Small Box Games: Politico

[Tiranx]

Originally Posted by justjohn

Nothing wrong with an early Christmas present

Glad you like the outside. Here's hoping the inside appeals to you and your wife as much.

I actually did end up giving the game to her early, couldnt wait, we were not able to play a game but maybe today after work. Oh and Malechi your a dirty guy .

[Tiranx]

Played this last night and had lots of fun. It took us a little bit to figure out a few rules but we got it down and had a really fun time. I would highly suggest this game to everyone.

[justjohn]

I'm glad you guys enjoyed it and thanks for recommending it!

If you don't mind me asking, what portion of the rules gave you guys a hard time?

[HSisforcoolkids]

Originally Posted by justjohn

I'm glad you guys enjoyed it and thanks for recommending it!

If you don't mind me asking, what portion of the rules gave you guys a hard time?

If I had the rules in front of me I could do a better job telling you. The part that originally confused me was the lack of names for the *hands shaking* cards and the *draw cards* cards. I guess the way my mind works I need to label everything. The other part that confused me was how you could switch up your action if the follower type for the round matched the card you could play (I think you'll know what I'm talking about). It took me several times of readig that section to understand it. Once I got it down, though, I found Politico to be one of the tightest games I've played. I feel like no one would ever really be out of the game at any time, which is a real plus since no one will get disinterested because of getting down in the early part of the game.

[Tiranx]

The part that had us confused was one of the cards (I think it was called "higher calling") that said take a peasant and turn into a clergy. The argument we had was that a person tried to play that when no clergy tokens were available and they thought that it didnt matter the colour it was a clergy member due to the card. Our counter argument was that if that was possible in the game then there was no point to having fewer clergy tokens if you could change a peasant like that.

We figured it out and that card was not able to be played till another clergy token was availabe, but that situation was not in the rules. It is one of those things that you can figure out if you think about it, but for those of us that are a little dense its hard to catch. Tonight is our game night so maybe we will get to play it again!

[Eirikr]

I bought this game and LOVE! it.
Thanks justjohn.
I can't say enough about how awesome this game is.
I have only played with 3 people but I am looking forward to trying with 4 or 5. This game is really tight. Everything is so well balanced. No one is ever out of the game or destined to win, which makes for a lot of fun for everyone. Also seems to be a quick game and well balanced whether you play 3 or 5 players. Be prepared for a true game of politicking though. If you don’t like teaming up to bring down the leader (or getting teamed up on) this might not be for you but keep in mind that over the course of a very short game the tides will shift quickly and greatly and you may soon be teaming up to bring down someone else. The rapid power shifts and loose allegiances are what make this game so much fun socially.
The rules are really quite simple and very tight which I love, but they also make so much sense thematically, even the "oldest player goes first" rule fits perfectly with the theme (surely intentional). I will buy whatever Small Box Games sees fit to release in the near future and if it is anything like what I have seen so far you can keep them coming.

I do think the instructions are a little difficult to decipher at first. There are a lot of little things that could be made a lot clearer. In particular it would help to name the "recruit followers" action card and the "play cards" action card. (feel free to use my ever-imaginative names if you wish). I would also recommend having more distinctive backs on the 3 types of cards (different colours) to make sorting and setting up a little easier and quicker. If you'd like I would be happy to do a re-write of the instructions for you to use as a model to update or improve your instructions (or discard as trash if that is what you find them to be) I know it is a lot easier to criticize than it is to create. I could tell that you were trying to keep them short and simple which adds another challenge but which is the right idea I think. Just pm me if you are interested and I will see what I can come up with.

I do have one complaint and a tip for those who buy this game. Laminate all the cards before you play. (Don't even play once, the cards are damaged very easily). After only playing the game 6 or 7 times in the first night I got it, the cards were already severely damaged. Especially the action cards, which get flipped quite frequently. The ink on the backs of the cards came off really quick and easily. Very disappointing. I will have to manually touch them up and then laminate. I can't wait to get them done so I can play again! I love this game so much though that I think I will order 2 more (I hope you have some left john), 1 for a gift and 1 to laminate and put away for the future.

Good luck John and thanks again!

[Hendal]

Well - with so many people saying what a great game it is, I guess I will have to step up and buy this one! On my to do list for the first of the year, I may even see how much shipping is for CR, since it is such a small box

Eirikr - thanks for the heads up on laminating. Yours is the post that made me decide to go for it, playing 5 or 6 times the first night and wanting to play more is the best PR JustJohn could ask for - I rate a game by how much I want to play again after the last game - sounds like a 10 to me!

For me to buy this is a big step into gaming for me, traditionally I stay away from anything with out dice, but I have heard great things about the new card games out there, and who doesn't want to support a fellow scaper.

JJ - you will be hearing from me soon

[justjohn]

Eirikr, thanks for the great review, man. I really appreciate it, and I'm glad you're enjoying it.

As far as the rules go, I tried to keep them as short/simple as possible, which I think has caused a few problems. If/when there is a second printing of Politico, I plan on doing a little bit more in depth rules, which should help clarify some of the confusing stuff.

As far as the ink on the cards goes, I have to apologize. I think the printer failed to coat the cards (at least some, some people have had problems, others haven't experienced any ink loss). This is a problem that will be fixed with future games. I know that the printer that I used has printed several other games, none of which have experienced this problem, which leads me to believe it is just a fluke with this particular run of cards. I wouldn't laminate them, though. You can order 2 packs of Ultra-Pro (or any other brand sleeves you prefer) deck sleeves, and you should be fine. Will be a lot cheaper (around $5.00, 2.00 if you get the off brand available at Wal-Mart) and easier since you won't have to cut anything out. And again, I'm sorry you're experiencing this problem.

Hendal, shipping to Costa Rica should be 10.00, but let me double check before you place an order. Just shoot me an email at the site, and I'll let you know.

Also, to anyone else who's interested, there are more reviews (most from non-HSers, including a pretty cool video review) on Politico's board game geek page, located here: http://boardgamegeek.com/game/32639

[Eirikr]

Good point John, the sleeves would be a lot cheaper, and a good temp. solution for me since I won't be back to work for a week or so, where I have access to a free laminator, (my boss even says it's OK so I'm not being sneaky or anything).
I hope to have this game a long time, so I think laminating is the way to go. I hope this is just an isolated problem.

So how many copies are left of politico, and will you be doing another pring run soon after they sell out? (just wondering if I need to rush to get another copy or can I wait a bit and be confident I will still be able to get one).
Also, more importantly, do you have a timeline as to when you might be releasing a new game?

Thanks again John.

[justjohn]

There are a few copies left of Politico. If they continue to sell the way they've been selling, they'll be gone by early Feb (hopes). Which, if I actually sell out the entire print run, it will be a great accomplishment, even if it is a small print run (to me at least, in comparison to some of the stories I've read, from publishers both big and small).

As far as another print run, Yes, definetly. When? I don't know. Probably closer to Origins/GenCon time next year.

I'm getting ready to send 3 (possibly 4) games to the printer in the next few weeks, again in smaller print runs. Which should be available in mid Feb. I really want to get 8 or so games out into the stream until I start doing larger reprints of games I've only done smaller runs of. I'm trying to make a good impression, earn a great reputation, and get a solid and varried catalog before I start trying to get distributors to buy my goods.

[Hendal]

Hey JJ - just an odd question for you.

Is there any way for you to tell if they are a bad ink set or not? Meaning if I order one can you check it first - being as it is going to be sent to Costa Rica and I live in the middle of the frontier with no Wallmart even in the country and being 8 hours form the capital where real stores are?

Not that it matters, just wondering.

I think I am going to enjoy watching your company grow into a game producing power house

Thanks

[HSisforcoolkids]

Can't wait to check out some of your other games, JJ.