I'd argue Concordia is pretty simple to teach to other players. This was my first ever Eurogame, and I've already had several friends who aren't into board games try it out and absolutely loved it. It's a pretty good gateway into Eurogames.
It's a very straightforward and simple teach. Give everyone their cards and go through each card in turn. The other players get to follow along, see exactly what each card does, and how they relate to one another. It's one of the reasons I love the game so much.
@@warever37 that's actually what I love the most about it. You only got a feeling of how you're doing (or you can count cards and calculate everything all the time) and for me it is either very rewarding if my feeling turns out to be right in the end - or I want to play again to challenge my gut one more time. It does a lot for Concordias replayability imo
I've played Puerto Rico with randoms in a local Boardgame Cafe and it was one of the most fun I've had playing boardgames. What an absolute beautiful game.
I need to try Puerto Rico someday. My favourite euro is Concordia. The elegance of that game never cease to amaze me. But also with the Salsa expansion it gets even better.
Puerto Rico is great fun. It won’t be as mind blowing as it was when it first came out, but the puzzle it presents is tense and strikes a great balance between short term tactics and long term planning.
i like this video because now it feels like the series can not only touch on simple games for beginners but i think you can also do videos for experienced players for people who want to take that next step or transition from easier games to more rulesy and harder game. maybe the experienced players lists can be a different series that you guys can do or maybe slide them in once in while for the collection starter. overall love this video and im definitly checking some of these games out
Nice list and thanks for doing it. It was nice to see a Splotter game get a mention and sound choices throughout. Except for maybe Viticulture as I feel it's more of a gateway game to the heavier Euro's. I was also very surprised to see no Uwe Rosenburg games on the list. So many to choose from and I feel they almost define the genre. And no Gaia Project or Terra Mystica. Blasphemy lol
Kind of bummed that Lords of Waterdeep didn't make either of the Euro-game lists (probably the beginner one), as that's my personal all time favorite. But cool list, and a few new games to add to my "check it out" list.
Great list! I've long wanted to try Concordia, and Viticulture is on my list as well. Of games you didn't mention - would give a shout-out to Village. The time/worker death mechanic is very innovative and makes for a lot of interesting choices.
Actually, Concordia and Viticulture are rather easy to learn and play. But food chain magnate.... oh god, the horror. The winner is basically decided in the first 4 turns and after that is just waiting for the inevitable to happen. Same goes for Terraforming Mars in terms of complexity.
My favorite medium to heavy eurogame, assuming I actually understand the meaning, is Euphoria. It'd a dystopia worker placement game that I couldn't recommend more strongly.
Puerto Rico was probably the first "advanced" Eurogame (i.e. not Ticket To Ride or Settlers). I absolutely loved it and it's what got me hooked on board games. :D
In Castles of Burgundy you can put tiles (like castles in the example) next to each other. As long as the tile underneath is the matching color. You can only put 1 of each building in each city however.
Great list, mate! Our favorite eurogame is dominant species, just because it's a game for horrible people... you play three hours (or more) and you can get get wiped out of the game at the very end by just ONE move of one of your lovely opponents! 'cause...don't we all love a bit of drama? 😝
Medium to heavy games aren't all about complicated mechanics. There are many that have same same mechanic compelxity of medium and medium light games. I find that (at least from the rating on board game geek) the heavy weight comes in the amount of strategy that is needed for the game. For instance, Dinosaur island has the mechanics of a light medium game for me. But the sheer strategy makes it medium heavy as you have to start strategizing from game 1.
I would add two games to this list: Terra Mystica/Gaia Project (one is just a rework of the other in space, so just pick fantasy or space and go with it) and a Vital Lacerda game. Lisboa is his most critically acclaimed game, but The Gallerist or Vinhos would be an easier entry point.
If it is your first time with Brass, I could personally recommend Lancashire instead. Birmingham to Lancashire is like comparing Gaia Project to Terra Mystica. Most people regard Birmingham and GP as the "better" games, but Lancashire and TM are still astounding designs, are easier to learn to play, and play in less time. I've never introduced anyone to Lancashire and had them go "you know, this was fun, but I wish it had *more*". It is still a big game, and it is still absolutely awesome.
These all look amazing. Unfortunately (and I will get my German card revoked for saying this) I seemingly can't fall in love with eurogames. I have so little opportunities to play board games with my friends that I don't want to play a game you need to play 1-3 times to get the gist and then play for real. However I do get that it can be awesome when everybody knows what they're doing. Still a good video. Needs corgis, though
Carnegie is coming which feels like combine with Puerto Rico and Food Chain Magnate. Because of the way to choose the action all players do the same, and this game is also mean. lol
I found this page today and have been looking through it for far too many hours allready, but I feel like I should give a shout out to the game Ex Libris, wich seemingly has not been discussed in any of the videoes I have found so far
By a staggering coincidence, my copy of Puerto Rico arrived just as Adam got to it. The game, that is, not the country. I have no idea where Adam or any member of NRB team is as I'm definitely not stalking any of them.
Because they are a self publishing duo out of (Sweden? Denmark? One of those Scandinavian countries) with a cult like following. Think of Splotter as like the Cohen Brothers of Boardgames. So, smaller supply, higher demand, plus taxes and shipping and you get ~ really expensive games!
@@jeffmcleod3829 thank you for the information! The game still sounds great so I'll just perpetually keep it on my wishlist until I have less reservations and more money
The best way to get Splotter games is to typically order straight from them when the game is in print. Yes, you'll need to stay on top of that and not miss the opportunity. And yes, even then, the games will be expensive. The primary reason is, they are not making games for the average gamer. Their games will never be the next Catan. Since they are hitting essentially a niche within a niche, they need to price high in order to make enough money to be worth the effort. And while the components are not of high quality, the effort to *design* games this masterfully is quite high. If the review here was enough that you went looking for the game, I would recommend really researching all the games they offer, first. You may find that FCM is actually not for you. Or maybe none of their games are. However, if you read more and more, and find yourself further attracted to one of their games, the price will rarely matter. Also, I highly recommend giving the BGG market a shot. Splotter games frequently show up there because people buy them and then realize they either don't like them, can't handle them, or simply don't have the time to get them to the table.
The theme? I don't know what you mean. *Looks again as tiny brown playing pieces are loaded off a ship into suger cane fields to work for plantations owners so goods can be shipped home* Ah yes, "colonists". Go f%$£ yourself game. Don't lie to me about what you're doing. If we're playing slave owners don't pretend we're something else. Except you can't sell that on the shelves. So yeah, "colonists" it is then. God dammit game.
Thanks for providing a productive comment in relation to what some people perceive to be a troublesome theme. Rather than admonish the reviewer for not checking every box of sensitivity, you simply provide people an alternative, should they desire one. Thanks for your productive use of emotional control. More should take note.
Hey Adam! Us Canadians go through a couple of extra links to go from the US amazon to the Canadian one. Do those purchases still support No Rolls Barred, or is there a link specifically for Canadian fans?
Great list. No mention of Puerto Rico’s problematic theme? Such a shame as the mechanics are so good, but the gameplay is ruined for me by the brown ‘worker’ tokens arriving on ships to work on the plantations. I wish they’d retheme it to something else. And I still really need to play Concordia.
Don't like it, don't play it! It's that easy. Just because it makes you uncomfortable doesn't mean it does so for everyone else. As such, there is no obligation for anyone to mention said "problematic" nature in a review or recommendation.
By the way, Concordia literally has you starting in Rome and then marching and sailing your way to establishing presence all over the rest of Europe in order to attain the resources from those areas. If you're attracted to that but not Puerto Rico, you may want to check and see if you *actually* care or if you just gripe about PR because you hear other people do it and are simply propagating a common virtue signal.
Those who don't know history are destined to repeat it. We face a lot of problems in modern society due to people not understanding the effects of history, and also how a persons individual actions can affect a greater people or cultures. Education is important. As is entertainment.
@@BenBroomfield This was not a video on the history of board games, or about what anyone thinks might be wrong with games. Puerto Rico is a great game that plays well, and many people have enjoyed it. That's really all anyone is obligated to know in the context of this list of games.
Seeing Puerto Rico on #1 feels weird because of its brown cube „settlers“ that work on your farms. I thought the racism/colonialism debate had arrived in mainstream board gaming, eg. No Pun Included‘s recent video. There are enough great euro games in which you are not exploiting indigenous people and/or make them invisible.
Your personal sensitivity to the game's theme does not make it a bad game. In fact, PR held top spot on BGG for many years, and deservedly so. It is an excellent board game and I recommend it to everyone. If you can't handle it, don't play it; but don't come here trying to convince other people they are wrong for enjoying one of eurogaming's masterpieces.
Lists like this are, of course, entirely subjective, but your failure to acknowledge the enduring popularity of one of the true kings of worker placement renders this list null and void. I refer, of course, to Agricola. No Eurogame collection is complete without it. And putting Puerto Rico (a fine game) on a pedestal without mentioning its ongoing thematic controversy? Tch, tch, tch. Fail. (sorry to be piling on like that, but hey!...)
There is absolutely no obligation to force in any discussion about some peoples' perception of a game's theme. This is a list of top board games, according to someone's opinion. If he likes Puerto Rico and wants to recommend it, that is his prerogative. You're welcome to not play the game, but there is absolutely no need to literally scold someone over recommending it without some sensitivity disclaimer.
@@helxis I suppose it did come off as scolding, for which I apologize. I enjoy the game myself and truthfully couldn't care less about its thematic controversy. It is, after all, just a game; you could re-skin it with a sci-fi theme and the controversy melts away. It just felt like an oversight on the OP's part; I doubt it was deliberate.
@@MisterG2323 I don't see it as an oversight because I don't see it as necessary. The game of Puerto Rico is not inseparable from the stigma some people have chosen to assign it. If someone *wants* to make a video discussing what they think is wrong with it or any other game(s), they are welcome to. That's not what this was, though.
PROTIP: When you play Food Chain Magnate, pretending you are Gus Fring and your restaurant is actually just a front for your massive underground drug empire makes it that much more fun and intense. Also, does a game like that already exist? Where everyone is a drug lord trying to build their own empire and work their way up through the hierarchy to become the undisputed drug Kingpin?
Was really expecting to see Terra Mystica on this list, quite surprised that it didn't make the cut! Tzolk'in looks fascinating, mostly because spinning the wheels looks like a lot of fun, and I like that there are quite a few games here where you can benefit even from your opponents' actions. One of my favorite games of old is El Grande (published 1995, won Spiel das Jahres 1996, if Puerto Rico is ancient I'm a granny). A game where you move little cubes (caballeros) around medieval Spain to control territories and get points. Each turn, players grab one of five action cards to take an action and move caballeros from their supply to a region on the map, so a player higher in the turn order can take a more optimal action card, but the number of caballeros in your supply is limited. The real twist here is that turn order is determined by cards numbered 1-13 where playing a lower card gives you more caballeros to refill your supply but you don't necessarily need to play the highest card to go first, just a higher card than the other players that turn. In practice, this becomes a little game of poker where you need to figure out your opponents' actions, place yourself in the right place in the turn order to get the cards you need, and try to predict which regions other players will try to move their caballeros to, in order to score as high as possible in as many regions as possible. There's no machine building, relatively little resources to track, and there's a lot more going into reading your opponent's actions compared to more modern Eurogames, but there's absolutely no randomness involved, and it's very easy to teach, even for playing with family.
Tzolkin is a fantastic game! I remember my first win using the crystal skulls and it became an in-joke for a time with my playgroup that I Indiana Jones'd that win!
Great list! Here are a few more that i think are great in a starting collection... - Champions of Midgard (preferably with Valhalla exp) - Architects of the West Kingo - Manhattan project Energy Empire - Alien Frontiers - Lords of Waterdeep - Raiders of the North Sea As you were 🙂
