Friday, April 22, 2022

#19: Africa (Mark's Top 100 2022)


Africa

  • rank: 4,964
  • rating: 6.0
Print Status
  • out of print
Why It's On The List
  • A great Knizia exploration game that was sadly under-rated when it first appeared in 2002 because it wasn't the next Euphrat & Tigris.
Tips & Tricks:
  • As much as possible, don't waste moves. You can work to set up plays so that you can make sure that each turn has two productive activities.
  • Use the "skip a turn, move anywhere" power sparingly.
  • Relocating nomads can be very lucrative point-wise, especially if you plan for it.
Extras
  • Africa packs a lot of game into 30 minutes... it's worth tracking down a copy.
  • I don't understand it - but for some reason, this is a really polarizing game for some people.
  • Here's what I wrote about Africa for The One Hundred.
  • This is the seventh of seven games on my list by designer Reiner Knizia.


2 comments:

Rob Cannon said...

Polarizing because of the theme or gameplay? I have this on my shelf and haven't played it in a while, but I remember liking it enough to keep. I think with the game group I am in I can get it to the table pretty soon.

Mark (aka pastor guy) said...

Gameplay - it was unfairly criticized as random tile-flipping. There are actually a number of smart tactical plays you can make.

The theme wasn't questioned at the time of the game's release - though I understand the concern now and agree with one person who posted on my FB entry about this that they wish the game would be republished with a different theme.