We’re still going strong in January, so maybe I hadn’t rated them before instead of just playing them in January. But let’s talk about all of these games to me on my way to 1000 board games rated on BGG. And of course, let me know which games you want to see a full review on.

January (Part 4)

Ito

Ito is a newer, to the US, party game. And it is one that I have now played quite a number of times in person. Though when it comes to party games, it is one of those that falls more into an activity than an actual game. But, I know that my players like the game. For me, I rated it a 7 originally. The more I play Ito the lower it goes for me. It’s the perfect icebreaker type of game, but the more you play it, the less of a game it feels like.

Shifting Stones

Shifting Stones is one of those easy to learn abstract games that I played on BGA for my road to 1000 games. I like Shifting Stones pretty well. You want to get the right combination of stones to score your cards and you can shift the stones or flip the stones to the other side. Of course, your opponent has their own cards they want to score as well. It’s simple, I’m pretty good at it, but it’s not one that I’m drawn to playing more.

Tang Hu Lu

This is a simple little game, and one that is pretty cute. I think that it works well as a roll some dice, get some fruits and foods and stick them on a stick. This game could easily come to the US and be Minnesota State Fair themed where everything is on a stick. But in terms of actual game play, it’s super light. Not a problem because it is fast as well, but it won’t stick around as one I’ll play often because it’s not going to change up.

River Rats

Cooperative poker is a thing now with games like Ace of Spades, The Gang, and River Rats. Do I own them all? Yes I do, and I backed another game like that, article upcoming. But this one is a solid game as you try and take down the rats by winning a number of tricks. And you cooperatively are building the hand that the rats are playing against. And different cards have powers as well, which is fun to add to the challenge.

Pili Pili

Pili Pili for me is a simpler version of on of my favorite games, Rebel Princess. Now I say that, they are different games in that Pili Pili is not Hearts, in fact you bid on how many tricks you will. But there is something that messes you up each round, some special rule that you need to account for. So I think I have room in my collection for both of the games.

Cry Baby

Cry Baby is another trick taking game like Pili Pili and another one that I’m tempted to get. You get to bet how many tricks you’ll take. And if you lose a trick and play the lowest card, you can rotate cards in hand or get Cry Baby points. It’s a good trick taking game because it adds in just enough different without being too crazy or too complex.

Bloxo

Bloxo is a game that reminds me of a few different things and one that I think is okay. You score points for playing out cards that match the symbols on other cards. The more you match, in terms of the group side, the more points that you get. Games like Quirkle and I’d even say Tacta (which will show up on this series later) are similar to it. Do I need all of them, no, but I think I might look for this one as an easy game for my family to play.

Get on Board: New York & London

Get on Board: New York & London is a roll and write style game. I say style because it was originally and there are still elements that are writing. But you want to create the best bus route that you can dropping off people along the way and picking them up. The game follows a pretty nice little pattern of play and is one that I could see playing more, but also are there games that are similar that I like better, I’d say yes.

Kabaleo

Kabaleo is a stacking game where you want to have, at the end of the game, more of your color showing then the other players. It’s a pure abstract, simple rules, and is one that I won’t go back to. Why, not because it is a bad game, but because a lot of these style of games have a very limited shelf life for me. And in this case, I think that it’s one play and that’s plenty.

Postcards

Finally on the list is Postcards. This is a game that I just came back to. And firstly, I think this is a very pretty game. You bike around France seeing sites and sending postcards out from those location. You get multi-use cards where you either use them for stamps on your postcards or for other abilities like moving, drawing more post cards, or camping. And when you camp, you can activate more bonuses and score more points. It’s a game that has grown on me the more I play it. It’s probably not one I’ll buy, but in terms of lighter and prettier games, I think it’s one worth checking out.

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