A Great 2 Player Game (Rio Grande Games Carcassonne)

Member Name: nakmeister

Product:	Rio Grande Games Carcassonne
Date:	02/03/09 (53 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Easy to learn

Disadvantages: Can take up a lot of floor or table space

For me, board games are a great way of relaxing and having fun with friends or family. Don't get me wrong, I really enjoy computer games too, but even the best multiplayer games don't have the same relaxed social interaction of board games, and Carcassonne is one of the better games out there.

- Key Facts -

Type of game: Tile laying
Number of players: 2-5
Age: 10+
Duration: 30-60mins
Price: approx £15-£20

- About the Game -

Rather than having a single board, Carcassonne is made up of lots and lots of cardboard tiles, each about 2 or 3 inches square. The tiles each contain some or all of the following: roads, rivers, fields, cities, monasteries. As well as the tiles, you get a 8 coloured wooden followers each. The idea of the game is that players take it in turns to lay a tile adjacent to another tile already laid down by another player. The tiles must match up however, so if you place your tile next to a tile that has a road running upto the edge of the tile, your tile must continue that road. Likewise a section of a city must link up with another city section etc. Think of it a bit like dominoes - two adjacent sides that link up must be the same.

When placing a tile, you can place a follower (one of your playing pieces) on that tile if you wish, either on a section of road, city, field or monastery. You will then get points when that city, road etc is complete.

The aim of the game is to have the most points at the end of the game. You do this by building and completing cities, roads and monasteries, and having farmers in fields that have access to lots of cities.

The game is one of both skill and luck. Choosing where to place tiles and how to use your followers to gain the most points involves skill, and experience of having played a few games already helps. You still rely somewhat on luck however, as each turn you draw a tile at random to play that turn. While no tiles are obviously much better than any other, you will need certain tiles at different points throughout the game to complete your cities, roads, or monasteries and particularly towards the end of the game, if you don't draw the right type of tiles you will be stuck with unfinished cities or roads at the end of the game, which reduces your score.

The game ends when all tiles have been played and none are left to draw. The winner is the person with the most points.

- Why I Like It -

Carcassonne has quite simple rules and is quick and easy to learn, but there's quite a lot of scope for strategising and thinking carefully over your turns to maximise your points and try to win the game. The tiles and playing pieces are quite visually appealing too, making it a nice game to play. I also like it because it's just as good (if not better) as a two player game as it is with more players, so I can play with my wife and have a good game without needing to have friends round. Finally, unlike many games you don't know who has won until the game is over, which keeps players interested throughout.

- What's this about expansions? -

One of the great things about Carcassonne is the fact that it has quite a few different expansions that are available to buy for it. These range from small expansion which just contain a few different tiles, to larger expansions that significantly expand the gameplay. So if you get bored of the original game or fancy a change, you can just spend a few quid and get an expansion or two. A few of the expansions are as follows:

Inns & Cathedrals - this contains a number of extra tiles on with inns or cathedrals - these allow you to get extra points. There's also one large follower per player (which doubles the points for the city/road etc that that follower is on), scoring tiles and enough playing pieces to allow a sixth player to join in.

Traders & Builders - This includes a variety of extra pieces including traders, which allow players to get more points; builders, which allow players to lay an extra tile; and pigs which enhance the value of farms/fields.

King & Scout - This expands the gameplay so that players are rewarded for building the biggest city or the longest road.

Princess & Dragon - this adds some magical fantasy-esque elements to the gameplay.

- Where to Buy From -

Carcassonne is not a game you'll find in most high street stores (don't get me started on the poor selection of games available in the big stores) so your best bet is the internet - though the game is often on sale in Waterstones stores around Christmas. On the internet, Amazon stock the main game, as do specialist board game sites such as Infinity Games UK (iguk.co.uk), and Games Lore (gameslore.com), who will also sell the expansions.

- Where can I learn more? -

If you are interested and want to learn more, you can view a pdf copy of the rules at the following address. This is provided by Rio Grande Games, the manufacturers of Carcassonne. The document also contains pictures showing the tiles and playing pieces so you can get a better idea of how the game looks.

http://www.riograndegames.com/uploads/Game/Game_4 8_gameRules.pdf

- Summary -

A great game, easy to learn but very absorbing to play. It is a really good 2 player game, but can be played with upto 5 players.

Summary: An easy to learn, absorbing game for 2 or more players