Agricola: An enjoyable ride, once you've learned to drive

The Number One Game on BGG

Game: Agricola

Designers: Uwe Rosenberg       

Publisher: Z-Man Games, 2007

Age Range: 12 & up

Number of Players: 1-5

Game Time: 30 minutes per player/+ or -

Mechanics: Economic/Resource Management

Complexity: 4

Challenge: 6

 

            This is the latest candidate in the ‘cult of the new’ phenomenon I discussed in an earlier post. It is currently ranked at # 1 on Boardgame Geek and though, as usual, it has its share of detractors, 489 of the 7720 people who ranked it, gave it a “10.” A total of 12 gave it a “1.” I’d give it a solid “8,” and would probably notch it up at least to “9” if I could get enough plays of it in to truly grasp all that it has to offer and was playing it with a group of people who knew it at least as well as I do.

            One’s first impression of the game might lead one to give it a complexity level well above “4,” but when you get right down to it and have the play mechanics of it settled into your head, it’s really not all that complex. At the start and for at least the first few rounds of play, you get two ‘family members’ that you can put to use on any of a number of spaces on the central board (a series of three of them, actually). Put one here and you get a few ‘wood.’ Put one over there and you get to play an Occupation or institute a Minor Improvement. Here, some grain; there some clay. In turn order, everybody allocates their family members and then collects their stuff. With the wood, you get to build fences, which house animals. With the clay, you might build a Stone Hearth that can convert grain, vegetables or animals into food.

            Basically, you’re trying to develop three components of a farm on your own personal board. In one section, you’re going to want to develop your own house and the family that’s in it – more rooms, more family members (giving you extra turns to grab stuff on the board), house upgrade (from wood, to clay, to stone). In another section, you’re going to want to grow crops – grain and vegetables – and in yet another section, you’re going to want to raise animals. You’re going to have to do all of this simultaneously. At the end of the game, you’ll receive victory points related to how well you’ve grown each of the three sections and get points deducted for areas that you’ve neglected.

            There are six stages to the game, each consisting of a number of turns and at the end of each stage, you are going to have to have collected enough food, or be in possession of a ‘tool’ with which you can converts crops or animals into food, to feed your family, at a rate of two food per family member. Failure to do so leads to the acquisition of a Begging card, which will deduct three points (for each one you have) from your score at the end of the game.

            You’re in competition with others for resources. If one of your opponents snags the space on the board offering wood, you won’t be able to put your family member on that space and get any (with multiple players, there are multiple ‘wood’ spaces). Only one person per round will get to build fences. Only one person per round will get to “Grow Family” (meaning, adding an extra ‘token’ to essentially give you another turn at grabbing resources in a round). The Occupations and Minor Improvement options tweak your ability to do things. If you opt to play a Shepherd Occupation, you will increase the number of sheep you receive. A Clay Firer Occupation will allow you to convert Clay to Stone.

            There are also different decks of cards, related to the Occupations and Minor Improvements; a Basic Deck, an Interactive Deck, a Complex Deck (labeled “K”) and by the time I got hold of a copy, there was a Z Deck and some of the cards in these decks are designed for a specific number of players. More, we’re told, will be coming. All of these decks work in different ways to change the game experience. What with all the pieces representing resources, food, animals, the various player boards, central boards and multiple card decks, this game weighs a TON. It is, without a doubt, the heaviest game I own. It has to be a candidate for heaviest board game in existence.

            But is it all worth it? Is all of this. . .stuff in service to a good game? Based on the half-dozen or so plays of it that I’ve gotten in since I cracked the cellophane, I’ll give that question a qualified “Yes.” It’s qualified, because in many ways, it is almost too complex to be appreciated by all but the most ardent board game fans (of which, there are many, apparently, on Boardgame Geek). It is a not a game that your basic family unit (Mom, Dad and two kids old enough to play) is going to bring out onto the table for a relaxed evening of fun. It’s more of a ‘let’s get into this serious gaming exercise’ kind of thing. Not only that, but even if you’re a die-hard gamer, it’s going to take a while for all that this game entails to start operating smoothly for you. At first, it’s something of a fight for sheer survival, as you work to make sure at the end of each phase, you have enough food to feed your family. Repeated play tends to loosen things up a little and rather than be daunting, its complexity becomes something of a joy to behold.

            Driving a car is complex, but it’s not hard. The first time you get behind a wheel, you’re confronted with about as many ‘pieces’ as Agricola presents. You got your ignition, your brakes, your gear changer, your gas pedal (with standard transmission, add clutch and gear shift lever), heat controls, lights, windshield wipers, cruise control, buttons for gas mileage, the radio, the overhead lights, steering column adjustments, rear window defroster, door and window locks, etc., etc., etc. Once you’ve got all this stuff mastered, you don’t even think about it and find yourself with time to enjoy a ride.

            Given time and a personal desire to take that time, Agricola can be an enjoyable ride.

For more info: www.boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/31260; www.zmangames.com