It's New Game Friday! David Wiley (Cardboard Clash) is here to tell us about the new games.
Here’s what is new this week:
- Bank or Bust
- Lingo Land
- Mini Town
- Palatial
https://www.pnparcade.com/collections/new-games
Mini Town
You stand in an empty field and survey the land around. “This will be Mini Town!”, you announce to the birds dramatically. As self-elected mayor, it’s your job to oversee development of the new town. Build your infrastructure and services to best serve the community and, of course, to gain the most points.
If you’ve played the roll-and-write game 30 Rails, then some of the concepts in Mini Town will be familiar to you. Two dice are rolled, and one determines the row/column you use and the other the structure type. Develop roads, parks, houses, libraries, cafes, and shops in your thriving town and attempt to earn the most points possible before the game comes to an end. Each building type scores in its own unique manner, leaving plenty of room to consider how you construct your town.
Palatial
You have inherited a palatial stately home, but sadly it’s in a terrible state of repair. The house is falling down and the grounds are being reclaimed by nature. You must tackle this fixer-upper before you can move in. Protect the historical features and cover up the worst of the blemishes to gain the most points.
A fascinating approach, similar to Mini Town above you’re using one die for the region and the other for the type, but here the regions span segments of the map and the types are tetris-like shapes that (usually) have to completely be placed within the chosen region. For those that really enjoy spatial puzzles, this game is sure to be a must-try as you’re trying to minimize uncovered spaces, but also trying to cover any marked with a triangle while avoiding those with a circle…something far easier said than done.
Bank or Bust
You headed west to make your fortune, but the situation is volatile. You’ve got to keep pushing your luck to improve your advantage and claim the bounty. But go too far and you may end up with nothing! Will you play it safe or risk it all on a big win?
A game of pressing your luck, this one is sure to be a fast-playing and exciting game to hit the table. One player rolls for the round for everyone, and after each roll players have the option to save the money earned so far for the round, to spend that money on an upgrade, or stay in for another roll. If a 6 gets rolled, everyone still in for the round busts and too many busts will bring about the end of the game. Maximize that risk-reward ratio better than your peers, and you might just become the Bank or Bust champion for your group.
Lingo Land
The King of Lingo Land sets all visitors a task and only the highest performers are admitted. You’re under pressure and you need to impress. Five complete words must be created to secure your entry. The longer the word, the more you’ll score, and topical words are even better. But beware, gobbledygook will get you nowhere!
Logophiles rejoice at the arrival of Lingo Land. Roll dice, choose a letter from the box corresponding to one die and the word line that ties to the other. You score points for each letter in the words you make, bonus points if they tie into the chosen category at the beginning, and get nothing for a nonsense word. Brush off those dictionaries, because now is the time to show off the size of your vocabulary in this roll-and-spell game that is certain to leave you agonizing over whether to play it safe with a short word or go for broke and make something massive that will score you a ton of points.
Pick up all the new games here:
https://www.pnparcade.com/collections/new-games
Game of the Week: Card Rails for just $5
Card Rails is a 3-5 player, 20-30 minute cube rails game played on a deck of cards. Instead of giving you a predesignated map, players together create the landscape of the game they are playing, blocking others and bettering their own positions, all while making the tough decision to keep a card for future financial gain or to garner an immediate reward.
Absurdly simple in concept, delightfully crunchy in decision space. Like another train game from Travis Hill (Penny Rails), this one is filled with interesting choices and plenty of attempts to both advance your own point-scoring efforts while slowing down your opponent. Just like Penny Rails, this is certain to be a great entry point for those who do not play train games (like me) and allow you to invest in train companies without the need to invest an entire afternoon. Warning: you’ll need 3-5 victims total to play this game.
Check out Game of the Week here: https://www.pnparcade.com/collections/game-of-the-week
See you next week with more information on our newest print and play games!