![]() ![]() This is important because through drawing many cards and choosing the ones you want, the role of luck in drawing is reduced. Each kept card has a small incremental cost of 3 megacredits (the currency in Terraforming Mars). These four cards all have limits on when they can be played, as denoted in the rectangular ribbon next to the price (as well as in the text).įinally, at the beginning of the game and during each year’s research phase, players draw far more project cards than they need, and choose which ones they want to keep. This eliminates the problem of certain cards that might be overpowered if used very early or very late. For instance, a card might state that the oxygen level must be at least 2% before it can be played, or that it cannot be played after the temperature is above 0 degrees Celsius. Secondly, some cards have stated limits on when they can be played, usually based on one or more of the three terraforming criteria (number of ocean tiles, oxygen level, and temperature). Other games have tried this (like the aforementioned Race for the Galaxy) with slightly less success when not allowing for such a wide variance in cost. Prices range from 1 to over 40, giving a lot of flexibility to tweak the cost just right to reflect the card’s relative value. I’m sure the designers have more insight than I do, but I see a few clever ways through which they’ve achieved this balance.įirst, there’s the varying cost of the project cards. This is a massive accomplishment, and one that must have required an enormous amount of playtesting to get right. The most impressive part of all is that the game feels well balanced despite the volume of unique cards. No two cards do the same thing, and each one fits in perfectly with the theme. I think that these cards are really where the game shines. Terraforming Mars features over 200 project cards, each with its own unique text and art. The map features the names of many real locations on mars, and the areas set aside for ocean tiles are based on actual topography.Ģ) A Large Variety of Unique Cards – Yet Still Well Balanced! In my opinion, that always makes for a more entertaining experience. When playing Terraforming Mars, you really feel immersed in the narrative. However, upon digging into both games, I far prefer the theme of Terraforming Mars. While Race for the Galaxy goes an inch deep and a mile wide, Terraforming Mars really delves into the concept it presents. I was similarly attracted to Race for the Galaxy, another game about space colonization. Several major corporations are spearheading this effort, each seeking great profit and recognition as the company primarily responsible for terraforming the red planet. 400 years in the future, scientific advancements have enabled us to take a great leap forward and attempt to make Mars habitable for human life. I’m starting off with this because it was the first thing that drew me to this game. This is a game that’s going to get a lot more table time in the coming months, but I wanted to go ahead and put out my initial observations about what makes this game so good– and also to discuss its drawbacks, few as they may be. I’ve played it three times so far– once with five players, and twice with four players. So when I finally got a hold of it earlier this month, it was an exciting day. Terraforming Mars was among 2016’s hottest releases, and it’s been high up in my watch list ever since I first heard about it on BoardGameGeek.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Details
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |