The fashion for microgames appears to be on the rise. Ever since the release of AEG's Love Letter (reviewed here on EN World) there's been an ever increasing amount of tiny little games that aim to deliver a lot of play while using only a small amount of components. The latest in this growing genre isn't actually out yet (though you can investigate their Kickstarter now if you so desire), but I honestly believe that Council of Verona has what it takes to challenge for one of the best microgames out there.
Set in the world of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet - though prior to the events that take place in the play, of course - Council of Verona is a game for two to four players where you're aiming to set up a range of agendas and influence the characters who are pushing for them. The story goes that Prince Escalus has grown tired of the constant bickering between the two major families of Verona, the Montagues and the Capulets. In a bid to smooth things out between them, he convenes the Council - unfortunately, there's always going to be dark dealings behind the scenes... and this is where you and your fellow players come in.
The game comes with a mere thirteen cards, each one representing a well-known character from the story. Players also receive four influence tokens numbered 0, 3, 4 and 5 (though the 4 token is used only when two are facing off against each other). After each player is dealt a single card, a quick draft takes place where you take the card you want then pass the deck to the player to your left. This continues until each player has an equal amount of cards, then the final one is discarded face down, never to be used. Understanding the drafting element is a vital part of winning the game, as if you can manage to keep track of the cards that have been taken by other players, you should be able to formulate a plan to turn things your way by using that information.
Cards are played into one of two regions on the table - lay them down in portrait fashion and the character is on the Council, while landscape signifies they've been placed in Exile. Once you've chose where the character will go, you have the option of triggering their ability (should they have one). This could be anything from moving cards between the two play areas to looking at or even switching those numbered influence tokens. On that subject, every time you play a card you may (note: may) place one of your tokens face down on an influence-able character. Each one has three spaces, tagged with a modifier that could give give away the secret of what token you've just put down - after all, you're not going to put a zero-value token on a -1 point space if you want that character's agenda to trigger, are you?
The agendas are what Council of Verona is built around. Whether it's dominance of the Council itself by one of the families or having more people sent to exile, things can change with the placement of a single card. There's also the additional element of Neutral characters to consider, some of whom have their own plans that they'd like to see come to fruition. Finally, there's also the Friar and the Nurse, two Neutrals who happen to side with either the Montagues or Capulets - they can often be the trigger for the completion of several agendas if they happen to be played well.
Once all cards have been placed, the various agendas are checked to see if they have been met. Should Romeo and Juliet happen to be in the same area, for example, both will score any influence tokens that happen to be on them. Any character agendas that have not been completed simply have their tokens discarded, while those that do score have any modifiers applies to give each player their total points score for the round. Play three rounds, highest amount is the winner... simple.
And that's why I have fallen head over heels for Council of Verona - its glorious simplicity. Each turn is so easy, play a card, do the ability if you like, play a token if you so desire... but that's far from everything. In fact, this game is one of the most brain-burning efforts I've played in a long time, packed out with doublethink and "if I do this, they'll do that" action. With rounds taking mere minutes (even with four players I've found you can wrap them up in ten minutes or less), it never outstays its welcome while offering plenty of challenge.
I originally played using a crappy self-made version after the publisher sent me the files and thought that the game was great. Now I have an official review standard prototype and I think it goes to the next level thanks to the utterly gorgeous art - this game is seriously pretty thanks to the great work from artist Adam McIver. All the information your require from the game is presentedin a clear and concise manner, and everything comes together to create a brilliant little game that deserves to do very well. Having already hit their funding target on Kickstarter, Crash Games have got another success on their hands - the only question is how long do you wait to get involved yourself?
Set in the world of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet - though prior to the events that take place in the play, of course - Council of Verona is a game for two to four players where you're aiming to set up a range of agendas and influence the characters who are pushing for them. The story goes that Prince Escalus has grown tired of the constant bickering between the two major families of Verona, the Montagues and the Capulets. In a bid to smooth things out between them, he convenes the Council - unfortunately, there's always going to be dark dealings behind the scenes... and this is where you and your fellow players come in.
The game comes with a mere thirteen cards, each one representing a well-known character from the story. Players also receive four influence tokens numbered 0, 3, 4 and 5 (though the 4 token is used only when two are facing off against each other). After each player is dealt a single card, a quick draft takes place where you take the card you want then pass the deck to the player to your left. This continues until each player has an equal amount of cards, then the final one is discarded face down, never to be used. Understanding the drafting element is a vital part of winning the game, as if you can manage to keep track of the cards that have been taken by other players, you should be able to formulate a plan to turn things your way by using that information.
Cards are played into one of two regions on the table - lay them down in portrait fashion and the character is on the Council, while landscape signifies they've been placed in Exile. Once you've chose where the character will go, you have the option of triggering their ability (should they have one). This could be anything from moving cards between the two play areas to looking at or even switching those numbered influence tokens. On that subject, every time you play a card you may (note: may) place one of your tokens face down on an influence-able character. Each one has three spaces, tagged with a modifier that could give give away the secret of what token you've just put down - after all, you're not going to put a zero-value token on a -1 point space if you want that character's agenda to trigger, are you?
The agendas are what Council of Verona is built around. Whether it's dominance of the Council itself by one of the families or having more people sent to exile, things can change with the placement of a single card. There's also the additional element of Neutral characters to consider, some of whom have their own plans that they'd like to see come to fruition. Finally, there's also the Friar and the Nurse, two Neutrals who happen to side with either the Montagues or Capulets - they can often be the trigger for the completion of several agendas if they happen to be played well.
Once all cards have been placed, the various agendas are checked to see if they have been met. Should Romeo and Juliet happen to be in the same area, for example, both will score any influence tokens that happen to be on them. Any character agendas that have not been completed simply have their tokens discarded, while those that do score have any modifiers applies to give each player their total points score for the round. Play three rounds, highest amount is the winner... simple.
And that's why I have fallen head over heels for Council of Verona - its glorious simplicity. Each turn is so easy, play a card, do the ability if you like, play a token if you so desire... but that's far from everything. In fact, this game is one of the most brain-burning efforts I've played in a long time, packed out with doublethink and "if I do this, they'll do that" action. With rounds taking mere minutes (even with four players I've found you can wrap them up in ten minutes or less), it never outstays its welcome while offering plenty of challenge.
I originally played using a crappy self-made version after the publisher sent me the files and thought that the game was great. Now I have an official review standard prototype and I think it goes to the next level thanks to the utterly gorgeous art - this game is seriously pretty thanks to the great work from artist Adam McIver. All the information your require from the game is presentedin a clear and concise manner, and everything comes together to create a brilliant little game that deserves to do very well. Having already hit their funding target on Kickstarter, Crash Games have got another success on their hands - the only question is how long do you wait to get involved yourself?
