First, let me preface the review with a little about me & my 'gaming group.' We are what some people here called the 'meh-gamers.' I'm the one that's crazed in this wonderful hobby, but my wife is cringing at the money I spent on it and my friends aren't exactly gamers. They like to socialize and have fun. Our gaming sessions usually consist of about 10 people where 2 simultaneous games are going on at the same time. We like our games to be pretty, exciting, non-complicated, and fun. The games we like are in the 2-3 on the weight rating. If this fits you and your group, then read on!
I first came across Vegas Showdown when I browsed around for games that win awards - Vegas Showdown was the winner of 2007 Games Magazine Game of the Year At the time, the concept of the game didn't really intrigue me as I was looking for my FIRST game purchase ( I ended up buying Power Grid, which I love, by the way. )
However, when someone posted in the Hot Deals section that it was on clearance at some Toys'RUs for FIVE BUCKS, I immediately drove to my nearest store and was excited to find a copy.
What's in the box
The quality of a game's components is a big deal for me. If a great game has lousy artwork & components then I'm far less likely to get it. How does Vegas Showdown fare?
First of all for the price I paid for it ($5) it was pretty much a steal - heck, a daylight bank robbery. Having said that, I would have been disappointed if I pay the full MSRP of $45.
You get a flimsy game board which could have been a tad bigger & prettier, 5 building boards which is even flimsier (some people have laminated their piece due to this). The paper used for the building is decent, but it would have been nicer if it was made from sturdier board.
The rooms are made from thicker cardboard (which is what the rest of the boards should have been made from, in my opinion.) and they look pretty cool with the drawing of different rooms inside a hotel-casino. This, to me is the best component of the game. Lastly, you get very cheap looking plastic poker chips ( they could have at least labeled the chips), a stack of event cards, a couple of useful player's aids, and a bunch of markers.
All in all, the game components definitely looks cheap. It would be great if some other publisher picks this game up and remade it with higher quality components. However, as I said above, for what it's going for right now, its still a big steal.
How easy it is to teach & How it plays
Teaching the game is pretty easy & straight forward. Its best to set up a mock turn of sorts and show people visually how to place their rooms. 304
After a few turns people should understand the different nuances of the game.
The game plays smooth and fast. There's no significant downtime. On each turn we quickly lower the prices, flip new tiles, give everyone their income, and start the bidding process. This auction system is pretty much the heart of the game and Vegas is doing a darn good in making this mechanism smooth and elegant. If a player gets outbid for a room, he/she can up-bid, or bid on another room or do other actions. When everything is done, everyone pays and grab their rooms. Rinse and repeat.
Depth, Potential Strategies, and Luck Factor
Behind the seemingly boring rinse-and-repeat is surprisingly a good amount of 'depth' that may please some of the strategist in the group. You need to have a good spatial reasoning to best designed your hotel-casino. You need to make decisions on which tiles are of good value to bid on and how much is too much. You need to balance your income, population, and victory points. And dont forget those shiny red-cornered tiles. All of these aren't exactly deep, puerto-rico kind of depth, but its enough to tickle the inner strategist in my non-gamer friends.
Luck comes in 2 elements of the game, the random availability of premium tiles and the event cards. In short, I dont feel that luck determines much of the outcome, although some people may differ. I think Vegas hits a sweet spot in balancing luck and strategy.
Conclusion: Is the game fun?
This is my one of the most important factor for me in rating a game, and I can say unequivocally that Vegas Showdown is a boat load of fun. There's a sense of excitement as we race each other in building our hotels-casinos. There's ooh-ing and aah-ing when a high value premium tiles is drawn. 349