The Guild of Merchant Explorers: Is This Game for You? 🗺️

[@allison2525]

Picking nits and Hannah’s reaction 😂 I’m going to use that from now on! Not sure this game is for me. I think I would enjoy it but I think I would rather be playing other games. But who knows! Thanks for the video!

[@BoardGameDave]

I thought it was funny that she hasn't heard me say that before! 😂 And it's definitely a game worth trying but it might not click for everyone! Hope you get a chance to play it sometime! ☺️

[@jamessherman7797]

Thanks for your review! I love how you hold up to your gold bar standard of Stone Age. A good standard! Thanks for pointing out solo mode pros and cons as I may be interested in solo mode if I decide to get this game. I saw another review that suggested two games could be combined to support 5 - 8 players. That would be ideal for our game group as often times we have more than 4 players which eliminates a lot of games. While our core group is pretty solid, when we have more players we have varying skill levels and interests of board games. So, this game seems to meet the criteria of easy to teach yet enough strategy for more advanced game boarders!

[@BoardGameDave]

Thank you for your comment, James! Yes, we are big fans of Stone Age around here! 🛖 If you want a better idea of how the solo mode works, I did a whole solo playthrough if you want to check out a round or two! kzbin.info/www/bejne/oZ6WlnxnfNKpqpo Combining two games for more players is a very interesting idea-I hadn't heard of that but I like it! That would be perfect for cousin's game night when there can be seven or even eight of us together! Thank you for the suggestion! ☺️

[@boredboardgamerkramer]

This game needs a deluxe edition where the board and tokens are magnetic (like those old-school flat floppy refrigerator magnets) but the cubes are not.

[@BoardGameDave]

Haha, there's an idea! That would certainly solve a lot of the fiddliness issue! 🤣

[@zmollon]

​@@BoardGameDave this is a really cool idea. I wonder how much it would have increased cost of mass produced.

[@BoardGameDave]

@@zmollon I’m sure there’s be a lot of cost involved in something like that! 😬

[@ryanbartlett672]

Great video. Thanks. I LOVE the art style of this game. Mechanics sound fun too, and synchronous play gives it a big boost. On my short list to get next.

[@BoardGameDave]

Thank you for the comment, Ryan! The artwork is really nice for sure! ☺️ And it can play very quickly with everyone making choices at the same time! Keep me posted if you end up getting a copy! 🗺

[@jamesmorgan1967]

I taught this game to some friends who don't play a lot of board games and they really enjoyed it. I think they felt a sense of satisfaction in physically "building out" something on a map. Also, since the bonus cards ramp up each era, players get lots of extra moves and the game doesn't feel punishing at all. I've played three of the original four maps and HAD NO IDEA THERE WERE TWO MORE MAPS. 🤯 このゲームの 4 つのマップのうち 1 つに日本語の名前があります. 気づきましたか? 😉 (P.S. I agree with Hannah: If I like a game and my friends are enjoying it, I typically don't need to add expansions. However, in this case I would say that I"m very interested in the two new maps!)

[@BoardGameDave]

I'm so glad that this game worked as a gateway-level game for your friends! You're right that the satisfaction of putting out physical components to explore the board and the pacing of the game are both really appealing attributes for non-gamers, I'm sure! ☺️ I had no idea there was an expansion to this game (with new maps and island boards!) but it's out of stock on the AEG store so I'm not sure how someone would get a copy! えええ！日本語の名前全然気づかなかった！火山だね！すごく面白い！(Yup, I'm typically a base game guy too but I'm definitely intrigued by the expansion! I wonder if there's a way I could get a hold of a copy of it...?) 🤔

[@oneysnyder2116]

I think this one is going into the “I would play it if given the opportunity, but won’t likely ever buy it…” category. The fiddliness seems pretty high.

[@BoardGameDave]

That's definitely fair! It's a game I enjoyed but I didn't want to pitch it as a game that everyone would enjoy... the fiddliness being one of the factors that made me hesitate to give it a higher score! Thanks for checking out the video anyway! ☺

[@donnakeferlis1649]

Always passed on this bc it looks boring as hell. But after seeing this video it's definitely a buy. Like Hannah, my husband and I like to stay out of each other's way. So I like the fact that there's very little Take That. As far as the fiddly nature of it, well, might be a problem with my husband's stumpy sausage link fingers. Those big meat hooks have ruined many a game. 🤔 Perhaps I'll get it for solo.

[@BoardGameDave]

Hannah and I are laughing out loud at your comment!! 🤣 She suggested that you might have to do his end-of-era cleanup phase for him if you do end up trying to play it together! The solo mode didn’t blow my mind or anything but if you’re looking for a fun, peaceful solo puzzle it might be just what you’re looking for! ☺️

[@zmollon]

Heard a lot of good things about this game. Not sure there's enough meat for me though

[@BoardGameDave]

I could totally understand that! At its core it’s a very simple game! Flip a card and place some cubes to try to score some points! 🗺️

[@dimmok8344]

You three are adorable

[@BoardGameDave]

Thanks for including Stella! 🥰 What did you think about the review? Would you agree with most of the pros and cons we mentioned?

[@dimmok8344]

@@BoardGameDave i honestly don’t remember our play if the game 😅

[@BoardGameDave]

Haha! We played with you, me, Fae, and Hannah and you won! 🗺️ I remember you liking it!

[@diamondmeeple]

She got an older sister? 🙂

[@BoardGameDave]

Just a younger sister! Sorry! 😇