xxxx

International Toy Fair Nuremberg 2007
Internationale Spielwarenmesse Nürnberg 2007

x
x

Days of Wonder

Days of Wonder keeps spoiling the dedicated gamer with yet another large game! This time we are in Rome, taking the role of an impresario and organising large events in his arena. The impressarios find themselves dealing with matters as trying to contract the best performers: hire gladiators, lions and decorate the place with torches, and hopefully with each event they will share in the wealth and glory, using it to organise even greater and ambitious events. Their hope is to attract the nobles of the city, the emperor or other members of the nobility, as this will attract even more spectators and increase the revenues - to be used for yet another, bigger event. Goal of the game is to organise the biggest spectacle with the most spectators. Programs, on which is stated what sort of show will run in the arena, are taken and players will try to match it the most they can. The nobles are beautifully painted figures, and overall, the game is of top-notch quality.

Colosseum, Wolfgang Kramer & Markus Lübke, 3-5 players, 10 years and up, 60-90 minutes
x
x

Eggertspiele

A coffee game on two boards. Two to four players buy one to three items (houses, workers, ships, roads) on the first board. What they can buy is dependent on a pawn that moves around this board; what the costs are is dependent on the terrain where they place it on the second board: nearer to the coast they pay more than higher in the hills. When items are removed from the first board, they are replaced by roads that can be placed against no additional costs. On the first board are 6 scoring figures. When a player thinks he has placed enough workers next to his house, he may elect to call a scoring instead of buying and placing.

x
x
This is the only way to get a fixed amount of gold (8), plus as many points (black or white) as the colour of the scoring figure. Another player may block the scoring by handing in his own previously acquired scoring figure, but then the blocked player may buy items instead (after also having collected the 8 gold). Ships multiply the scoring if roads are built to the plantations: 2x for one ship, 3x for two ships, and 5 times when having three ships on the coast. When scoring, ALL players get points, but only the active player gets the 8 gold. This game looks like another possible solid game from this publisher.

Guatemala Café, prototype, Inka & Markus Brand, 3-4 players, 10 years and up, 45-60 minutes
x
Goldsieber

In ‘Akkon’, players bluff their way for cards and actions. They place their bid cubes blind for other players and try to win cards that advance their strength on any of the four tracks but also unexpectedly could leave them with a card that sets them back. Most of the cards are of the kind of ‘win a position’, ‘go back’, or ‘hinder your opponent’. At first sight the game does not look too inviting.

Akkon, Christian Fiore & Knut Happel, 2-5 players, 10 years and up, 45-90 minutes
x
Hans im Glück

Winners of a ‘Spiel des Jahres’ prize should be severely punished if they bring out unnecessary sequels. In ‘Glanz un Gloria’ more of the same old Turn und Taxis things happen. The routes are somewhat different, the bonuses expanded. City cards can be played as horses that pull your coach, which is dependent on the length of your route. The board is new, the cards are new, but you still need the ‘basic’ game for the houses. Strange. But the artwork by Michael Menzel still is terrific.

Glanz und Gloria, Karen & Andreas Seyfarth, 2-4 players, 10 years and up, 60 minutes

x
The two player game ‘Ponte del Diavolo’ gives players the choice: either form an island by placing one or two tiles, or place a bridge and connect two tiles of the same colour. This could earn a player a point, but only if both islands that the bridge stands on or is connected to, is exactly four tiles large. Players have to keep in mind that an island never may grow larger than 4 tiles of the same colour. Astoundingly simple and promising.

Ponte del Diavolo, Martin Ebel, 2 players, 10 years and up, 30 minutes
x

This is one of the two ‘Wikinger’ titles in Nürnberg. With ‘Walhalla’ (Amigo, 2006) from Essen, the third game about these fortune seeking tramps who liked to land on foreign shores, plunder cities and harass respectable citizens and peasants. Oh well, this has happened long ago, so this hardly will be an issue now! Players start out with 20 gold. When taking a turn, a player chooses and buys a island tile and the corresponding token for the stated amount. The tile depicts either of one of three parts of an island: beginning, middle, or end, and the player places it next to his own ‘board’, a hook. The price that has to be paid for the island part is depicted on a central disc that rotates to its next lower value after a player has taken his turn. When all of the 12 tiles have been bought, a new round starts with 12 new tiles and coloured tokens.

x
x
x
There are several coloured tokens, that each do something different: fishermen feed up to 4 other tokens, for instance. Ship tiles can pose a threat to the accumulated points but a placed black token can block this. Grey tokens accomplish placement of other tokens to an island: either all tokens of a kind, or one of all kinds. Other coloured tokens earn a player new income, necessary  for buying new tiles. Some tiles can be placed in another players area. Six rounds are played, after which several bonuses are rewarded, for instance for longest island, etc. In the advanced version extra bonus tiles are auctioned. The auction system and collecting the right items reminds of Sankt Petersburg.

Wikinger, Michael Kiesling, 2-4 players, 10 years and up, 60 minutes
x
Hasbro
Fortress America, district Germany, only offers guided tours on their compound. When only interested in a single game such as ‘Origi’, a female (secret?) agent is accompanying you to the treasure. Therefore, getting inside feels almost like a game in itself! But, having reached my destination, what about ‘Origi’? Despite the theme, it seems to be a rather abstract card driven game on a board that depicts Europe but in such a way that the grid, and the abstract gameplay is evident. Ten cards are dealt to each player, that depict in which row, which country, or which column of the board a player may place his tribe. There are also ship cards, enabling sea movement, and tribe cards, enabling a player to settle a tribe right next to an already existing one. Who manages to complete a country founds it, and may take the first erecting stone from the scoring track and place it in the corresponding country. He then advances the corresponding points on the tribe leader track. During the game, when placement gets real tight, sea movement or attacks can be made to fulfill the expansion drive, dependent on the cards, to get a players tribe in the best position in each of the three scoring rounds. The player who has managed to advance the farthest on the tribe leader track, has won the game. And no, no photos are allowed to be taken! Come on guys, even an embedded journalist in Iraq has more freedom!

Origi, Wolfgang kramer, 2-5 players, 10 years and up, 60 minutes
x
x
x