Game: Orleans Age: 12+ Publisher: Tasty Minstrel Games Time: 30- 120 minutes (30 for a 2 player game) Players: 2- 4 Replayability: 8/10

Orleans the Semi Random yet Very Euro-game Review

2- 4 player semi-press-your-luck worker placement board game. Being a Tasty Minstrel Game it is expected to be running off with a lot of hype. But I’ll go ahead and give you the quick conclusion–it lives up to it. Orleans is a very Developed worker placement euro-style board game with your typical salad point system. You’ll be drawing tiles (characters you pick up through earlier placements) from a bag in order to allocate them for new actions. Each action will require different characters so the press your luck aspect of drawing adds the suspense of a good turn and the fear of contemplating a new tactic. Regardless of the emotional roller coaster I tend to find myself on while playing the game, I love the dynamic.

After setup- begin the game by turning an event tile over (the turns are simultaneous–which was fun). This event tile correlates to rounds left per game and will also be coming into effect toward the end of your turn. you will then be collecting the starting characters and randomly selecting 4 (which is the starting amount) of theses characters from your bag (as the game progresses, so does the size of your character count). You’ll be allocating them onto the action board where you will then take your actions. You have options such as: new characters (for allocating), farming track (for quick points and end game bonuses), development track (for more points and bonuses), and placing your characters into the town hall (which is a quick way to gather some points and some end game bonuses). After 18 rounds, the game ends you tally your points and count your bonuses!

Final Thoughts

In all seriousness, I absolutely loved this board game. It’s very tactical and controllable like a typical worker placement euro game would be, but has fun modern concepts that utilize a bit of a random element. The game takes almost as much time to set up as it takes to start and finish the game (I’m kidding…. Kind of) but definitely pays off. The flow of each round keeps each player active and player turn order can really be the difference between collecting citizens (which are end game bonuses) or farming products. I love the variety of components the game offers and the variety of different ways to collect coin. Unfortunately, the learning curve tilts a bit to the difficult side and the rulebook isn’t the most help with that. I would say if you’re a fan of euro games (Lords of Waterdeep or Gold West) you will enjoy this title. Would I recommend this? Salad style VP, plenty of options to create a unique strategy, simultaneous actions, and a nice balance of game control and random events says yes.

You will like this game if you’re into heavy euro games with immense strategy. You enjoy the salad point system and want a lot of components to work with.

You will not like this game if you’re wanting something lighter to play. This game will expect a lot out of you. While it’s rewarding, strategy may take a while to get down. the rulebook isn’t the friendliest either.