(continued from Intro to Eurogames - Part 1)

Puerto Rico



This has been the #1 rated game on BoardGameGeek for a long time.

I have this one, so only can speak about what I have been able to gather from reading about the game.

It is by far the most complicated of the Big Three. It is a resource and shipping game in which people will divvy up various roles (e.g., Captain, Governor) each round.

My understanding is that a large part of the appeal of this game is there is no single best strategy. There are multiple, sometimes very different ways to amass victory points (e.g., shipping goods, building buildings) so that every time you play, you can try something new.

---

My 'gateway' game

Settlers of Catan and Carcassone are considered to be light to medium weight games and are sometimes called 'gateway games' because they are the first Eurogames many people play and are their 'gateway' into the Eurogame world.

Ticket to Ride



A very popular game (in fact, the Big Three may someday become the Big Four) and the first one I played. I got this one when I learned that if you buy the board game, you get a number that allows you to play the online version.

The idea behind this game is that you are a passenger trying to ride to various destinations in the US for points. Players get destination tickets with these goals.

The board has various route of various colors. Players draw cards until they have the right number of color cards to fill in a route. For example, one of the routes from Pittsburgh to Chicago is 3 orange segments. When a player has 3 orange train cards in their hand, they can play those and put 3 trains on those segments to mark it as theirs. You earn points for placing trains and, at the end of the game, points for each Destination Ticket you completed (Beware! You lose the points on the Destination Ticket if you fail to complete it,)

I am kind of on to other games now but I still recommend it as it is easy to learn, fast playing and a good family game.

---

The cost varies on these games and is usually dependent on the what kind of components are in the game.

Carcassone, which has cardboard (although very high quality cardboard) tiles and some nice wooden meeples, costs around $16 from online stores while Ticket to Ride, which has a ton of plastic train pieces, lots of cards and a really nice board retails for $40 (it can usually be found online for $27 or so).

---

Where to buy?

Games by James carries many Eurogames but tend to charge full retail price (and sometimes even more!).

Phoenix Games (near Lake and Lyndale) carries a very wide selection, they charge retail or just under and usually only have one copy of each so might be out of the one you want.

If I really want a game fast (i.e, a particular game for an upcoming gathering), I will occasionally buy from one of those two places.

Otherwise I buy the games online to save money (although shipping sometimes reduces the savings).

I use FairPlayGames. I pretty much just picked them at random but have been very satisfied with the service. They ship fast and the one time I had a question, they were very helpful.

http://www.fairplayga...

---

So how can I play!?!?!?

I am setting up a Intro to Eurogames night at a coffee shop in South Minneapolis. See my other discussion: Play/Learn some Eurogames!

---

To learn more about these games and others, visit BoardGameGeek.com. The site is very comprehensive with lots and lots of goodies for gamers.

Settlers of Catan: http://www.boardgameg...

Carcassone: http://www.boardgameg...

Carcassone - Hunters and Gatherers: http://www.boardgameg...

Puerto Rico - http://www.boardgameg...

Ticket to Ride - http://www.boardgameg...

---

Some examples of some other popular games:

Tigris & Euphrates
http://www.boardgameg...

Through The Desert
http://www.boardgameg...

Lost Cities
http://www.boardgameg...

Bohnanza
http://www.boardgameg...

Bang!
http://www.boardgameg...

You can play many of these games (Puetro rico, Settlers, Carcassonne, Lost cities, Bohnanza ) online at www.brettspielwelt.de
Best gaming site ever! register, download the client, and play 50 different eurogames, all free and no obnoxious e-mails.

Other places to buy games are:

Thoughthammer.com 35-40% off, usually the best deals on the net!
funagain.com

Universe games the 66th and Penn avenue. all games 20% off all the time! www.universegames.com

Source of comics and games
Larpentuer and Snelling in Roseville

Grand games in Stillwater

Another great place to buy these games, and I don't think you listed him, is www.rainydaygames.us. Cory's fantastic to work with and located right here in the Cities. Plus, the games are all way cheaper through him than anywhere else we've found.

Angie

This is all great information. Thanks so much for all the posts and links - always looking for good deals on new games and good information on new games too.

By the way, there is a new game magazine out and some of you might like it - Knucklebones. www.kbones.com.

By the way - does anyone have Tumblin Dice?

Wow, thanks for the info.

I think that someone was talking about AI versions of these games so that newbies (like me) can learn them in privacy. I am a little intimidated about learning them on-line with all those other players. can anyone maks some suggestions on where I can download and/or buy Mac version of Settlers, PR and other Eurogames?

Thanks,

Cate

Check out this GeekList on BoardGameGeek:

Free Computer Version of Board and Card Games with Artificial Intelligence Computer Opponents


It's hit or miss on how well (or even if) they work but there is plenty to explore.

I go to this site a lot:

AsoBrain

There are versions of Settlers of Catan (called Xplorers on the site but it's the same game) and Carcassone (called Toulouse).