Tang Garden - Playthrough & Review

[@BeforeYouPlay]

Have you played Tang Garden? What are your thoughts?

[@Footrot13]

played it love it. Can be competitive or more relaxed and just having a good time. As for the symbols on the landscapes you just use the colour to aid with seeing them. Still not easy but easier.

[@Shoitaan]

This and isle of cats are our most played games when we to to my sisters place. Game is chill but can be competitive. A bit like the tile laying version of Tokaido. The expansions add a surprising amount of extra bite. May help lite gamers graduate to mid weight.

[@BeforeYouPlay]

@@Footrot13 Yeah there you go, that's the thing I had a hard time putting into words. The game can be competitive or relaxed, no stress or pressure really. It's casual and I think that's a good thing. Glad you love it!

[@BeforeYouPlay]

@@Shoitaan OOoooh yeah! It does have a Tokaido feel despite how different the mechanics are. I'm hoping to try the expansions one day. Glad you like it!

[@tychay]

Production is even crazier with the components from the KS Deluxe (Golden Age + Ghost Stories) + the metal coins add ons. IIRC, the coins are metal, the lanterns and landscape tokens are wooden, and there are other scenarios/variants. And, of course, there is a gratuitous 1st player token. The only complaints are the symbols are small, some people have experienced peeling on the landscapes, and the minis lack detail for their size (same scale as Mansions of Madness investigators but have less detail than the even the monsters - and that game is almost 10 years old!) Even if you don't do add-ons, there is a new variant on their website that doesn't require anything other than the base game called Decoration Showcase… thundergryph.com/tang-garden/ Overall, I like the chill vibe going on in the game. It is definitely medium weight, especially with all the interacting rules. We like to put on some chill music and just play a game (there is even a soundtrack for the game on Spotify).

[@rahdo]

pro tip: when putting a character in a pavilion, ignore which way the character is facing, and instead rotate the pavilion itself to indicate which way the character is looking :)

[@BeforeYouPlay]

That is actually really clever! No more fumbling of the minis and you can see their perspective at a glance. Thank you Rahdo!

[@tychay]

This is a great tip btw, I do the same, it really helps.

[@rahdo]

@@BeforeYouPlay well, thank you for the great video! :)

[@elqord.1118]

Hey Rahdo! Will you check this game out as well? Looks like something relaxing you guys might like?

[@rahdo]

@@elqord.1118 yeah, my video should be coming later this week actually :)

[@amytoren3357]

This video combined with going through the directions made for smooth sailing on our first play through today. Thanks so much and great job!! I loved the game and I’m already planning on looking into some of the expansions.

[@LeRichardGames]

Monique: The world is your oyster. Naveen: I don't want this oyster. Same, Naveen. Same.

[@BeforeYouPlay]

LOL! Such a mood

[@tychay]

51:12. The look on Monique's face when Naveen said, "Awww, No birds!" 6 point smile right there.

[@BeforeYouPlay]

LOL that totally was!

[@jamesmorgan1967]

I love the visual aesthetic of this game and look forward to playing it with friends in person when things open up again. Thanks for the play through. I really enjoyed it.

[@BeforeYouPlay]

Thanks for watching! I hope you enjoy the game. Let us know what you think when you are able to play!

[@RuelGaviola]

Another fantastic play-through! This game is absolutely gorgeous, but you're right re: the symbols/icons along with the color choices. They were tough for me to read and definitely affected my enjoyment. When we play again we'll lay the landscapes flat like you did. Thanks for producing such awesome videos!

[@BeforeYouPlay]

Thanks for watching, Ruel! There's definitely no doubt about that, the game is STUNNING. Hopefully laying the landscapes flat helps you as well!

[@tychay]

I highly recommend printing out a player aid from BGG. If you aren't color blind most of the aids easily shows which icons each character prefers in a manner not needed with a magnifying glass. BTW, I drop a couple fresnel lenses in my copy of the game just in case-just like I do for Everdell, where the hash marks on the wood are hard for me to see late in the evening if I've been wearing contacts. boardgamegeek.com/filepage/197385/quick-reference-guide-v14 boardgamegeek.com/filepage/196943/tang-garden-player-aid-insert-organizer-all-expans

[@the_bearded_maximus4601]

I loved watching this play-though, thank you so much, I just bought it!!

[@TimChuon]

loved this playthrough! I agree-sometimes you really have games where it's hard to keep track of whether or not you're omitting/forgetting any rules, especially with simpler rulebooks. I'm so tempted to get this one now after this runthrough 😅 ! Thank you both for the video!

[@EskGaming]

Really enjoyed the play and made me want to buy it. Good job.

[@crusador84]

Great video! Just a small note on the rules: "Icons on decoration cards are scored at the end of the game" so the bridges should have scored 2 coins each at the end game scoring rather than when they were first placed on the board. Thanks again for uploading this!

[@rndbits8276]

Awesome play-through and review! Great points about accessibility issues with iconography, which is a shame because it is a beautiful game.

[@BeforeYouPlay]

Yeah it's too bad the icon are so hard to see.

[@gogerrit3978]

I have to admit that I didn’t take your remarks on the ‚small prints‘ too serious. I bought the game and you were so right, it is painful to try to identify the mini symbols and you keep looking around, standing up etc. my eyes were literally hurting at the end. I decided to return the game on Amazon as it really was putting me off. So next time I will take your remarks more serious :) thanks for doing these videos 🥰

[@cance7984]

A truly gorgeous board game. This is a must-have if you’re a Far East and landscape design enthusiast.

[@georgefothergill4858]

Thanks for another great play through just amazing! Have you ever played the game era? It also has amazing 3D buildings and is great!

[@BeforeYouPlay]

Thanks for watching! We haven't played "Era" but we know exactly the game you're talking about. It's the nifty roll-and-build. We've really been wanting to try that one so hopefully sometime soon!

[@tychay]

Saw Era in prototype form. It was already awesome even then.

[@richardscales9560]

Good playthrough. I Kickstarted this one and glad I did. I don't find the rule book to be the best (not unusual) and I agree with people about the small symbology on the landscapes not being as clear as they should be. I'm glad that the board itself is included or it would all be overwhelming. The. Minis work well if given a simple paint job too.

[@quishzhu]

instant buy after this video!!!

[@iNathanLite]

This game has been on my wishlist since it released. I'm still on the fence about, mainly because I have a few games I haven't even played yet. Otherwise this is something I probably would have got. It kind of reminds me of Bruno Cathala's Yamatai a little bit which I love, just with the tile placement instead of the boats.

[@ylein6508]

Is yours the retail version?

[@ChewieHuey]

Who's here because of Tang Gardens: Seasons?

[@noteyez7463]

This is a beautiful game.

[@stevegeorge7773]

For some reason one could really really hear you accents in this game. Good game!

[@MrTominous]

Isn't the game published by ThunderGryph Games and not Lucky Duck Games?

[@BeforeYouPlay]

It was originally published by Thundergryph but in the US and the copy we were given to review was published by Lucky Duck Games. They secured the publishing rights.

[@finnkrogstad2541]

Why did they waste money on 3d components if you just shoot the entire game from above? Why tell us that the game is beautiful if you never show us how beautiful the game looks?