Blue Skies
- Designer: Joe Huber
- Publisher: Rio Grande Games
- Players: 2-4
- Age: 14+
- Time: 45 min
- Times played: 4, with review copy provided by RGG
Says RGG: “The year is 1979, and the U.S. government has just deregulated the airline industry, opening it to competition in terms of fares, routes, and the airline companies themselves. You represent a new airline that’s trying to set up business in the U.S., but you have an entire country open to you, so where will you set up shop and how can you profit more than the other newcomers to ensure that you survive?”
Joe Huber (disclaimer – he is an author here on the Opinionated Gamers, though he had no influence over this review) has always had board games that interest me. They often focus on a few simple elements and make a compelling game from them. One example would be his recent release, Caravan, which we reviewed last year. In Blue Skies, players act as the head of an airline; trying to succeed by correctly predicting where the demand for air travel will be. And, of course, because Joe is involved, Cleveland plays a role in the game… [Just an aside, but – yes, my involvement _did_ influence the inclusion of Cleveland. But only a little; it would have been hard not to include it, and still to spread the airports chosen well across the US. – Joe]
