Category: Ω Board Games

Garum

| OTSG Staff

Garum was a fermented fish sauce used as a condiment in the old ages; its manufacture and export was an element of prosperity and perhaps an impetus for the Roman penetration of Lusitanian and Hispanian coastal regions.

Garum from today’s Portugal and Spain was highly prized in Rome and has now inpired a versatile strategy boardgame for the whole family, ages 8 and up, that plays 2 to 4 players. Garum is a tile-laying game, which plays in about 30 minutes, it is language independent and features endless replayability, due to its board system, that ensures no two games are alike.

In Garum, each player represents a master in the preparation of a specific type of fish sauce and receives a set of 16 Cetarian Tiles; each one has 4 spaces filled by 4 colors in different proportions, though the color that the player is defending is the predominant one.

The goal of the game is to play Cetarian Tiles strategically, in order to get a huge number of his own colour symbols in selected rows or columns – the greater the influence, the higher the reward! While placing the tiles, players may apply to score, collect some bonuses and also block their opponent’s intents. Whoever scores most points is the winner.

Game Mechanics:

Game Specifications:

  • 2 – 4 Players
  • 30 – 40 Minutes
  • Difficulty Weight 1.62

Forbidden Island

| OTSG Staff

Dare to discover Forbidden Island! Join a team of fearless adventurers on a do-or-die mission to capture four sacred treasures from the ruins of this perilous paradise. Your team will have to work together and make some pulse-pounding maneuvers, as the island will sink beneath every step! Race to collect the treasures and make a triumphant escape before you are swallowed into the watery abyss!

Game Mechanics:

Game Specifications:

  • 2 – 4 Players
  • ~30 Minutes
  • Difficulty Weight 1.74

Flamme Rouge

| OTSG Staff

The excitement in the air is electric as the leaders round the last corner and head for the finish line. Each team has used cunning and skill to position their sprinter for this moment, but only one has done enough to pull off the win!

Will your team lead from the front and risk exhaustion? Should you play it safe in the middle of the pack? Could you surprise everyone by striking from the back? Can you time your move perfectly?

Anyone can race, few become champions!

Flamme Rouge is a fast-paced, tactical bicycle racing game where each player controls a team of two riders: a Rouleur and a Sprinteur. The players’ goal is to be the first to cross the finish line with one of their riders. Players move their riders forward by drawing and playing cards from that riders specific deck, depleting it as they go. Use slipstreams to avoid exhaustion and position your team for a well timed sprint for the win.

Game Mechanics:

Game Specifications:

  • 2 – 4 Players
  • 30 – 45 Minutes
  • Difficulty Weight 1.70

Fjords

| OTSG Staff

Explore a landscape so stunning that even a Viking would hold their breath in awe…

Fjords is a tile-laying game that takes place in two phases. The first one invites the players to explore the fjords around them by laying hexagonal landscape tiles, creating a map that serves as the gameboard. In the second phase, players begin from the longhouses they placed during phase one and will walk the landscape, claiming as much of the plains and cliffs as possible.

The winner of the game will be the player who has claimed the most land. Savvy placements and the ability to plan ahead yet act tactically will be your most important tools.

This new edition of Fjords differs from the original release in the following ways:

  • The game now plays up to four players.
  • The game contains five new variants/modules designed by Phil Walker-Harding. These add optional variety and flavor to the game.

Game Mechanics:

Game Specifications:

  • 2 – 4 Players
  • 30 – 45 Minutes
  • Difficulty Weight 1.53

Fish ‘n’ Chips

| OTSG Staff

Fish ‘n’ Chips is a dexterity game for two or more players, with the players being divided onto Team Pelican or Team Seagull. Your goal is to grab available fish and/or control the three areas of the shore by having the most power in them. To do both of these things, you’ll take turns throwing chips for your team onto the playing area. But be careful, because any chip that is “under” another chip is no longer worth anything.

Game Mechanics:

Game Specifications:

  • 2 – 8 Players
  • 15 – 20 Minutes
  • Difficulty Weight 1.00

Fairy Tale Inn

| OTSG Staff

The Fantasy Fair is about to begin, and storybook characters from all over the realm are coming to town for the show. Everyone knows there’s only one place the visitors all want to stay: The Fairy Tale Inn!

It’s everyone’s favorite home away from home, and like always, the place is going to be fully booked. Each of the Inn’s two owners compete to be the one who takes the best care of the guests. They take turns ushering guests into enchanted rooms, gaining gold for strategic placement, and successfully keeping the guests from fighting. (Note to self: NEVER put Little Red Riding Hood and the Big Bad Wolf in adjoining rooms!)

In Fairy Tale Inn, two players try to earn the most gold coins by the end of the game. To set up, players select the character cards of guests who will be present during that game, then take the corresponding character tokens and toss them into the mixing bag. Next, players randomly draw those tokens to fill up the guest list board. After randomly choosing who goes first, the first player gets a gold coin, while the other player gets two. Now the game begins!

Game Mechanics:

Game Specifications:

  • 2 Players
  • 15 – 20 Minutes
  • Difficulty Weight 1.33

Dungeon Party

| OTSG Staff

Dungeon Party is a quick-play fantasy role-playing game played with coasters and a coin.

Dungeon Party is easy to learn, playable in a short time (or extended if that is desirable), has all of the aspects of a classic RPG adventure, and is playable in a bar, restaurant, or at home. The combat mechanism is fun and adds an element of luck and skill without much complexity. The game system is infinitely expandable.

Players will assemble a “dungeon” by creating a stack of coasters that includes rooms, monsters, and treasures. They then adventure through the dungeon by turning over tiles, battling the rooms, defeating the monsters, and looting the treasure. Along the way, they may pick up magical treasures or spells that can help them in their quest. If they survive the dungeon, the player with the most treasure points wins. If they do not, the dungeon wins. But either way, there will be laughs and maybe even a drink or two!

Battles are resolved by players trying to drop quarters on coasters. If they miss, players take hit damage. If they land on the coaster, the monsters take damage. Battles continue until either monster or player is eliminated.

Game Mechanics:

Game Specifications:

  • 1 – 6 Players
  • 30 – 60 Minutes
  • Difficulty Weight 1.25

Dream Home

| OTSG Staff

What would your house look like? Would you rather have a huge bedroom with an elegant canopy bed or a spacious living room with a grand piano? You are going to play a part of designers who will plan a house and add more and more rooms to it.

Dream Home is a family game about building and furnishing your new house. Over twelve rounds, players collect pairs of cards consisting of a room card and an accessory card (roof, helper, furnishing or tool) and place them on their personal boards, creating their dream homes.

At the end of the game, all players’ houses are finished and fully furnished. Players compare their houses, counting points for functionality, good design, quality of roof and furnishing. The player with the nicest and most comfortable house wins.

Game Mechanics:

Game Specifications:

  • 2 – 4 Players
  • ~30 Minutes
  • Difficulty Weight 1.65

Dream Crush

| OTSG Staff

Prepare to GUSH about your CRUSH!

Look into your heart and choose your favorite Crush, then guess who your friends are crushing on in this totally timeless fantasy dating game! Uncover sweet and strange secrets about prospective Crushes while navigating hilarious relationship milestones that will leave your feelings reeling as you play. Only by correctly predicting who makes your friends swoon will you live happily ever after with your own Dream Crush!

Inspired by the classic dating games of the past half-century or so, Dream Crush was brought to life by Found Footage Fest cofounder Nick Prueher, with graphic design by Chris Bilheimer and the Mondo team, original artwork by We Buy Your Kids, and incredible photography by Carli Davidson featuring a gorgeous cast of Crushes.

The game is played over five rounds: in each round, a Milestone Card with steadily increasing impact is revealed (ex: “They ask you to be on their bar trivia team” or “You must co-sign a lease with one Crush”. Next, a Secret about each Crush is revealed, lending insight into their unique personalities and lifestyles.

Each player secretly chooses a Crush to embark upon the Milestone with, writing it on their scorecard, while also predicting who their friends will pick. Once everyone has recorded their answers, players take turns revealing their choices, often engaging in passionate table-talk defending their decision-making process (which becomes more agonizing as the rounds pass).

All correct guesses count as points toward a total that will determine the winner at the end of the game.

Game Mechanics:

Game Specifications:

  • 2 – 6 Players
  • ~30 Minutes
  • Difficulty Weight 1.14