&games

I've played Thurn and Taxis a few time now. It first struck me as a rather average game. It has solidified in my view as a rather average game. It was rather fun to play, I will play again, but I foresee Thurn and Taxis burnout by a dozen plays.

I wonder if it would have won the Spiel des Jahres if it was set in Africa, or North America instead of the area in and around southern Germany. Seems a shade too simplistic to appeal to avid gamers like me, and a shade too (I hesitate to say "heavy") much thinking involved for casual gamers.

I've played with a 12 year old kid, he grasped the game and did quite well. Seems like a good game to play for gamer families with young teenagers.

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How, oh how, did Parthenon: Rise of the Aegean (2005) slip under my radar? Bought it on a whim at the local store.

So far I have only played a partial, learning game, but I was impressed. Seemed like Settlers of Catan (Seafarers of Catan, actually) on steroids. A friend of mine suggests a strong resemblance in game play to Mare Nostrum, but I don't see that in any thing other than the aesthetics. Perhaps.

I am frequently disappointed when I rave about games after a partial play, but I can't wait to play Parthenon again. Could be that some of the "bad luck" cards are too bad and could really hose a player beyond recovery. We shall have to see.

Good gaming,
Brian