SPALDING WARGAMING CLUB
it's an absorbing challenge and plays very fast Oceanos is by Antoine Bauza, the guy who brought us the amazing Seven Wonders. Now few games are going to top Seven Wonders and indeed Oceanos doesn't, but it's still a great game in its own right.
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In the game, you are a submarine captain exploring the ocean depths. Your submarine is a cute jigsaw-like board and, as the game goes on, you remove components and replace them with better ones: bigger propellers, more periscopes, larger aquariums, etc. Judging what to upgrade and when is the main skill of the game.
Each turn one player is the captain who deals cards to everyone else. The other players choose a card to play and return the remaining card to the captain, who chooses a card to play from the ones everybody else handed back. This is a clever card-drafting device, because you can see what you will be giving the captain, who has a big advantage in that he might get more cards to choose from than he would normally be allowed.
Cards get played in three rows: the first 5 cards represent the surface waters, the next 5 the medium depths and the last 5 the sea floor. You're trying to create valuable patterns: treasure chests lined up for your deep sea divers to collect, unbroken lines of coral representing high-scoring reefs, sets of different sea animals and the crystal symbols and bases that let you upgrade. The best cards have evil 'eyes of the Kraken' symbols and the person with the most of them suffers an unpredictable penalty.
Like a lot of Euro-style games, there's no direct conflict and it can feel a bit together-alone as you set out your seascape and finesse your submarine. There's some interaction in the cards you choose to return to the captain, which can deny him valuable plays, but that's about it.
Nonetheless, it's an absorbing challenge and plays very fast: you can get a game done in 30 minutes once you all know what you're doing. Special credit goes to Jérémie Fleury's delightful art which lifts the game from engaging to enchanting.
Nonetheless, it's an absorbing challenge and plays very fast: you can get a game done in 30 minutes once you all know what you're doing. Special credit goes to Jérémie Fleury's delightful art which lifts the game from engaging to enchanting.