A repetitive race
ONE SMALL STEP
Designer: James DuMond, Gunter Eickert, James Schoch | Publisher: Academy Games
Academy Games are known for making board games rooted in a particular historical period. One Small Step is one of its latest releases which attempts to package the space race between the USSR and the USA in a worker placement board game with resource management and engine building.
As a theme it seems a perfect fit: the setting alone encourages player competition in the clash of the brightest minds racing to get to the moon first. The gameplay then further reinforces this. Throughout the game, players will be gathering resources to launch satellite or manned missions. To collect supplies needed for the mission, they will place their engineer or administrator meeples on different areas of the board, most of which will require a specific work type, restricting players’ options. Of course, as per standard worker-placement rules, in most cases two workers cannot occupy the same spot.