Voyages of Marco Polo | Rahdo's Final Thoughts

[@TheOmninovoi]

My wife bought me this game -- and while playing I couldn't help but think, OMG a Rahdo game! :)

[@Haze21449]

I have never played a game with so powerful character abilities, so for me that is the new thing that this game brings to the table. To get those characters balanced is truly a marvelous achievement!

[@shatnershairpiece]

I had it down to Marco (german version) or Zhangou, but the latter is impossible to find in Canada.

[@bijanajamlou5152]

I was wondering when you would review this game. I felt littlebit the same with viticulture, another workerplacement, but as you said: Innovation is nice but doing everything well is more important. Marco Polo is a keeper.

[@salmanqaisar7377]

hi Rahdo, the game is very hard (and very expensive) to find in english at the moment. i notice you have the german version, which is available + cheaper. So is the game language-independent? ie would i just need to download + print the english rules? regards, Sal

[@LordElfiian]

No real language dependence. There is no text on any of the boards or player sheets. The only thing that does is the player aid. Easy enough to just download the English rules :)

[@salmanqaisar7377]

Thanks! I'll try to get ANY version!

[@maese_ritter]

Rahdo, could you please write here the name of the game you mention at 1:57 comparing it with this one? I cannot hear well which one you say

[@rahdo]

Juan Negretti Thrash n' Roll. Here's the video I did for it: kzbin.info/www/bejne/b5nIkmidiKyNgsU

[@maese_ritter]

***** thank you, what an amazing game! I cannot find nothing, maybe you got some more info with the designers, is there any way to do a preorder?

[@rahdo]

Juan Negretti i'm not sure actually. you'd probably have to contact the designer directly on bgg :)

[@maese_ritter]

***** thank you :)

[@BoardGameGreeks]

I have never played dice placement game and I'm waiting for this one to come tomorrow very excited to play it but a lot of people don't recommend it

[@rahdo]

i can't imagine why, i think it's fantastic! :)

[@BoardGameGreeks]

@@rahdo me neither but Tom Vasell was indifferent in his review of it but when he reviewed Marco Polo 2 he said he loved it probably it's a game that feels better it's time you play it

[@rahdo]

@@BoardGameGreeks mp2 is great as well, but it's much more "easy going" and laid back. mp1 makes you work hard to succeed, while mp2 is more chillaxed :)

[@fornalli]

that feels like one of those videos where the guy is talking and doing stuff to get your attention while something unexpected happens in the background. In this case Jen walking through lol

[@Salixalba1000]

So glad to see this positive review. So far, this is my favorite game for this year.

[@israelfandal4072]

Dear Rahdo, I am very enthusiastic to buy The Voyages of Marco Polo! I have no other dice placement, I do not repent? thank you!

[@Kentchangar]

Rahdo, I remember you playing MArco Polo multiplayer. Do the players that come later in the turn order have stuff to do or are they left with unused dice?

[@rahdo]

there's always something to do, even if it's just grab more $ for the following round

[@Kentchangar]

Thanks! One more question: In your opinion: Which games should scale better with more players and in which game do the dice rolls matter more: Castles of Burgundy or Marco Polo?

[@rahdo]

i think burgundy is better with fewer players, and marco is better with more :)

[@Kentchangar]

Ah, Rahdo, why are you tormenting me! I was just on the verge of buying Castles because I thought it plays better with more players, now it's back to the drawing board. :'(

[@rahdo]

burgundy works equally well with any # of players, but the more you have at the table, the longer the game gets, by a significant factor. so if you're not bothered by a longer session, Burgundy is fine, but for us it's a bit too long at the full player count, and just right with 2. :)

[@dominges297]

Hi Rahdo! thx for review. What You think about Rashid ability? Is't too strong?

[@rahdo]

edek kowalski i don't think so... you don't get any sort of automatic income like everyone else, and there are no perfect rolls because high numbers become very expensive if you're not the first to do something

[@dominges297]

***** why expensive?? the suplement says "he may set the dice to any value" So he can set low number before take an action at second position

[@benjaminbruhn4360]

dominGeS I played it multiple dozen times and Rashid is one of the "more difficult to play characters. You really need to play aggressive to have a chance winning. I would say you can win with each character but some are relying on a matching board setup. This is what you need to analyze at the beginning when setting up the board. The easier to play are Maffeo Polo and the Mercator. I was convinced Wilhelm is the most difficult to play, but I played my best score ever using him (99 Points). You cannot win using him without planning 4-5 turns ahead...

[@joemclean5579]

did you play the game through to the end? if so who won? Jen was catching you up fast !!!

[@rahdo]

+Joe McLean sorry i rarely play these runthroughs through till the end

[@marcoschaub8978]

I like this game a lot, but rolling higher is generally advantageous. If rolling low were equally as valuable, there wouldn't be a catch up mechanism for roling low.

[@Traquan]

True, but since there IS a compensation for low rolls (wouldn't call it a catch up mechanism), you could argue that IN THE END low rolls are of equal value as high rolls.

[@TheDropbear22]

***** Greetings, if you were looking to buy a new boardgame that had worker placement, nice looking board/components, was easy to teach but also was complex enough to allow for deep strategy for experienced gamers would you choose Voyages of Marco Polo or Fresco (looking for a new game for my birthday that's coming up)

[@rahdo]

Andrew Noble for myself it would be fresco, but not everyone would agree with that because some people really dislike the dummy player in 2p

[@TheDropbear22]

***** yes that is definitely a consideration. I have that issue with Catan and 7 Wonders currently so they tend to not get as much table time as I would hope. I also really wish both games were 2-5 rather than 2-4, 5 player would just allow for more flexibility with my gaming group. One issue I have with Fresco is that in Australia currently you can get the Big Box for AU$120.. but the Base game is AU$80 and each expansion is AU$30-40. So it's more cost effective to go straight for the Big Box but I'm not sure if it's worth the risk and whether I'll actually use all the expansions (like you I'd only use select modules out of each expansion). Whereas Marco Polo seems to be a more complete package.

[@miranl7140]

Thanks for the review! Really think I'm gonna like this game. Should have picked up a copy already, but I want the English version and it will be added to my collection eventually.

[@Khanezhyray]

Thanks for the run through! Now if only this game was remotely easy to find :(

[@maxrayne____4441]

Are you going to do a play through of Barony?

[@rahdo]

Robin Brown probably not... too conflict heavy for us i think

[@Atlas-FM8]

In the video you liken Marco Polo to other games but don't mention them by name. What games are similar to this? And do you prefer Marco Polo or the other games?

[@rahdo]

+Atlas Films basically i meant other dice worker placement games like alien frontiers, dark horse, kingsburg, etc.

[@justinrrizzo]

This vs Alien Frontiers?

[@rahdo]

this

[@veerchasm1]

Love this game

[@treyalsup]

White balance. This is looking very blue.

[@rahdo]

Trey Alsup really? actually, it seems fairly accurate to me. the table i'm at isn't white, but is a greyish blue IRL :)

[@treyalsup]

***** I'm looking at skin tone and that white die. Compare to pbs.twimg.com/media/CLKlww_WEAAFePf.jpg

[@rahdo]

Trey Alsup ah yeah... that video (and in fact most of my videos) has been modified using youtube's 'autofix' filter, which i know cranks up the contrast and does some other auto tweaks. i normally do this for most of my vids, but sometimes it fails for some reason and still says that it's been completed. very annoying actually. i certainly like the 'autofix' look better, but tbh, the default is pretty close to the real lighting conditions in our flat, at least to my eye :) (but i don't exactly have a photograherer's eye, tbh)

[@treyalsup]

***** I'm sure it is very close to the "real" lighting conditions - you're being lit by the light of a window and the sky outside. That's going to be very, very blue, which is not great for skin tones. It's just a little note that could make your videos a little more professional. I'm a professional video editor, so this is the kind of thing I notice. Most people won't. But they will react more favorably to a less corpse-like Rahdo.

[@rahdo]

Trey Alsup lol, well i'm a bit corpse-like irl as well :) i probably should buy some sort of light rig, but i've always been hesitant to because in this little flat we live in, there'd be no place to store it :)

[@Valcurdra]

I played this game last weekend and didn't enjoy it at all. I had many conversations afterwards trying to rationalise why such a popular well regarded game was not a good experience for me. Once I found out that it was designed by the makers of Tzolk'in: The Mayan Calendar I immediately knew why. Both these games front load all your strategic decisions, they use random setup to keep the game dynamic between play-throughs so the strategic pathway to victory is always different. The idea of each game is to look at the randomly determined rewards and construct a strategy to maximise return and achieve your objectives, then execute it as efficiently as possible. I have a few problems with this structure; All your strategic decisions are made at the start of the game, you know exactly what you are trying to achieve and there is little scope for adjustment during the game. This is very restrictive and in my opinion totally boring. The static nature of your strategy means that it is very frustrating when the rolls don't give you what you need to achieve it, or turn order means someone reaches a critical place before you can. Basically the more a game forces you into a static play style the more frustrating random elements become. There is reduced player interaction or tactics, you can technically block your opponent buy placing before them, but the opportunity is pretty random and limited to slightly reducing their efficiency, rather than outright prevention. I enjoy counter-play in games and this really puts me off. Overall I feel that in both Tzolk'in: The Mayan Calendar and Voyages of Marco Polo the game is largely playing me instead of me playing the game against my opponents. I can see why this is ok for many people but its not something i enjoy at all, Ill avoid these designers in the future.

[@rahdo]

what you find frustrating (random obstacles upsetting your perfectly plotted path) many fans of the game find engaging (overcoming setbacks through challenging decisions). #differentstrokes :)

[@xodiex]

That's true, i enjoy challenging games like this one!