That creepy type portrait art are some of the hottest things in art right now. Those old creepy portrait paintings sell like crazy, the weirder the better. Would love to have a poster of the cover.
I hear 'solo game' and I say "oooooo can't wait to hear about this one!" (Especially if it has a 2 player mode , as I usually play solo games with my daughter as a team) PLUS it's about gardening!!! Right up my alley!
I almost exclusively play this 2-player with my wife (though I do play a good number of solitaire games). We really enjoy it as a 2-player. The back and forth of trying to get vegetables for yourself and deny them from the other player while being mindful of your number of bees adds a good amount more depth. And, at least for us, the theme works and the art is fun. Has a few similarities with Point Salad actually.
I really like the artwork and theme about this game. Backed the kickstarter and played it 20 times so far. It is just a relaxing solo experience (although I suck at it). It is indeed strange (and my main point of criticism) that some goals cancel each other out.
I do agree the vegetables with faces are a little "creepy" (I now get a little uneasy taking a knife to my cabbage when cooking) , but the cards that are just regular vegetables and look like old seed packets are lovely.
1. On scoring: You *can* go for more than one scoring pattern. My problem is that the scoring scale seems out of whack. I managed to get the Monopoly +2, Avenue, Promenade, *and* Bees Knees (while also tying all four neighbors on the last round), and only got 90 points! That's smack in the middle of the third out of five ribbons! Clearly, the scoring is more about grouping the veggies as they come out than it is centered on the special scoring patterns. And the highest scoring pattern, which is more than twice the value of the next highest, is nearly impossible to get. The scoring emphasis on arranging the cards as they come rather than strategizing based on a plan causes the game to lean just that much more toward a dependence on randomness. 2. The art is a re-working of 19th-century seed packet art from the UK, and so is intended to be pastorally nostalgic and whimsical. Some of it works better than others, but old illustration styles can come off creepy in later centuries as is. It's hit and miss for me between the specific images. I really like the better ones and find them charming, but yes, a couple are a little poorly executed and "creepy" isn't a bad adjective for them. (I'm looking at you Mr. Rotabagge and Mayor Onion.) 3. The issue of randomness in selecting the neighbor tokens works okay for me. This is where the neighbor token number on the cards really comes in. It really is "playing the odds." There are only six of each neighbor, and if you get high numbers on the cards, you can often end up with four or more of a given token, which tells you that your odds of getting another of the same are slim compared to the one that still has all six in the bag. So then you select cards based on which number of tokens seems like it gives you the best chance of tying the leaders. The point of the token draw for the neighbors isn't so much just to look ahead at which cards are probably going to be stolen as it is playing the numbers to try and get ties. Yes, you can still fail, but the numbers game feels like you have just enough control through deciding the number of tokens drawn to make it a real game mechanism rather than just a random event generator. 4. On length of play: I like short solo games as well, but this one seems a bit too short to me given the fussiness involved in sorting out the four sets of six tokens out of a full set of 60. I'm not about to get so organized as to place each set of 6 tiny tokens in its own little baggie. Digging out the right tokens wouldn't be bad at all for a bigger game, but for a quite small and light 15-minute solo game, it's a bit much. So, finishing the game so quickly comes off as not enough game for the hastle. I still like it and will be keeping it around for a while. I mostly just need to figure out how the game wants me to play, scoring-wise.
Nice to see a game finally incorporate the infamous Carrot Klause. Of course, everyone dislikes Carrot Klause because you only receive bags of baby carrots as gifts.
I can see how that would be someone's first thought, but the deeper you get into the hobby the more you'll see how board games differ from video games (and I love video games). It's almost like comparing watching a movie to reading a book. Both good but very different experiences, IMO.
Very well said! I agree. Been into BoardGames for many many years, but have increasingly gotten more into solo gaming...it can be so relaxing and enjoyable
Check out the 1 Player Guild on BGG if you'd like to hear testimonials about why many people play solo boardgames over video games. There are many aspects that gel well solitaire: tactile interaction, play at your own pace, travel/time accessibility, and I too find it relaxing to get away from devices from time to time. Also, many game tropes aren't well represented in video games.
I look at screens all day at work. Solo board games let me enjoy gaming by myself without yet another bright box of light shining in my face for hours.
That creepy type portrait art are some of the hottest things in art right now. Those old creepy portrait paintings sell like crazy, the weirder the better. Would love to have a poster of the cover.
Backed the Kickstarter for the artwork alone, love it!
I hear 'solo game' and I say "oooooo can't wait to hear about this one!" (Especially if it has a 2 player mode , as I usually play solo games with my daughter as a team) PLUS it's about gardening!!! Right up my alley!
I almost exclusively play this 2-player with my wife (though I do play a good number of solitaire games). We really enjoy it as a 2-player. The back and forth of trying to get vegetables for yourself and deny them from the other player while being mindful of your number of bees adds a good amount more depth. And, at least for us, the theme works and the art is fun. Has a few similarities with Point Salad actually.
Yay!! More solo games!!
First Liz's reviews, then Sprawlopolis and now this
Keep em comin DT!! 😊
I really like the artwork and theme about this game. Backed the kickstarter and played it 20 times so far. It is just a relaxing solo experience (although I suck at it). It is indeed strange (and my main point of criticism) that some goals cancel each other out.
I love this game (and the artwork!) so much!!
I do agree the vegetables with faces are a little "creepy" (I now get a little uneasy taking a knife to my cabbage when cooking) , but the cards that are just regular vegetables and look like old seed packets are lovely.
1. On scoring: You *can* go for more than one scoring pattern. My problem is that the scoring scale seems out of whack. I managed to get the Monopoly +2, Avenue, Promenade, *and* Bees Knees (while also tying all four neighbors on the last round), and only got 90 points! That's smack in the middle of the third out of five ribbons! Clearly, the scoring is more about grouping the veggies as they come out than it is centered on the special scoring patterns. And the highest scoring pattern, which is more than twice the value of the next highest, is nearly impossible to get. The scoring emphasis on arranging the cards as they come rather than strategizing based on a plan causes the game to lean just that much more toward a dependence on randomness.
2. The art is a re-working of 19th-century seed packet art from the UK, and so is intended to be pastorally nostalgic and whimsical. Some of it works better than others, but old illustration styles can come off creepy in later centuries as is. It's hit and miss for me between the specific images. I really like the better ones and find them charming, but yes, a couple are a little poorly executed and "creepy" isn't a bad adjective for them. (I'm looking at you Mr. Rotabagge and Mayor Onion.)
3. The issue of randomness in selecting the neighbor tokens works okay for me. This is where the neighbor token number on the cards really comes in. It really is "playing the odds." There are only six of each neighbor, and if you get high numbers on the cards, you can often end up with four or more of a given token, which tells you that your odds of getting another of the same are slim compared to the one that still has all six in the bag. So then you select cards based on which number of tokens seems like it gives you the best chance of tying the leaders. The point of the token draw for the neighbors isn't so much just to look ahead at which cards are probably going to be stolen as it is playing the numbers to try and get ties. Yes, you can still fail, but the numbers game feels like you have just enough control through deciding the number of tokens drawn to make it a real game mechanism rather than just a random event generator.
4. On length of play: I like short solo games as well, but this one seems a bit too short to me given the fussiness involved in sorting out the four sets of six tokens out of a full set of 60. I'm not about to get so organized as to place each set of 6 tiny tokens in its own little baggie. Digging out the right tokens wouldn't be bad at all for a bigger game, but for a quite small and light 15-minute solo game, it's a bit much. So, finishing the game so quickly comes off as not enough game for the hastle.
I still like it and will be keeping it around for a while. I mostly just need to figure out how the game wants me to play, scoring-wise.
Nice to see a game finally incorporate the infamous Carrot Klause. Of course, everyone dislikes Carrot Klause because you only receive bags of baby carrots as gifts.
I definitely want to pick this up for my solo collection.
I can't believe I'm the first Kids In The Hall reference here!
Came here to see if anyone mentioned that.
@@jdteney thank you! I deserve a hearted comment for this...at least Brucio would give it to me...
Looks cool. But the box cover looks like something from a nightmare 🤣
I was interested in this one after hearing Alex on Dukes of Dice speak so highly of it but that box art just creeps me out!
Solo game? I might as well just play video games.
I can see how that would be someone's first thought, but the deeper you get into the hobby the more you'll see how board games differ from video games (and I love video games). It's almost like comparing watching a movie to reading a book. Both good but very different experiences, IMO.
Very well said! I agree. Been into BoardGames for many many years, but have increasingly gotten more into solo gaming...it can be so relaxing and enjoyable
Check out the 1 Player Guild on BGG if you'd like to hear testimonials about why many people play solo boardgames over video games. There are many aspects that gel well solitaire: tactile interaction, play at your own pace, travel/time accessibility, and I too find it relaxing to get away from devices from time to time.
Also, many game tropes aren't well represented in video games.
a multiplayer board game? I might as well just play video games.
I look at screens all day at work. Solo board games let me enjoy gaming by myself without yet another bright box of light shining in my face for hours.