Ravensburger in The Year of The Dragon: 10th Anniversary Edition Strategy Board Game

For only $20 for a Stefen Feld game, the designer of my all-time favorite game Castles of Burgundy, how could I pass it up?! This game has a very similar feel to the original Alea copy of CoB, with the very thin cardboard pieces and let's admit it, not a very pretty game. I guess that's why one reviewer thought it was a counterfeit game, but no, that's just how you are able to get a pretty darn good board game for only $20! There's a lot of gameplay packed into that box including a couple of expansions. This one isn't quite as good as CoB, but is similar in having a fairly simple ruleset, but much more complex gameplay when it comes to doing well in the game. While I like Castles best at 2p, this one is better at the higher player counts in terms of the game play although it does extend the time to complete the game. You have to think several turns ahead here, and there's the constant push-pull of whether to get more powerful people or stay ahead in the turn order. For me the value here for the price easily rates it 5 stars, but I am an experienced board games that likes highly strategic games, this is not a game for beginner or casual board gamers.

Best $20 I ever spent on a game. Feels a little like Puerto Rico but half the rules. It can also be a little lacking with two players in the sense that two aggressive players could use a single block to potentially cost one the game and you just have to suffer the remaining turns. It can also be a little repetitive; 12 months = 12 turns of the same types of choices but for the simplicity it also offers some depth and allows players to pick it up quickly. Set up can be a bit of a pain. That's my criticism. Its surprisingly a great game thats theme matches the design. Make the most with what youve got. Good resource management a little bit of engine building and several potential strategies without being point salad. This one fills a nice spot in my collection its fun and intriguing to see what gold you can find as you strategize and draft your way through its river of pain.

Summary: Year of the Dragon is a game for 2-5 players, ages 12+, by Ravensburger games. The box says that you can expect to play for "75-100 minutes," but all of our games by an experienced group ran around three hours.This is the ten year anniversary edition, and it comes with some expansions included. Other reviewers said that there were quality issues with the components. The components seemed sturdy enough to me.Every round you purchase the services of experts, gather supplies, build capabilities, etc. The purpose is to stave off the inevitable crises from war and drought to disease and starvation that will cripple your land.In the end, the player who fared the least poorly wins.On to the Dr Games’ Criteria …GO/NO GO Criterion• Complexity: (NO GO) This is a very complex game. The individual choices each round are not overwhelming, but trying to understand the complex, combinatorial possibilities of past actions on current and future ones makes this game a challenge to play. There are just so many ways to spend resources, and there is no sure way to hedge against the known, coming disasters.• Balanced: (NO GO ) Some players are going to do better immediately at this game, and in several times playing that advantage was persistent. If you can visualize combinations of cards several turns in advance and remember with perfect clarity what has already been played then you will destroy the other players.• Chance (GO) There is a lot of chance, but you know there is so it is OK. It is not an unpleasant surprise. It is a core mechanic.• Clarity: (GO) The rules are light compared to the complexity of the game, but there are many on-line video resources to help.• Reasonable Time: (NO GO) Three hours is too long for this kind of game for my gaming groups.Bonus Criteria• Social: There is nothing innately social or anti-social in this game.• Unique/Interesting Mechanics: The idea of hedging against future disaster through societal preparion is interesting.• Informed: It has a Chinese theme, but you do not really learn anything about Chinese history.• Rewards Throughout: Yes, though your best laid plans can be wiped out in a single bad turn.

Have the first edition of this game and bought the expansions when they first came out. However, saw this anniversary edition with everything in it and had to buy it. I have loved this game since it was first released. My copy was getting a bit worn out, so I decided to get a new copy. Love it!

This game is incredibly deep - much deeper than it initially appeared. My brain actually hurt while playing it! There are so many layers and things that you have to think about that what I thought was a good strategy, turned out to bite me in the butt a little later on.Everyone in my gaming group gave it a thumbs up. I'm already trying to formulate a winning strategy for the next playthrough. You MUST pay attention to almost every little detail - failure to take care of certain things will create a big problem for you later on - I guarantee it.The rules are fairly straightforward, but you'll see that there are many of them. Each game mechanic works almost the same though so what appears to be difficult to understand is just a matter of repetition. Combine all of them and the intermingling of strategies becomes evident. For the price, this game is a winner. The playtime is not short, but not overly long either.