in a CCG-style format, updated to more the current LCG style (i.e., you don’t have to buy infinite expansions to get a few rare cards.)

[malkav11]

Which is something that some people love and others abhor. Learning the icons is a bitch.

Personally I found them instantly intuitive, but I know some of the people I’ve played with found them frustrating, one person to the point where he refused to play the game ever again after his first session.

[Nightgaunt]

Learning the symbols for Race for the Galaxy is like learning a new language. It’s completely perplexing at first. Then once it clicks, you realize how brilliant it is. A 14 year old can figure it out, but may need encouragement at first.

Reldan, it seems a little silly to me to say that Puerto Rico is secretly about slavery because of the color of the pieces and the fact that there are no mechanics for paying anyone. I don’t pay anyone in Caylus or Carcassone, either.

I will treble my recommendation in these parts for Kingsburg. Kingsburg, Kingsburg, Kingsburg.

For a trading/empire game, you might try Endeavor.

[Polite_Nate]

But now he’d like to try something different. He’d like to try a game involving money, trade routes possibly, something where you have to build an economic empire/fortune maybe.

We generally play those games with 4 players (me, 2 14 year olds and a 10 year old) and they tend to lose interest if the game reaches an hour and a half or 2 hours.

Based on the description, I’d point you toward the Railroad Tycoon/Railways of the World family of games: Use money to build connections between cities, deliver cubes from one city to another to get money to build more connections, rinse and repeat. Two caveats:

1. It may be a bit much for the 10 year old, but that’s something you’re better off judging for yourself (FWIW I’ve played it with a couple of kids in the 10-12 range once or twice before.)

and 2) 90-120 minutes may be a bit ambitious time-wise, and certainly not likely while you’re just learning the game.

Steam was mentioned earlier, and I’d put this one over top of it for younger/lighter players for a few reasons. It’s more or less the same system, but with a much looser feel. Where in Steam/Age of Steam you can really shoot yourself in the foot (AoS especially where you can bankrupt yourself relatively easily) it’s pretty hard to sink yourself in RT/RotW*. Even if you are a long way from winning you can always be setting your own goals and improving your network and most of the maps that I’ve played have plenty of room for 4 players without getting all cut-throat.

• I have seen it happen though, but with a player that was almost willfully obtuse in the degree to which he ignored repeated warnings and explanations of why what he was doing (taking on vast quantities of debt) was not going to work. He then got grumpy about how he misunderstood the rules even though we’d re-explained them several times. Anyway.

[Reldan]

Reldan, it seems a little silly to me to say that Puerto Rico is secretly about slavery because of the color of the pieces and the fact that there are no mechanics for paying anyone. I don’t pay anyone in Caylus or Carcassone, either.

I don’t think it’s a secret. One of the expansion buildings is the “Black Market” which allows the owner to trade his “colonists” to buy things in lieu of money.

I love Puerto Rico as a game just like I love the music of the Rolling Stones, but I’m not going to pretend “Brown Sugar” is about the baking ingredient.

[Reldan]

Based on the description, I’d point you toward the Railroad Tycoon/Railways of the World family of games: Use money to build connections between cities, deliver cubes from one city to another to get money to build more connections, rinse and repeat. Two caveats:

1. It may be a bit much for the 10 year old, but that’s something you’re better off judging for yourself (FWIW I’ve played it with a couple of kids in the 10-12 range once or twice before.)

and 2) 90-120 minutes may be a bit ambitious time-wise, and certainly not likely while you’re just learning the game.

Steam was mentioned earlier, and I’d put this one over top of it for younger/lighter players for a few reasons. It’s more or less the same system, but with a much looser feel. Where in Steam/Age of Steam you can really shoot yourself in the foot (AoS especially where you can bankrupt yourself relatively easily) it’s pretty hard to sink yourself in RT/RotW*. Even if you are a long way from winning you can always be setting your own goals and improving your network and most of the maps that I’ve played have plenty of room for 4 players without getting all cut-throat.

• I have seen it happen though, but with a player that was almost willfully obtuse in the degree to which he ignored repeated warnings and explanations of why what he was doing (taking on vast quantities of debt) was not going to work. He then got grumpy about how he misunderstood the rules even though we’d re-explained them several times. Anyway.

I find the “Basic Rules” version of Steam to still be a good game and it’s pretty hard to overly screw yourself. It’s very similar to Railroad Tycoon (which owes to Age of Steam, Railroad Tycoon, and Steam all being designed by the same guy - Martin Wallace). The Standard version of the rules kicks it up a notch and I like that the game has the ability to take itself to the next level. But yeah, you can destroy yourself in the Standard game - it doesn’t hold your hand and assumes you can plan your financial empire out yourself.

[Reldan]

Personally I found them instantly intuitive, but I know some of the people I’ve played with found them frustrating, one person to the point where he refused to play the game ever again after his first session.

My wife won’t play the game for that reason, and I have another friend who also will excuse himself from Race because he gets frustrated and gets sick of having to look up 10 different symbols to try and understand what his opening hand can do.

[Gordon_Berg]

But now he’d like to try something different. He’d like to try a game involving money, trade routes possibly, something where you have to build an economic empire/fortune maybe.

I know the requirement is vague. But do you know of any games which might fit the bill and be approachable and tempt the 10 and 14 year olds?

Assuming Fantasy Flight hasn’t mucked about with the rules too much in regards to the eventual re-release of Merchant of Venus, that should really fit your criteria. I still have my Avalon Hill copy from the 80’s, and I think the gameplay is fantastic. An upgrade to the art and components will be an obvious welcome bonus over the plain cardboard chits from the original, and the sci-fi theme always helps if railroads prove uninspiring (I do, however, love Railways of the World, and prefer it over Steam precisely because it’s more forgiving).

http://www.fantasyflightgames.com/edge_minisite_sec.asp?eidm=188&esem=1

The only issue has been when; no one has any idea if the legal matters over publishing rights with Stronghold games are resolved yet or not. They certainly haven’t been very forthcoming with status updates.

[Wendelius]

I want to thank you all for your suggestions. I’ll go over them today and come back with more questions and/or a short list.

Thanks!

Wendelius