Century: Spice Road

Review: Century: Spice Road, Century: Eastern Wonders AND Century: From Sand to Sea

Please don your protective safety goggles! It’s time for some board game mad science.

In a decision that some critics are calling “A fine move,” today SU&SD acts with unprecedented boldness to review three games in one video: 2017’s Century: Spice Road, 2018’s Century: Eastern Wonders and Century: From Sand to Sea, the game you can play if you own both previous games.

Has designer Emerson Matsuuchi pulled it off? Will the boys be anticipating the third game in the series that releases next year? And what does all of this have to do with the Spice Girls?

Click play, and find out.

Century: Spice Road is the first in a series of games that explores the history of each century with spice-trading as the theme for the first installment. In Century: Spice Road, players are caravan leaders who travel the famed silk road to deliver spices to the far reaches of the continent for fame and glory. Each turn, players perform one of four actions:

Establish a trade route (by taking a market card)
Make a trade or harvest spices (by playing a card from hand)
Fulfill a demand (by meeting a victory point card’s requirements and claiming it)
Rest (by taking back into your hand all of the cards you’ve played)

The last round is triggered once a player has claimed their fifth victory point card, then whoever has the most victory points wins.

Paul: I shake the champagne bottle, pop the cork and what comes bursting forth? February! February everywhere, gushing and bubbling in all directions. I don’t know about you, but I have a distinctly good feeling about February as a games month.

Quinns: Is there anything finer than sharing a frosted glass of February with some good friends? And what a Games News it’s brought us! With everything from Aztecs to political intrigue to some strange new version of Monopoly that I might actually play.

Paul: You’re kidding.

Quinns: Drink up!

Quickly, man the battlements! The podcastle is under attack from deadly waves of silence. Secure the chat parapets, and brace the gates of opinion! In episode 57 of our award-winning podcast Quinns offers thoughts on I’m the Boss!, the first Sid Sackson game that this site has ever covered, while Paul takes a look at the new edition of Citadels, the first game to ever appear on SU&SD. Quinns has also played an advance copy of the much-hyped Century: Spice Road, while Paul rounds off this week’s Fresco review by talking about that game’s expansions. There’s combat juggling in the folk game section and the boys chat about why Virgin Queen was Quinns’ lowest point, but perhaps the biggest surprise comes during our mailbag segment. We’ve received a reader mail that’s made us question our entire attitude towards not just box inlays, but board games in general. Listen in horror as one listener’s expensive opinion spreads across the very fabric of SU&SD, like a spilled glass of wine.

Quinns: Huddle up, friends. Here we are in the depths of winter with nothing more to burn than the castoff cardboard frames from which we punch our tokens. It is cold and it is dark.

Paul: Yet the warm heart of Shut Up & Sit Down beats strong, emboldened by the news of games to come. This week we’re going to tell you about PRINCESSES and SPICES and AN EXPANSION FOR CAPTAIN SONAR. 2017 is already up to speed and it’s looking glorious. Which one thing are you most excited about?

Quinns: Yes! Do leave a comment below. Share your youth and vigor with us old men.

Review: Century: Spice Road, Century: Eastern Wonders AND Century: From Sand to Sea

Games News! 05/02/18

Podcast #57: A Purple Boss, A Spicy Path

GAMES NEWS! 16/01/17

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