The Brain

• Designer:Peter Juergensen 
• Publisher: Play to Z
• Players: 1-4
• Age: 12+
• Time: 15 minutes
• Played with review copy provided by publisher

The Brain consists of one or more attempts to solve a puzzle, with 1-4 players continuing to try until they give up or succeed. You are not allowed to communicate with each other during play. Will you manage to clear all the cards with logic, deduction, counting, and a little bit of luck? Try it on every level until you succeed!   On your turn, you must place a card from your hand in the middle of the table, perform the corresponding action, then draw a card from the deck. If all cards in your hand have been played and the draw pile is empty, you win — but as soon as there is a predetermined number of cards on the table at the end of a turn, you all lose. If this happens, you can discuss how to do better next time, then try again!

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Akropolis: Pantheon

• Designer: Jules Messaud
• Publisher: Gigamic
• Players: 1-4
• Age: 8+
• Time: 45 minutes
• Amazon affiliate link: https://amzn.to/4u8kNmg
• Played with review copy provided by publisher

The time for rivalries is over! At the height of their glory, the once-opposing Cities now join forces to build a grand Capital together and honor the gods. Erect splendid Divine Altars dedicated to the protectors of the Capital, and let its aura shine throughout the ancient world. Managing Stones, coordinating placements, and anticipating Challenges are essential to achieving collective victory. 

Akropolis Pantheon is a cooperative expansion for the game Akropolis. The base game is required to play. The Architects’ goal is to work together to construct the Capital and achieve the highest possible score by using the best strategy. You must therefore join forces and play cooperatively.

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Rascally Rabbits

• Designer: Ta-Te Wu
• Publisher: Sunrise Tornado
• Players: 2-6
• Age: 10+
• Time: 30-45 min
• Played with review copy provided by publisher

Rascally Rabbits is a lighthearted yet strategic trick-writing game for 2 to 6 players. Mischievous bunnies are sneaking into gardens to snatch veggies, but only the cleverest plans will succeed! Each round, players receive a unique garden card showing a different arrangement of numbers from 1 to 16, then secretly customize parts of it to meet their goals.

At the start of each trick, the lead player chooses a crop (suit), and others must follow if they can. The highest number in the lead crop wins the trick and becomes the next lead. If a player matches both the crop and number exactly, they collect a bunny—a bonus that can score points later.

The round ends after 13 tricks or when one player has won seven. Players score points for winning tricks and for accurately predicting their total at the start of the round. Even players who win zero tricks can still earn points based on the bunnies they’ve gathered throughout the game.

After three rounds, the player with the most points from bids, tricks, and bunnies is crowned the most rascally rabbit of all!

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Vineyard

• Designers: Roberta Taylor, Eduardo Baraf, Katherine Waddell 
• Publisher: Pencil First
• Players: 1-4
• Age: 13+
• Time: 60 minutes
• Amazon affiliate link: https://amzn.to/4dmUrX2
• Played with review copy provided by publisher

Welcome to wine country! Vineyard: A Winemaking Game is a 1-4 player game about making wine in a delightful, sun-washed valley. Move workers through the winemaking steps and choose your upgrades. Become a specialist, find the perfect moments to benefit from the activities around the vineyard, and enjoy a streamlined experience of crafting wine!

Set out on a winemaking journey to create sumptuous wine! Choose how to leave your impression by playing action cards, collectively moving workers to locations around the vineyard, and deciding your unique upgrade path. Will you push your luck to get more done, or focus on building up improvements?

• Shared Worker Placement allows all players to move every worker, setting up future actions and benefits to try to take at the best time.
• Quick, Engaging Turns keep gameplay moving for everyone with open information as you maximize your important role in the winemaking process.
• Unique Location Actions provide ways to gain advantages and leverage other 
• players’ decisions or use clever tactics to temporarily block workers.
• Ongoing Upgrade Choices give you ways to upgrade-as-you-go with unique specialties and improvements to build your own path to victory.

What is Shared Worker Placement? All players at the table are able to play action cards to move the workers around the vineyard. You do not play a specific character, but choose how to best guide all of the workers! There may be turns when you set up an excellent upcoming action… But will you be the first to take advantage of it? Keep an eye on your fellow players and find the best moment to showcase your winemaking expertise!

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