Isn't that what Everdell is made of? "Very minor, non-earth shattering mechanics(or variations of existing ones)" that subtly greatly improve them over existing counterparts? Like the asynchronous rounds, combining the opportunity cost of action drafting(worker placement) with card drafting, forced synergies that push players to prepare multiple combos(so they're less likely to be screwed by random draws), etc. The way the anchor mechanic removes the dependency over drawing the exact pairings might have such effects too
I know I am in the minority on this.. but I think that original Everdell's artwork is 1000 times better than that of Farshore. I don't like the colour palette and the layout of the cards.. nor the colours of the resources. I find the whole aesthetic a bit meh compared to og Everdell. Oh and yeah.. Farshore is a real cash grab. A couple of semi interesting little twists in there that I couldn't care less for.
Totally agree. Like you, I enjoy Everdell. We played Farshore at GenCon, and thought it was a nice variation. I couldn't imagine paying 100 dollars for it (let alone 100 pounds). Given the success of Everdell, they should release this at a discounted price!
That is really what does it for me. I love how overproduced Everdell is, the art, the pieces, the giant tree. So I saw this and was like "whoa, new art, new them, fun!" But since it's literally just a new theme, not a new game, I can't justify blowing $100 on it
My reasons to own both: It's $60 on Amazon right now I rarely get to play the original anymore, because I only have the big box version. Nobody in my play group wants to set up the big box, because it's such a pain
Cheers Luke, you're really easily one of the best (if not the best) reviewer out there right now. Legit, honest thoughts and your game taste is spot on.
I am very keen to watch your review of “Dune Imperium Uprising” whenever it comes out in the coming months. Somehow I feel it will fall into the same cash grab bucket.
Cash grab it is. Having and liking Everdell collector's box, my take was from the get-go to wait and see where Farshore is going. How do they incorporate future expansions with the score track running around the outside of the board?? And yes, the anchors rule and the stack rule are already taken over into my OG Everdell games. Great and honest review, as always. Thanks for this and keep up the good work.
Knowing what this game is I would still consider buying it on sale if I can get one question answered: is there sufficient variability in the cards to give a lot of replay value? If it's the same as base Everdell I'm not sure it will hold up enough beyond five plays for me. The producers said there is no expansion planned for the foreseeable future. They have three other standalone games set in the same world coming out over the next year and a half, but beyond that they won't make predictions. So it's possible this is it for Farshore. I can't guess how much replay value is in there.
@@TheBrokenMeeple Well, everyone needs to make a buck. Game designers and publishers included. But Farshore just seems like a cash grab. And to believe that makes their designer diary a little annoying.
I own everdell and its a nice light(ish) game. Its good to show people a step up in board gaming with an attractive package. I only got Bellfaire for it as the other expansions just bloat the game for me. Cant believe their new game is just the same again though, down to a cardboard structure to hold meeples but somehow even worse than the tree lol
I have the OG base game of Everdell and had been looking at expansions that were never purchased. Unfortunately lately I haven’t been playing much of anything so… On a different and more general note, while watching a livestream of someone playing a video game, someone in chat mentioned they treated themselves to a board game at over $100.00 USD and was shocked when I said that that was the “normal” price for a lot of the larger games…
Going all-in on Everdell is a REALLY bad idea. Absolutely never have I seen anyone bring it to a game night with anything out of Bellfaire or the most recent one. The spider one is a solo expansion only and Pearlbrook wasn't even a good expansion. So honestly if I were to get Everdell, I'd get Spirecrest and that's it. Won't get the solo expansion as it's about spiders. :P
I've own all everdell content. My wife and I have clocked perhaps 200-300+ games. I agree with the above statement, that for a game night the base game+Bellaire is really all you need or want. In that case, I would consider farshore as an alternative IF I didn't already own everdell, and the price was nearer £50... All the other everdell content is fun, I love it, but it it does tend to bloat and unbalance the game (other than perhaps newleaf....) And I could only recommend for everdell groupies like my wife and I. For £70/80... I'd much sooner back wondrous creatures on KS right now.
I am a HUGE Everdell fan. It's my #3 game of all-time and I own everything for it - including the ginormous complete collection box. It is probably my most played competitive game in my collection. I was intrigued when Starling Games announced a "sequel" to Everdell. But then was highly disappointed at Farshore - what basically amounted to a reimplementation of Everdell. Without the same art, less tension, and less rewarding combos and buildup. Like you said it's way too expensive for what it is and there is no reason to own both Everdell (plus expansions) and Farshore. As a big fan of Everdell this did feel like a shameless cash grab trying to capitalize on the Everdell name while putting in very little work to actually create a new game. I know you didn't like Expeditions much but at least that was a true sequel - set in the same world with the same art and different mechanics to allow us to further explore that world. This is the exact opposite - different art in a different part of the "same" world with almost the same exact mechanics. It offers very little new or interesting. Very disappointing.
I really dislike the artwork and graphic design of farshore. Such a let down! Pearlbrook for example, which also has a water theme, is sooooooooo much better. All that beige and primary colors in farshore just do not work for me here 😔
Thanks for the review. It was an honest one, but I think he should have played Everdell and its expansions far more before making such broad conclusions. Rather watch the Dice Tower review for a more balanced assessment.
I've played enough of Everdell to know when one sequel is blatantly doing a cash in. And this is not a solo opinion. DT even hinted at it but of course can't say it directly. Balanced is not the word I'd use, remember how hard it is for a game not to get a Approval seal there. 😏
The graphics design on Farshore has really let the game down. I much prefer the artwork from regular Everdell, but the actual graphics design and layout are the biggest offenders here and make the artwork look worse than it actually is. Game is fun, but...
Thanks for sharing your opinions - think you've reinforced what I already thought about no real reason for getting this one when I own Everdell so an easy pass from me.
Good comparison with Empires of the North… that also has great wooden resources in a functional tray… and is available for well under £40! I agree the price here is just staggering. I thought it may be the point I jump on and give Everdell a try with this version, but I can’t see any value here at even a £70 price point.
It's just not worth it. So many games that do better and I don't think Starling can use the whole Indie company excuse any more with the amount they must have done with Everdell.
Completely agree with your value for money views. I guess I’m in a similar position - singleton tax accountant, so relatively affluent rather than rich, and I’m put off any game that approaches £100 - well, anything over £50 rarely looks good value given how many great games can be bought for less. And no doubt we both have HNW clients - but few of them have no concept of value for money and are willing to chuck money about irregardless of cost. For the vast majority of people, buying a board game is a financial decision, and the cost is (or should be) a significant factor. A reviewer who fails to mention cost (and especially those who argue that they are justified in not mentioning cost because “I don’t know how much money you have”) is no good for me. I view them as people who are getting games for free, are hyping the board gaming hobby in general and not providing useful consumer reviews - fine if you like that sort of thing, but it’s not for me. So keep on doing what you’re doing - you’re doing it the right way.
Thank you! And it's A LOT of reviewers that don't mention cost or value and it pains me. They don't want to say anything negative or got a game for free. I get some games for free but I'm still going to talk as if I had spent my own money on it. Consumers before publishers, many reviewers have forgotten this.
Not even close to worth the retail price. If inflation and shipping have got so far out of hand that THIS dollar amount is what it takes for a board game company to make a profit, the industry is in real trouble. Hope you are well sir.
Great review. We have very similar thoughts on this one. I even got attacked on another channel when I shared them. Some people are just over sensitive cry babies. Love that you don't hold back. This world does not need to have everone handle it with kid-gloves.
@@TheBrokenMeeple I don't want to feel like I'm going out of my way to drag their name through the mud. But I was caught off guard as they literally asked in their video "I don't get the hate this game is getting".. so I responded.. and they just got completely upset that I'd dare say this game was a cash grab. Is what it is at this point. Needless to say I unfollwed them. Your content keeps getting better and better. Apparently you and Boardgame Bollocks are from the same city. Think I'd get along OK there. 😆
I feel like I’m required to say, “Tell us how you really feel” after that cardboard lighthouse takedown.😅
Ha ha, such a waste of a component!!
Thanks for taking the time to do this video Luke. Always enjoy how in-depth you go when you review a game.
Glad you enjoyed it!
I've already got everything for Everdell. This seems like an unnecessary cash grab on theme and very minor, non-earth shattering mechanics.
Cash grab for sure!
They just love to do that with this Everdell series, and it shows that they're running out of ideas. @@TheBrokenMeeple
Isn't that what Everdell is made of? "Very minor, non-earth shattering mechanics(or variations of existing ones)" that subtly greatly improve them over existing counterparts? Like the asynchronous rounds, combining the opportunity cost of action drafting(worker placement) with card drafting, forced synergies that push players to prepare multiple combos(so they're less likely to be screwed by random draws), etc. The way the anchor mechanic removes the dependency over drawing the exact pairings might have such effects too
Always appreciate your honest reviews. Keep going!
I appreciate that!
There goes Luke... making sure he does not get sent preview copies. :D
Good review. Appreciate the honesty.
He he Starling have never considered me! 🤣
I know I am in the minority on this.. but I think that original Everdell's artwork is 1000 times better than that of Farshore. I don't like the colour palette and the layout of the cards.. nor the colours of the resources. I find the whole aesthetic a bit meh compared to og Everdell.
Oh and yeah.. Farshore is a real cash grab. A couple of semi interesting little twists in there that I couldn't care less for.
I don't think you're in the minority, many agree with you and I don't know why. The artwork looks similar to me.
The £99.99 reveal at the start made me laugh. Said it all about the game. Good review although i was expecting a 5/10.
It came close . . .
Totally agree. Like you, I enjoy Everdell. We played Farshore at GenCon, and thought it was a nice variation. I couldn't imagine paying 100 dollars for it (let alone 100 pounds). Given the success of Everdell, they should release this at a discounted price!
Right?!
That is really what does it for me. I love how overproduced Everdell is, the art, the pieces, the giant tree. So I saw this and was like "whoa, new art, new them, fun!" But since it's literally just a new theme, not a new game, I can't justify blowing $100 on it
Thanks Luke, this was on my essentials list, you just saved me some coin……..that I can now spend on other games
Glad I could help!
My reasons to own both:
It's $60 on Amazon right now
I rarely get to play the original anymore, because I only have the big box version. Nobody in my play group wants to set up the big box, because it's such a pain
So the reasons are a special discount and Kickstarter backer regret? 🤣
Cheers Luke, you're really easily one of the best (if not the best) reviewer out there right now.
Legit, honest thoughts and your game taste is spot on.
Thank you so much! Appreciate it! :D
I am very keen to watch your review of “Dune Imperium Uprising” whenever it comes out in the coming months. Somehow I feel it will fall into the same cash grab bucket.
I'm betting it will be, but I'll try to check it out.
Cash grab it is. Having and liking Everdell collector's box, my take was from the get-go to wait and see where Farshore is going. How do they incorporate future expansions with the score track running around the outside of the board?? And yes, the anchors rule and the stack rule are already taken over into my OG Everdell games. Great and honest review, as always. Thanks for this and keep up the good work.
Thank you! And I doubt this one will get expansions.
@@TheBrokenMeeple In this case I'll stick just to my Everdell big box. 🙂
Knowing what this game is I would still consider buying it on sale if I can get one question answered: is there sufficient variability in the cards to give a lot of replay value? If it's the same as base Everdell I'm not sure it will hold up enough beyond five plays for me. The producers said there is no expansion planned for the foreseeable future. They have three other standalone games set in the same world coming out over the next year and a half, but beyond that they won't make predictions. So it's possible this is it for Farshore. I can't guess how much replay value is in there.
I think it's about on par with Everdell in terms of card variety. In terms of locations on the board, there's very little variety at all.
@@TheBrokenMeeple Well, everyone needs to make a buck. Game designers and publishers included. But Farshore just seems like a cash grab. And to believe that makes their designer diary a little annoying.
Yea the preorder price was 75$ over here which did include shipping. I haven’t played the game yet. Hope it’s good!
I own everdell and its a nice light(ish) game. Its good to show people a step up in board gaming with an attractive package.
I only got Bellfaire for it as the other expansions just bloat the game for me.
Cant believe their new game is just the same again though, down to a cardboard structure to hold meeples but somehow even worse than the tree lol
Yeah I mean, if this was a game that took in feedback, how come they made that piece of tatt?
Unfortunately the trend is over priced and over produced board games.
I have the OG base game of Everdell and had been looking at expansions that were never purchased. Unfortunately lately I haven’t been playing much of anything so…
On a different and more general note, while watching a livestream of someone playing a video game, someone in chat mentioned they treated themselves to a board game at over $100.00 USD and was shocked when I said that that was the “normal” price for a lot of the larger games…
Yeah some people aren't aware of the industry issues with money.
It’s made for people like me who don’t want to spend $300 to go all in on Everdell. I got it for $65 preorder!
You don't have to go all-in on everdell... in fact I would advise against it.
If this one gets expansions you end up in the same place though.
The base game of Everdell is made for people that don't want to go ALL-IN on Everdell. 😂
Going all-in on Everdell is a REALLY bad idea. Absolutely never have I seen anyone bring it to a game night with anything out of Bellfaire or the most recent one. The spider one is a solo expansion only and Pearlbrook wasn't even a good expansion. So honestly if I were to get Everdell, I'd get Spirecrest and that's it. Won't get the solo expansion as it's about spiders. :P
I've own all everdell content. My wife and I have clocked perhaps 200-300+ games. I agree with the above statement, that for a game night the base game+Bellaire is really all you need or want. In that case, I would consider farshore as an alternative IF I didn't already own everdell, and the price was nearer £50...
All the other everdell content is fun, I love it, but it it does tend to bloat and unbalance the game (other than perhaps newleaf....) And I could only recommend for everdell groupies like my wife and I.
For £70/80... I'd much sooner back wondrous creatures on KS right now.
Props for Kienda!
I like it, but I agree the price is too high and yep I don't use the lighthouse, it's for sure useless!
Thank you! Gonna pass on this one.
Good choice!
Great intro😊
Thanks 😁
Everdell was always a cash grav but now they pushed it even further.
I am a HUGE Everdell fan. It's my #3 game of all-time and I own everything for it - including the ginormous complete collection box. It is probably my most played competitive game in my collection. I was intrigued when Starling Games announced a "sequel" to Everdell. But then was highly disappointed at Farshore - what basically amounted to a reimplementation of Everdell. Without the same art, less tension, and less rewarding combos and buildup. Like you said it's way too expensive for what it is and there is no reason to own both Everdell (plus expansions) and Farshore. As a big fan of Everdell this did feel like a shameless cash grab trying to capitalize on the Everdell name while putting in very little work to actually create a new game. I know you didn't like Expeditions much but at least that was a true sequel - set in the same world with the same art and different mechanics to allow us to further explore that world. This is the exact opposite - different art in a different part of the "same" world with almost the same exact mechanics. It offers very little new or interesting. Very disappointing.
Exactly! A cash grab!
Oh boy, you didn’t hold anything back, Luke, and rightly so. Pass.
Never hold back, because someone in this industry has to. 👍🫡
I really dislike the artwork and graphic design of farshore. Such a let down! Pearlbrook for example, which also has a water theme, is sooooooooo much better. All that beige and primary colors in farshore just do not work for me here 😔
I'm really surprised to see so much hate for the art here from people.
Its on amazon for 120 CAD so msrp was a lie
They certainly did overcharge it. Also buying games off Amazon is dangerous business in itself.
Good format for the review... Can't say anything positive about the game or the company behind it though 😒
The company isn't doing the best practices for sure but people still eat it up.
Yikes. I’ve seen better productions with more components from indy companies cost half what this does.
Indeed!
Thanks for the review. It was an honest one, but I think he should have played Everdell and its expansions far more before making such broad conclusions.
Rather watch the Dice Tower review for a more balanced assessment.
I've played enough of Everdell to know when one sequel is blatantly doing a cash in. And this is not a solo opinion. DT even hinted at it but of course can't say it directly. Balanced is not the word I'd use, remember how hard it is for a game not to get a Approval seal there. 😏
The graphics design on Farshore has really let the game down. I much prefer the artwork from regular Everdell, but the actual graphics design and layout are the biggest offenders here and make the artwork look worse than it actually is. Game is fun, but...
I'm curious why people hate this one so much art wise over Everdell - they look mostly the same?!
Thanks for sharing your opinions - think you've reinforced what I already thought about no real reason for getting this one when I own Everdell so an easy pass from me.
My pleasure!
Good comparison with Empires of the North… that also has great wooden resources in a functional tray… and is available for well under £40!
I agree the price here is just staggering. I thought it may be the point I jump on and give Everdell a try with this version, but I can’t see any value here at even a £70 price point.
It's just not worth it. So many games that do better and I don't think Starling can use the whole Indie company excuse any more with the amount they must have done with Everdell.
Completely agree with your value for money views. I guess I’m in a similar position - singleton tax accountant, so relatively affluent rather than rich, and I’m put off any game that approaches £100 - well, anything over £50 rarely looks good value given how many great games can be bought for less. And no doubt we both have HNW clients - but few of them have no concept of value for money and are willing to chuck money about irregardless of cost. For the vast majority of people, buying a board game is a financial decision, and the cost is (or should be) a significant factor. A reviewer who fails to mention cost (and especially those who argue that they are justified in not mentioning cost because “I don’t know how much money you have”) is no good for me. I view them as people who are getting games for free, are hyping the board gaming hobby in general and not providing useful consumer reviews - fine if you like that sort of thing, but it’s not for me. So keep on doing what you’re doing - you’re doing it the right way.
Thank you! And it's A LOT of reviewers that don't mention cost or value and it pains me. They don't want to say anything negative or got a game for free.
I get some games for free but I'm still going to talk as if I had spent my own money on it. Consumers before publishers, many reviewers have forgotten this.
Not even close to worth the retail price. If inflation and shipping have got so far out of hand that THIS dollar amount is what it takes for a board game company to make a profit, the industry is in real trouble. Hope you are well sir.
Thanks! Not bad, throat sore from some acid reflux issues, but getting by. Hopefully it will subside by Essen.
Brilliant start to this!
Excellent stuff as always Luke. It does seem like a lot of games of this quality are heading for that price point.
Not really there can be great looking games that don't cost this level!
Great review. We have very similar thoughts on this one. I even got attacked on another channel when I shared them. Some people are just over sensitive cry babies.
Love that you don't hold back. This world does not need to have everone handle it with kid-gloves.
Thanks, I appreciate it! Sorry to hear you got flack for having an alt opinion. Sadly that is the way of many gamers now. Where was this?
@@TheBrokenMeeple I don't want to feel like I'm going out of my way to drag their name through the mud. But I was caught off guard as they literally asked in their video "I don't get the hate this game is getting".. so I responded.. and they just got completely upset that I'd dare say this game was a cash grab.
Is what it is at this point. Needless to say I unfollwed them. Your content keeps getting better and better. Apparently you and Boardgame Bollocks are from the same city. Think I'd get along OK there. 😆
Great review and I was highly entertained! Cheers
Much appreciated!