So Airlines Europe is a game I’ve never played before. It is however a game in Jonathan’s game collection. And also the game he chose for us to play at last nights mid week gaming session at the White Lion.
Airlines Europe is a game by some guy named Alan R Moon. He apparently created a game called Ticket To Ride that seems to be popular with a certain devil may care attitude to life and a hippy haircut.
Our game was a four player one with three of us having not played it before. So it was upto Jonathan to explain the rules and stress several times you are all colours and not just one colour when building routes.
I liked the share element of the game, and pushing the value of your stock up by building routes.
You have to be aware of what your opponents are investing in, not just for scoring but also for which airlines you are going to advance in value.
I benefitted a lot from Debbie pushing up the value of stock I had the majority in or was second highest in.
I love the randomised mid game scoring. It means you have to try and second guess when it’s going to occur, do you invest those shares in your hand now, or do you still have time to push their value up? Jonathan and I got caught out by this during the game. Having shares in our hands that we failed to get out in time to allow us to score points.
The red and orange planes are so close in colour it’s easy to confuse one for the other. I also thought the colour of the cards could have been a bit easier to tell, especially from the opposite side of the table. The iconography of the player aids could also be improved.
This a solid game. I’d definitely play again. But I’m not sure I’d be able to repeat my stunning victory of this playthrough.
Oh yes I WON!
A great evening once more of gaming.
One of our favourite games, introduced to me and my eldest daughter by my friends from Peterborough Board Gamers. Certainly enjoyed introducing it to Fenland Gamers.
While I certainly agree regarding the closeness of the orange and red airplanes, I don’t agree about the iconography the player aids; it is perfectly clear as it is and I can’t see how it can be improved upon.
It’s the colour of the cards and money. I think instead I’d use like a dollar symbol for the money
I’ve got this on my pile of shame, need to fix that.
It’s a good game