C.I.T.O.K.A.T.E.

1. It's in the $50 to $60 price bracket.


2. To maintain dramatic tension in the end-game, don't allow the players to be certain that the game is about to end. That works for other games. Not Habitat. To accomplish this:
   
   
   • Each time a stack of discs is depleted, put a "Comet Disc" in the bag. If three Comets are on the track at the same time, the game is over.
   
   
   • Each stack of terrain tiles should have one tile, shuffled into the bottom three copies in the stack, which ends the game when revealed.
   
   


3. Players don't know how to make moves that advantage themselves until halfway through their first game. Most successful games have this problem, but it's avoidable.
   
   
   • A simplified pre-designed "intro setup" will be crucial for new players to get comfortable with the system.
   
   
   • Accommodate what everyone intuitively expects about nature. For instance, if a predator has no prey when it needs to eat, it should starve and leave the game board.
   
   
   • The default scoring system is now simplified. If there are going to be end-game bonus multipliers, they should be introduced in subsequent play-throughs. Allow experienced players to mix and match from a selection of complex variants in the back of the rulebook.
   
   
   • "When a terrain tile leaves the board, it is awarded to a player as a fossil."
   
   
   • "When it leaves the board."
   
   
   • "When it leaves. Leaves." <-- Pantomiming picking up a tile off the board. The 12th time this question was asked by the same player. I think the fossilization rule has a problem.
   
   


4. This game is definitely ready for me to stop using the generic discs that I use for many of my prototypes. The mechanics have come along far enough in development to spend the time on graphic design to enhance the theme, which in this game is very strong and unique.


5. "The best Euro-style game I have played at Protospiel this year."

Moving out of the confines of the Union allows us to offer some things we've never had before:
FREE PARKING. Let's say that again: parking for U-Con won't cost anything, and you don't have to worry about tickets! This has been the most common complaint we hear about the Union, and believe us, the staff have shared your pain.
All events on one floor, with convenient access to exits for wheeling in carts of minis or dealer merchandise.
We're in a hotel, so we'll be able to offer rooms on site at a discounted rate of $65 $60/night (a limited number of larger suites are also available; email us for info).
24-hour gaming space.
Free WiFi access in all function space.
Free continental breakfast for hotel guests.
Free shuttle to and from airport

Of all the board games out there in the world, there's one that's popular far out of proportion to its actual quality. This game drags on interminably, as players roll the dice over and over, hoping to eventually gain something that they can trade for something worthwhile. The trading and negotiation aspect, which is about all this game has to speak in its favour, is essentially an elaborate scam, created to fool the players into thinking the experience is anything more than an over-long exercise with all the skill and strategy of Yahtzee in 100 times the playing time. No one should be fooled, though, because in the end it's just a terrible, terrible game.

But enough about Settlers of Catan; I'm here to review Monopoly.