Like the respect you have for an old war veteran, I can't just remove Puerto Rico from its rightful spot in history. Yes, it is aged, but like good wine, it retains its value with the passage of time. Still, I can't STOP thinking about Agricola, all the possibilities, the past few game sessions, the things I could have changed, the things I could have done better.... it has possessed my brain. On my way to work today, I thought about Agricola. On my way back, Agricola. On my way back home from dinner with my wife we discussed strategy in last night's game...
The game we had last night was the 5th for me, 2nd for my wife, and first time for Andy and Lance. I felt cocky and made a risky move before a feeding round, that left me without enough food for all my family members. Like other games that have risk management (In the year of the dragon, Notre Dame, etc), besides scoring VP's, you have to allocate resources/time/etc to prevent some bad thing from happening. In this game, it's feeding your family every few rounds. Well, right after a round that I had a baby, I was short by 1 food (adults need 2 each, baby 1). Every food you are down by costs you 3 VP's at the end of the game. 
I took a gamble by growing my family on a round that I knew that action was going to leave me short of food..... and sure enough, I lost to Lance by LESS than 3 points (in other words, I would have won if I had fed my family well that round). Oh well. He did have a very impressive Animal Farm, that was on par with my Autopilot Bakery... but that penalty cost me the game. Oh the agony... With so much replayability, I can see this game becoming a dime fairly quickly. In less than 2 weeks, it made it to my nickel list. :)
BTW, I'm planning on hosting next week on Tuesday. Mark your calendars.... Surprise surprise...there might be some Agricola.
5 comments:
I have to agree about Puerto Rico. It was the first game I tried other than "fluffy" games and now I'm hooked! It didn't hurt that I had "beginners luck" on my first game. I have since lost my 2nd and 3rd attempts, which have me wanting to play even more.
I am looking for recommendations on other games to try. I have since tried Ticket to Ride, Power Grid, Princes of Florence, Tichu, High Society... I seem to like "building" games, whether it is an empire or train tracks. I would like to start purchasing some games for my own collection. Any suggestions to try? I am always looking to try a new game!
I have been wanting to play some more Agricola myself. There seemed like a ton of ways to win and a lot of tough decisions to make. My wife and I went for a walk the following night and I spent the entire time describing the game. But that is not too uncommon for me.
Guys, the gaming diva is Denise from the League City meetup group....
So Gaming diva, there are so many good 'building games' out there... that is probably what initially drew me (and still does) to eurogames. In most of them, you are building something, and in my favorites, that something you build will determine how much of something else is produced (more resources, victory points, etc). There are MANY games that fit this large group in some way shape or form: Pillars of the Earth, Cuba, notre Dame, Agricola, etc etc
hmm, building games. My favorite building game is Tigris and Euphrates, but it also has a lot of conflict.
Age of Steam is, of course, a great building game.
Tahuantinsuyu is too.
And if you like Ticket To Ride, you should give Union Pacific a try some time. It's by the same author.
oh, forgot about La Citta and Magna Grecia too.
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