Lorenzo il Magnifico
I will freely admit that Lorenzo is a favorite board game. In Pre-Covid times I would beg my game group to bring it to the table. While this implementation of the game digitally had a rocky start, it’s now settled in as an elegant rendition of a very complicated game. In particular, the AI is finally modestly competitive…but very modestly… I play this game most often after a loss on Yukata or BGA…because it soothes my ego to have a reliable victory.
But the real reason for my “yes” recommendation is that I live in hope of finding a live human being to play this with. For months, I’ve hit the lobby at various times of day in the vain hope of finding a game I can join. So ] far just crickets. I just know I can’t be the only person who bought this game. I figure if I write a review, maybe someone will tell me where you’re all hiding.
– Real player with 217.2 hrs in game
Read More: Best Board Game Resource Management Games.
A nice digital adaptation of a great boardgame. If you’re not familiar with the actual boardgame you will have to follow the complete tutorial and then still have some trial and errors (the tutorial lacks a bit in dept concerning strategie, unless you want to read a lot of text in the glossary), but looking for great ways to score and learning to improve your game is actually something that makes this game a hidden jewel.
In a game of Lorenzo il Magnifico you will try to earn points by gaining buildings, assets, … (the parts shown in the big building on the right) and by gaining papal approvement (this is not obligated, but failing the pope gives you some kind of penalty).
– Real player with 32.5 hrs in game
Present for Manager
Better than Monopoly.
– Real player with 2.4 hrs in game
Read More: Best Board Game 1990's Games.
Present for Manager is a simulation of a board game similar to Monopoly. It’s easy to learn. The AI is quite good, but I recommend local multiplayer for the true board game experience that tears families apart. ;D
– Real player with 1.3 hrs in game
Let Them Trade
Let Them Trade is a minimalistic trading simulation in which you build a network of towns. What’s particularly special about that is that this network is only used by AI-controlled merchants! So it is in your best interest to keep up the towns' supply and demand of their resources, and pocket a big part of the traders' coin - via tolls!
Note: Let Them Trade and its Steam page are still in an early alpha state. Everything is subject to change. Wishlist the game and press the follow button to stay informed about future updates! Also, feel free to follow us on our various social media channels! :)
Explore the World!
What riches does nature have on offer for you? Where are the strategically best places for your cities? Explore a world rich with many different resources and choose the best ones to kickstart your economy!
Build Your Network!
Build trade routes between cities, overcome natural obstacles such as wild waters and soaring mountains, and be on the lookout for evil bandits. Only with wit and ingenuity, you will be able to build a trading network that maximizes your merchants' profits - and, in turn, your wealth!
Let them Trade!
Interact with a multitude of trader characters! Each with their own personality, their own field of expertise and of course their own preferences on where to spend their money. Butter them up and make their life as easy as possible:
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Fend off bandits by hiring knights in shiny armors
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Optimize trade routes so they pass by their favorite resources
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Adjust tolls to make them happy - no one likes tolls! Don’t feed the toll! Just make sure that you don’t come away empty-handed!
State Of Development
We just finished the prototype. Now we’re searching for a publisher!
Special Thanks
…to the FFF Bayern for funding the development of the game!
Read More: Best Board Game Resource Management Games.
Brass: Birmingham
I love Brass Birmingham (The Boardgame) and reviewing an Early Access game is somewhat unfair - I based my review on both that it is Early Access and the actual gameplay experience.
1. The AI gameplay is rubbish right now and is far from developed - far too easy (even on the expert level) and predictable - Maybe it is good for beginners to learn the mechanics of the game (I can’t really know since i’ve played 20 + times)
2. The Tutorial was good for an intermediate player that has’nt played for a while but for a total beginner I would draw the conclusion that it is far from enough to actually get to know the game.
– Real player with 30.5 hrs in game
Most reviews here seem to be written for single games.
Below are the questions my friend and I asked when we tried to play an online game last night, in chronological order.
Why do you have to sign up for an account for Brass when you already have a Steam account?
Why doesn’t the tab button on my keyboard work as usual when signing up?
Why is there no option to invite your friends, instead they would have to scroll through all available games, to find the name of your game? (good luck if you use the default name Brass)
– Real player with 19.0 hrs in game
Kiospoly
Buy land and build the best food kiosks until you form a big monopoly in the neighborhood.
Become the best businessman, and bankrupt your friends through an evil capitalist strategy!
You need to keep your money in the positive through property management, negotiations, and of course, luck!
Kiospoly was based on classic board games from the 90s, themed with banking, simple economics, and fast food.
It can be played online supporting 2 to 6 people.
18Korea
You should know what you are getting with the 18xx games. This is pretty good, both as a client and as an entry in the family of games, including elements that are questionable if you are a purist but are pretty nice if you like your board games to have replayability and some minimum degree of asymmetry, and I am referring to the pre-game draft of assets cards. Also the theme is great and enriched by the Korean war elements.
Buyers beware: there is NO single-player or versus-AI mode. This is a multiplayer only game. As it should be.
– Real player with 4.6 hrs in game
As an avid 18xx fan, I was very hopeful for this title. I’ve only played through a 2 player local multiplayer game(vs myself) to get a feel for the rule set and interface. This rule set is more of the “running good companies” style of 18xx vs the Stock manipulation style of game. All train routes are autocalculated which is a huge time saver over the tabletop games, interface was relatively simple to figure out.
This game has a very unique(as far as my exposure to 18xx which is pretty extensive) mechanic with half of the map getting wiped out once you advance to Era 3(brown tiles). This is the Korean war. Map gets cut at the DMZ(which you can traverse before it happens), North becomes unavailable and all cities in the South are wiped out and have to be rebuilt. I understand it works for a smaller map, but not sure how I feel about it after only one play through but its intriguing for planning and strategy.
– Real player with 2.0 hrs in game
Catan VR
Love the game. its fun, smooth, and simple to play. my one BIG con (and single most frustrating thing) about it tho is when you play vs the AI. If the AI has numbers that you are not on ,ie if you have ### 3 4 5 6 with towns on them but dont have any on 8 9 and 10, the AI will have full rounds where its only 8 9 and 10 are rolled. i get it if it happens one full cycle around the board but when its muliple in a row if makes me wonder if the dice are being truly randomized. lastly the AI WILL PICK ON YOU with the robber. i have had games where the robber was dropped on my tiles 6 times in a row and i lost cards every time. This happens even when im losing by a lot.
– Real player with 23.5 hrs in game
This is actually a promising game, but AI needs fixing. Not sure what algorithms they’re using, but when I’m losing, and have one card in my hand, and the robber comes up and they steal my card, they aren’t relying on strategy. When, no matter what the conditions in terms of card distribution and victory points, the AI players steal my card 5 out of 6 times, the game just becomes a boring exercise in watching the AI build stuff while I don’t even have a card to trade.
You already have my money, but this is a game I won’t play until it gets fixed, and I certainly wouldn’t recommend anybody else spend their money on it, unless they’re planning on playing strictly against humans.
– Real player with 12.4 hrs in game
Wingspan
First, I love this game. I love the cardboard version, and I love playing the digital one.
Second, the visuals are just lovely, though I don’t really understand some of the design choices (why would anyone choose to view just their Forest?), and I’d like to be able to watch the other players or AIs take their turns.
That doesn’t mean this version isn’t without it’s problems, which isn’t surprising so shortly after launch. I’m not sure what the rationale was for giving so many viewing options, but I only use the “full board” view (rather than viewing each of the environments), which requires a click to view powers of birds that have been played. The interface is very click-heavy to avoid making mistakes and to fix misclicks, which I appreciate, but if you have more than a couple birds in your hand (say 5+ total cards), selecting and playing birds from your hand is SUPER clunky and finicky. Since the game is a bit pricey, none in my gaming group have bought it yet, so I’ve only played the AI, which is pretty easy (no Hard AI has been implemented yet), but still very fun. In my last game I won 115-71-61-51, so it was a rout against the regular AI, but that was my biggest win to date.
– Real player with 3321.3 hrs in game
I am a big fan of Wingspan. I’ve been playing the physical board game for a couple of years and the digital version for about a year. I currently have 158.4 hours into the digital version of it as of this writing.
There are plenty of videos out there showcasing what Wingspan is. I recommend you check them out. I will spare everyone the details here and focus more on my own pros/cons.
The big pros of the digital version for me:
-It eliminates all of the set up and tear down of the physical version. My wife only wants to play digitally now for this reason alone.
– Real player with 214.1 hrs in game
Ozymandias: Bronze Age Empire Sim
If you’re interested in Ozymandias, please wishlist, follow us and download the demo! :)
At the dawn of history, Bronze Age kings built the first empires. Strategize their rise to power in a uniquely streamlined 4X.
DISTILLED DESIGN
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Focus on strategy over tactics, we’ve stripped the busywork out of 4X gameplay.
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Combat abstracted via innovative Power system so you need only move armies and fleets.
HISTORICAL MAPS
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8 handmade maps charting Bronze Ages around the world, empires in real-world locations.
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Empires are tagged from ‘Easy’ to ‘Very Hard’ to reflect their unique challenges.
COMPETITIVE AI
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Data-driven AI system, flexible enough to succeed in any environment.
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Streamlined ruleset is inherently AI-friendly so no ‘AI cheating’ required.
MULTIPLAYER
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Players take their turns simultaneously so there’s no waiting around.
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Choose to play ‘live’ (short turn timers) or ‘asynchronous’ (long game timers).
Radiis
If you’re a fan of strategy games like Risk or Sid Meier’s Civilization series then you’ll probably enjoy this, since it somewhat falls in between the two–more complex than Risk, but much less micro-managing than the Civ games. I think Radiis is a little overpriced, but “overpriced” largely depends on how many hours of enjoyment you’ll get from it. I bought it on sale and have played more than 100hrs, so for me it was a great deal.
The missions are mostly challenging, but the AI could benefit from some tweaks. For example, the computer (NPC) players tend to focus on spamming buildings for added population growth, even when it would make more sense to expand their borders. Also NPCs never save money/tokens; if there’s enough finances to place buildings, it will place them whether they need to or not. And the NPCs boat placements are laughably inefficient.
– Real player with 317.8 hrs in game
I’ve always been into strategy games, but I don’t think I’ve ever found one that I’ve felt so compelled to write a review for.
This game is simply amazing for anyone who likes strategy games! Such a unique and different design. Gotta make sure to go through the campaign maps to learn and understand the different things available to you. There is always a viable strategy to victory in these maps, no matter how unlikely it may seem. Especially that final campaign map, you go into it thinking there’s no way this could be possible… but play it right and play smart, and it’s surprising how it really is doable!
– Real player with 92.9 hrs in game