Worth Rediscovering
ARCHEOS SOCIETY
Designer: Paolo Mori | Publisher: Space Cowboys
Some games struggle to find a way to combine beautiful visuals with an elegant straightforward mechanic, but then not all games are Archeos Society, an archaeology-themed set collection card game for 2-6 budding explorers. Across six continents (sorry Antarctica) are various historical sites, where you can send out expeditions to earn prestige. On your turn, you can either draw a card to find another member for a future expedition, or play a set of cards from your hand. All cards must either be the same colour or role with one card designated as your expedition leader. Each continent is split into multiple steps.
To progress on each, you need to play an expedition led by someone with a matching colour and a minimum number of cards listed on each step.
Whilst you can gather up to ten cards into your hand, once you play an expedition all remaining cards are put in the display, ready to be snatched up by others. In addition to these face-up cards, you can draw from the deck, but might end up revealing one of the three golden idol cards. These cards are shuffled randomly into the bottom half of the deck, with the season/round ending once all three have been drawn.
The game becomes a mixture of pushing your luck whilst planning ahead. Early progress requires very few cards to get expeditions on the way, with players submitting single or two-card sets to get the boulder rolling. As soon as those first steps have been made, things begin to slow and become more contemplative. You just need one more green card to complete your five-card set, but you keep drawing endless blues and yellows. Every extra card drawn is only going to fuel your opponent’s plans, as the moment you return all unused cards to the display, they’ll be snatched away like vultures descending on a barbeque buffet. Knowing when to call it quits and when to push on is crucial, especially when the first idol appears and now there’s no telling how many cards you have left to draw.
The game comes with 12 different roles, of which you’ll use half of in any single playthrough, ensuring a variety of strategy and mechanical considerations every time you play. It even comes with six set-ups recommended by the designer for good combinations, but encourages players to try randomised or even drafted setups once you’ve gained familiarity. These roles each have their own unique twist, from the Pilot who will let you advance anywhere provided your expedition size meets the requirement to the Linguist who adds a secondary board players can advance on to gain additional bonuses. There’s so much to consider when putting together your team of eggheads that finding the best combinations with what you have is more important than being lucky at drawing (though the latter will always be helpful too.)
I really appreciate the game’s reinvented visuals from its fantasy spiritual prequel Ethnos, with the turn of the century ‘Tales of Adventure’ aesthetic adding a classy charm whilst avoiding the tropes common to the theme (especially when the cast of characters are a diverse range of people instead of a bunch of burly men carrying different props.) Having all the components being ecofriendly is wonderful to see too; more cardboard boxes and wooden hot air balloons in games please!
The simple mechanical nature of the game might deter some players but I really appreciated the ramping tension of racing across multiple paths pursuing prestige. A great game full of novelty and charm that, if it can win you over, will provide plenty of adventures again and again.
MATTHEW VERNALL
WE SAY
The ‘draw or play’ mechanics might come off as too simple for some but it’s an incredibly realised and evocative game, full of replay value if the mechanic or theme appeals to you.
WHAT’S IN THE BOX?
◗ Score Track
◗6x Double-sided site boards
◗ 159x Cards
◗54x Wooden vehicle tokens
◗49x Cardboard Tokens
◗6x Museum Boards
◗ Linguist Track
TRY THIS IF YOU LIKED ARBORETUM...
While not as cutthroat as the tree cultivating card game, both games encourage you to plan ahead and consider denying your opponents as much as creating your own point earning combos.