I not often take a second to look behind the sport field. Sometimes, I’m too desperate to dig into contents, punch cardboard, and set up parts. However Harmonies, designed by Johan Benvenuto and illustrated by Maeva Da Silva, was so cleanly packaged that I had time to take all of it in. Plus, I wished to find out how the sport was represented in a block of descriptive textual content to potential patrons.
Harmonies does little to cover its easy attraction because it describes itself in a single sentence: “Create a miniature world through which animals dwell in excellent concord with nature!” I couldn’t have mentioned it higher myself.
Gameplay Overview:
For these accustomed to Azul, the turn-by-turn technique of Harmonies feels very related. A central board is seeded with groupings of three tokens that characterize completely different terrain. Gamers choose a single grouping so as to add to their very own private board. These tokens have to be positioned instantly and there are completely different causes to put tokens in sure preparations. Play continues till tokens can not be drawn, or one participant has two or fewer areas left to fill.
So why are we putting these tokens? Harmonies supplies route through three avenues. First, gamers rating factors through widespread targets for every terrain sort. For example, water tokens rating primarily based on how lengthy of a river you’ll be able to create. Timber and mountains rating primarily based on top and adjacency. Buildings rating primarily based on the encompassing range. There’s an included participant assist that gives every attainable scoring choice through these placements.
On a participant’s flip, they’ve the choice to take an animal card from a central market. That is the second avenue of route and gamers have 4 slots obtainable for these. Animal playing cards point out the terrain association that’s essential to take an animal dice from the cardboard and add it to your tableau. Every card signifies what number of animal cubes are added to it and every positioned dice will increase the cardboard’s scoring potential.
The third avenue is an included module referred to as Nature’s Spirit. Two of those playing cards are dealt to gamers earlier than play, permitting them to pick out a spirit so as to add to a card slot. As soon as the spirit’s most popular association is accomplished, they supply end-game factors primarily based on targets resembling panorama range or groupings.
Harmonies additionally contains double-sided participant boards that enable for the choice to construct upon both land or water. The waterside adjustments scoring by including a worth to lands separated by water tokens – i.e. islands. The sport additionally comes with a beat-your-own-score solo mode that’s glorious for studying the intricacies of placement and scoring earlier than taking part in with others.
Sport Expertise:
Harmonies has a vibe. The fantastic illustration on the field cowl invitations you in and that is enhanced by every animal card you encounter throughout play. As gamers choose animal playing cards and terrain tokens, a small habitat begins to type in entrance of them. As a consequence of token choice limitations, some animals might not discover house in your panorama. No concern, as Harmonies supplies scoring for the terrain you choose regardless.
You should embrace the tactile nature of every spherical although. Harmonies isn’t a breezy recreation. Choices about placement get extra fraught over time as house is at a premium. Until you might be stacking timber, mountains, or buildings continually, verticality succumbs to the sprawl of water and fields as gamers discover the tip recreation nearing. The obtainable token choices are stuffed with potential hindrances.
Determination house is plentiful however balanced by the route of animal wants. Every card has a coloured stripe on the aspect that gives an incredible visible cue for which habitat an animal is searching for. As such, gaining too many water animal playing cards goes to trigger shortage points for placement, whereas a extra balanced strategy might discover extra houses for animals. Harmonies additionally supplies additional pressure by making gamers follow the animal playing cards chosen. Select properly.
My biggest accomplishments have been associated to discovering combos among the many obtainable animal playing cards. Putting animals in an association that may be expanded upon by then constructing vertically is sort of satisfying. This not solely has the potential to attain you extra terrain factors however may open extra animal habitats if the playing cards are in your favor. And but even by means of stellar moments resembling this, finish recreation scoring feels fairly balanced and aggressive.
Purchase-in on this is dependent upon the extent of interplay you need at your gaming desk. Past the token and card choice, there may be little interplay between gamers. It’s largely multi-player solitaire with gamers evaluating their accomplished puzzles ultimately. That mentioned, there’s not an entire lot to fault within the design because it appears to have carved its personal area of interest within the Azul panorama. My solely true gripe is the iconography for the terrain choices under a constructing, that are laborious to visualise, however straightforward to know over time.
Ultimate Ideas:
Harmonies is nice. It presently resides on the tail finish of my high ten for the yr and is nicely deserving of its Prime 25 location on the household video games listing on BGG on the time of penning this assessment. It should climb additional. My group has loved their performs, my niece liked watching the habitats develop and serving to me place animals, and my siblings furrowed their brows and growled on the choices offered to them and the selection restrictions in each the market and on the central board. This can be a easy design with well-considered components of route and pressure. And Da Silva nailed the illustration to current a singular and impressed environment.
Ultimate Rating: 4 stars – A pleasing package deal asking gamers to harmonize by means of tactical planning.
Hits:
• Card illustration
• Tableau desk presence
• Card sort indicator
Misses:
• Minimal participant interplay
• Tri-base token icon
