Borealis
- Board's Eye View
- 3 hours ago
- 2 min read
We've had some memorable experiences playing Through Ice & Snow (2Tomatoes) but it's a desperately punishing game. That's why we were pleased to discover Borealis from Lucky Duck. It has a similar Arctic exploration setting and theme, and you're similarly making use of specialist crewmen (in this case, scientists) and cataloguing the local fauna, but it's not so much a game of attrition where you can find yourself having to eat the dogs that had hitherto been pulling your sled. By contrast, Borealis is a relatively light and family-friendly set collection game for 2-4 players where you'll be trying to optimise your various card placements.
In Borealis, you'll be drafting cards for the animals you encounter. You play these from your hand where they will score on a set collection basis. They will each have a requirement of specific scientists (ie: specific colours of scientist meeples) and you play the card to your individual board to a location where the required scientists are present, and then you move those scientist meeples as directed by the card. You'll find your scientists get edged to a resting camp where you can't place out animal cards but you can then take a regroup action to move your scientists, and score a point into the bargain for each meeple you move. Depending on the icons on the card, playing it to a location may also move your token along that location's track where, again, you will score points at the end of the game.
You earn points too for completing objectives. If another player completes an objective it will disappear at the end of the round - so other players will also need to complete it on their next turn or they'll lose the chance to do so. Otherwise tho' this is a much less cutthroat game than Through Ice & Snow where you can, in the main, focus on managing your own board and points-scoring engine without having to worry overly about what other players are doing. There's no squabbling over navigation in Borealis and you aren't struggling merely to survive: so an atmospheric and evocative but perhaps more relaxing game to play on a cold winter's day.
