Bruxelles 1893

thats a lot of details in this game...but i really enjoy it...ive been got invole

A worker placement game about art-nouveaux architecture in Belgium.

The game lasts 5 rounds, with each round using the classic worker placement mechanism, but of cours there is a twist or two. There are 2 regions for placement: 1) parliament- there are 4 locations here, and these actions are valuable and free, but the catch is that the person who places the most workers looses one into the court system, and it's a bit difficult to get them back into your supply. Also, the later you place in a location, the more likely you will need to place more workers to receive the action. It's a very interesting game of chicken. 2) the main board- this a randomized (at the start of the game) grid of the main actions of the game, where placements must be accompanied by money, with the most money in a row winning a bonus card (these cards either provide a one-off ability or provide an end-game scoring multiplier). Also there is a point-scoring opportunity for having majorities that have been enclosed. Essentially, there are 3 considerations to make when a making a placement(the action you want, the card you want to win, and winning a majority). The main actions are: a) get 2 of any resources (required for building), b) build a building (scores points both in-game and end-game, manipulate the resource market, and and your building then is permanently placed on the board and you get a small special action whenever another player uses the action with your building), c)hire a patron (allows for special abilities when activated each round, but they need to be paid off at the end of the game, also used for end-game points), d)acquire a work of art (used for minor income each round if you save them and end-game points if you save them, but mainly used to sell for money and points in-game), e)sell a work of art (used fr in-game money and points, and involves an interesting market manipulation mechanic).

You also have the option to pass at any time, and the earlier you pass, the greater your chance at becoming start player the next round.

The game scales very well from 2-5 players, it has an addictive quality to it, it's got depth and feels like a very developed Feld-like design and yet it's by a first-time designer. Recommended.

Average game that aims high, but fails to impress. The main worker placement / auction / area majority / player building board is ambitious and gives multiple layers to your decisions. It could have been amazing if the ideas all came together, but unfortunately the poorly implemented bidding mechanic lets it down. The deciding bid is given to the player who enters the last spot on the column, who can just win with a single extra coin. This can be especially punishing as any losing bidders forfeit their entire bid, which results in boring low stakes bidding.

There are many other negatives which outweigh the positives for me. The randomness of worker placement spots and art tokens, seemingly unbalanced building strategy, and the crappy art (if your theme is going to be Art Nouveau, hire an artist that is actually capable of producing the style). There is some fun to be had playing with the unique mechanisms and there are occasional glimpses of a good game underneath, but it is probably not worth putting in the effort to find it.

Game has a lot going on and the mechanisms are generally well integrated. Overall though the game felt very brittle. If every player wasn't playing optimally, then another player would get a sizable advantage. Also, did not particularly care for the graphic design in this one. Artwork was fine (depending on your taste), but the iconography for specific actions are not clear.

1 play / 4 players

LIKE: Three different systems in which players edge each other to gain control, but yet the systems all seem to work together creating a good game with good interaction. The bidding for columns is neat because the actions could be cheap or they could be expensive. The art selling market is interesting, and more opportunistic than the other spaces. The city square is interesting because it is a system based on worker availability for the next round.

DISLIKE: Some of the iconography is lost in the busy artwork, even though the board is pretty. Each area of the board requires its own set of rules, so not the easiest game to teach. The art market squares feel too much like a spreadsheet. The area majority for the shield points felt our of place and uninteresting.

OVERALL: Pretty good game, very unique mechanisms, so overall a game worthy of high praise. I do wonder if repetitive plays will reveal dominant strategies, or if the disparate, yet thematic system will lose its appeal. I feel it's too obtuse for repetitive playing, but I do enjoy it for that occasional play.

A solid mid-weight Euro. Enjoyed playing it and would definitely play it again. Not sure I liked it enough to suggest over other mid-weight Euros (such a crowded genre with so many great games at the moment).

I like it. The mechanics feel entirely unique in many ways - the central one especially so wherein you are doing worker placement to take an action, but also using them to 'vote' for taking tiles that are very helpful to your longer range plans. The payment wheel is also interesting and delightful as it moves around and changes the cost for scoring. I want to continue to explore this one.

Euro muy curioso, me gustó en especial lo de la corrupción de los meeples, el reloj y la tabla de venta/puntos de las obras de arte.