Image Courtesy of <PERSON>
This review continues my series of detailed reviews that attempt to be part review, part resource for anyone not totally familiar with the game. For this reason I expect readers to skip to the sections that are of most interest.
If you liked the review please thumb the top of the article so others have a better chance of seeing it and I know you stopped by. If you thumb the bottom as well, I consider that a bonus. Thanks for reading.
Summary
Game Type – Abstract Strategy
Play Time: 20-40 minutes
Number of Players: 2-4
Mechanics – Hand Management, Pattern Building
Difficulty – Pick-Up & Play (Can be learned in about 10 minutes)
Components – Very Good
Release – 2018
Designer –<PERSON> - (Century: Eastern Wonders, Century: Golem Edition, Century: Spice Road, Spectre Ops, VOLT)
Overview and Theme
Reef is another in a line of Abstract Strategy games that adds to, what must be regarded now, as a cluttered genre over the last 5 years or so. This one comes to us from the same publishers as Azul( Next Move Games), and that connection alone is enough to create some buzz and have people comparing the two titles given they both fall into the Abstract domain.
That said I consider them both to be their own games but I will touch on which one I think is better in my Final Word.
The theme here is even more pasted on than the one in Azul. The concept of reefs that evolve with the addition of coral is at the core but the players are doing nothing more than playing cards to acquire pieces in order to place them and score them for the various patterns they can make. When you say it like that it really isn't to different to an Azul description when I think about it. This theme really could have been one of many, but it works well enough and provides a good recent for vibrant colours to prevail.
Reef comes to us from game designer, <PERSON>, who is probably best known for Century: Spice Road\ Golemand Specter Ops, which are two designs at both ends of the spectrum. I also have his game on the shelf, which is due for a re-working in 2019 as VOLT. It's fair to say that <PERSON> isn't wanting to be known for one game style...more power to him.
Catch the current with me...I think I smell spores...and I'm hungry!
The Components
After the publication of Azul, Next Move Games face the realisation that they have set the bar high in regards to production values. 299
Reef is quite good but it is not to outstanding.
Coral Pieces – These are slightly disappointing in my opinion as they are the star of the show. I recognise that plastic probably had to be the go to material when considering cost but it does make the game feel more like a toy than a game, through adult eyes anyway. In fact it really reminds me of Duplo or some other building material I had as a child.
The pieces here make use of 4 colours and 4 different shapes. Each piece has a small circle on the top that helps the pieces stay on top of one another but they don't really click together like Lego...nor do they need to.
They do the job but they don't look or feel amazing like Azul's tiles. My only other query is why they went with a colour that isn't quite orange but also isn't clearly identifiable as red?
Image Courtesy of fungry
Cards – The cards are well designed to make them clear. Each card features two halves with the top section showing two coral pieces and the bottom depicts an icon-based graphic (the scoring criteria) and a number in the bottom-right corner that outlines how many VPs can be earned for that criteria.
The top half of the card uses a white background and the bottom half a shoal-coloured blue background. The dividing line is made to look like a wave to reinforce the theme.
All of this is well done and after a single play the cards are quite self-explanatory. The disappointment here is that the cards don't feature a matte\linen finish, which I think would have elevated the production overall.
Image Courtesy of EchoOperative
Player Boards and VP Tokens – Each player board is quite simple, with the main feature of note being the 4 x 4 grid, upon which coral pieces can be placed.
One of the boards has a Starfish amongst the artwork, which is used to denote who the starting player will be. That's a nice touch as it allows the boards to be selected at random during set-up and determine the start player from the off. Beyond that though, the boards are nothing more than a palette, with the coral pieces serving as the colourful paint. 872