I Can Count (Skills for Starting School)

We are an 8 year old and two adults. All three of us have won. The game has 10 rounds per game, so you are not there for hours on end. The instructions are easy to follow, the board and pieces are good quality.The game will last for years and there are endless combinations of races and special powers to play with, each game will be different. It does represent value for money.Do NOT throw the boards away once you have popped all the playing pieces out, you need this to put in the bottom of the box to make everything fit. There is a token holder and spaces for all the coins, so you won't loose pieces.

Fantastic Board Game!I am a lover of board games, but as I have gotten older and the children have grown up, I still like to play the odd board game with my wife after work or on a weekend, such a great way to relax, and friendly competition.I watched all of the you tube videos, and board game geeks reviews before purchasing this one. We are a big fan of Carcassonne Board Game, but found that ( because I had collected quite a few add-ons ) , Carcassonne could last a bit longer than we wanted on an evening, up to and over an hour.Whereas, we purchased this game Small World, because all of the reviews said it was as good as ( play-ability ) as the aforementioned game.We took the plunge, and in all fairness, we can manage two full games now in less than 1 Hour. the enjoyment we get playing this is as much, if not more that we did playing our previous favourite board Game, and with all of the add-ons incorporated into this game, it still lasts approx 30 minutes per round ( sometimes quicker when we do not need to look at the reference sheets as much as we used to )My honest opinion before playing this was that it looked a little complicated, but that was not so, it only took ourselves one game, approx 45 minutes to grasp all of the rules, and yet, it is not such a simple game to master, and the variance each time we play makes it a game that we will enjoy for many years to come. Whenever we have time for a game, we poinder what we should grab from the games cupboard, and nine times out of ten we choose this.As for now, we have only played a 2 player variation of this fine game ( I also own the online version too) but will look forward to adding one or two more players when friends visit, it does not make for a lohnger game as such, as the turns themselves are decreased, and therefore it is a game that will not bore casual players, and yet the variety of special abilities combos interacting with the many races makes for a fun and differing game each time.Great Game for Youing or Old, Great quality pieces ( hard card ) and the multiple boards included will help to make an enjoyable game no m,atter how many people you have at the table. The box itself has ample space for the components, but if you do wish to add-on to it later with one of the available expansions, i must suggest that the first one you buy is " be Not Afraid " as this includes a special tray to store your new counters.the original game here, comes also with a standard counters tray which is more than ample to keep your game running smoothly and stoip things getting mixed up.the rules booklet is large and easy to read, and more importantly very easy to follow, it does take a little bit of thought as to how some of the special abilities works, but once you have got the grasp of the game mechanics it all fits in place easily.Thoroughly recommend this to anyone, Well deserved of the high accolades it has achieved in board gaming circles.

This is easily one of the most simplistic but enjoyable strategy games you can play that won't blow people away with complexity. The basic premise is to use your race tokens to conquer and occupy territories on the game board by pushing other players out or taking empty regions. Each territory you own at the end of your turn scores you gold. Each race however only has a limited number of tokens and therefore limited conquering potential on the board. At different points in the game you then want to abandon your current expired race and bring a in a new race to allow you greater coverage.Where the game really shines is through the variety of different races available and the special powers they can have attached with them. With so many races and powers, the number of possible combinations is pretty high. This makes the game very replayable since each race and power interacts with the game in different ways and the game can suddenly shift depending on what race has suddenly joined the fray. This makes 2 player matches intense and competitive while larger games are more diverse.In terms of style and visuals, the game is really beautiful and each race has its own creative and amusing persona that just makes it a visual treat. Its very easy to pick up and learn and new players often pick up the game very fast. I've introduced the game to a lot of gamers and non-gamers a like and all have begged me for a replay if not bought it themselves.The one downside to this game is that the game board is set and unchanged meaning that it can get tiresome and predictable after a lot of games. Its worth getting the 'realms' expansion to make custom board if you really enjoy the mechanics.The other (minor) annoyance is the provision of storage in the box makes the game a hassle to set up and put away.

I chose the underworld variant solely based on the artwork and fantasy creatures rather than the normal version of Smallworld as I worried that it would be too similar to Risk or Catan. After playing the game I realised that although there are elements similar to risk, it is uniquely its own game and it plays differently enough to set it apart from that game. I did research beforehand that said that underworld and regular smallworld basically play the same with some people preferring the underworld version. The aesthetic is really great and my younger children enjoyed picking the different fantastical races. I thought it looked quite daunting to understand but the quick reference cards are fantastic and help the game along. Having a turn marker forces the game to end in a set number of turns and that is really good because it stops the game from dragging on but also doesn’t halt the game prematurely. I was pleasantly surprised to see multiple game boards for 2,3,4 and 5 players. I’ve not seen that before. After playing it a few times, I now have a sense of different tactics with different races but the random combination of power tokens and races really mixes it up each time. Lots of fun and I recommend.