Introduction
Carcassonne is a big fortified, medieval town in Southern France, which is quite famous. I’ve been fortunate enough to have been there and, if you can get to go and see it, I heartily recommend it. The game plays off the history of the area and its frequent contests as a conceit for a tile-laying, building, land-claiming and point-scoring game.

Background
You don’t really need a lot of background for a boardgame and you get, perhaps, a paragraph setting you up here. You don’t need to know the history of the area but it’s nice if you do. It would have been nice if there was a little more history included in the game, but it’s hardly essential.

Mechanics
Tiles are randomly plucked from the box by the players and placed in such a way as various aspects are contiguous. City walls, roads, fields and so on. While you’re placing the tiles you can also place your ‘followers’, which you have a restricted number of. Followers are used to score points from completed roads sections of road, city, cloisters and fields and with all except fields, you get your follower back when you complete a points score. Additional points are to be had for sections of city with ‘pennants’ on them and fields don’t score until the end – the long game.

The game, despite appearing simple enough, is, therefore, a fairly deeply tactical game of weighing short term against long term gains, playing your tiles to the best advantage and trying to make your own position strong and that of your opponents weak, all at the same time.

Atmosphere
The game has a nice, medieval feel to it and the European style illustration is a bit different in feel to most UK/US illustrtion, making it stand out a little and have a unique flavour. You don’t particularly get a sense of atmosphere, particularly with the basic set, in play, but the pieces are nice and when examined and held in and of themselves when you’re exploring the game they’re quite evocative.

Artwork
For some reason the art put me in mind of Gary Chalk. There’s a certain ‘old school’ naivete to the art – not that Chalk’s work is naive – but a much more grounded medieval feel than a lot of games would have which is, peculiarly, refreshing. The tiles are small but well presented and the box cover isn’t that great, which really just goes to show how good the game must be if it can overcome those problems.

Conclusion
A game of surprising, hidden, tactical depths and with a lot of expansions and additions to take it further. Well worth an investment if you have a group of friends who like that sort of thing and you could easily use the tiles to map out a fantasy city if you wanted to, for something else.

On the Plus Side

• Well made.
• Tactically deep.
• Great value for money.

On the Minus Side

• The cover doesn’t really appeal.
• They should tell you more about the real Carcassonne, it’s a good story.
• Working out the points, particularly at the end, can be fiddly and a bone of contention.

Score
Style 3
Substance 5
Overall 4

Introduction
Forbidden Island is a fun little boardgame that is based around a series of tiles that are distributed over the table, randomly, in a particular pattern. The aim is to collect four treasures from the island and escape before the whole thing sinks beneath the waves. Each player takes on a different role with a different special ability, working together to move across the board, take the treasures and stop themselves horribly losing.

Background
The Forbidden Island was the hidden retreat of an ancient empire, the Archeans. A people who supposedly had surpassing control of the four elements through their sacred treasures. These treasures were hidden on the island, protected by a special, mystical defense system that would sink the island if anyone tried to claim them. Forbidden Island has recently been discovered and a team of treasure hunters are about to brave the island in hopes of taking the treasures before the whole kit and kaboodle sinks beneath the waves.

Mechanics
The game uses characters with special abilities, a series of square tiles to represent the island and two sets of cards, flooding and treasure. There are no dice, everything is down to your choice of actions and the luck of the draw on the cards. You’re aiming to fill your hand with enough treasure cards of the right element to claim that treasure from an appropriate tile, before the whole island sinks and you’re all drowned or incapable of completing the mission. As the waters rise – on a little scale – things accelerate and it becomes harder and harder to keep the island intact long enough to gather the treasures.

Each player gets three actions on their turn – in addition to recieving cards – they can move, shore up a flooded tile (tiles flood, then sink), give a treasure card to another person or capture a treasure – in any combination. Different characters also get different abilities, like the diver’s ability to move through sunken tiles.

Atmosphere
The artwork creates the right kind of mysterious and exotic atmosphere though the game itself is more one of frantic action and desperation than one of exploration and discovery. As a cooperative game it’s nice that people don’t squabble or quarrel and that, combined with the speed of play makes the game a good, friendly time-filler.

Artwork
The game comes in a lovely tin, almost worth buying just for that. The artwork of the tiles is fantastic and evocative, though a little ‘wasted’ since almost all these gorgeously illustrated tiles have no influence on play. It would ruin the speed and ease of play if it did, but I can’t help feeling it’s a shame.

Conclusion
A wonderfully made, fun, cooperative game that might just be a little too shallow and simple to play too often.

On the Plus Side

• Great art.
• Lovely tin.
• Quick and easy to play.

On the Minus Side

• Not a lot of depth.
• Style outweighs content.
• Character art doesn’t match up to the rest of the design.

Score
Style 5
Substance 3
Overall 4