Carcassonne: Board Game Review - Eva Varga

The kiddos received the Carcassonne Big Box Game for Christmas and Sweetie has been wanting to play it non-stop ever since. I suppose I can thank our friends Bar and Kong for her love of games. Every Labor Day Weekend since she was an infant, they have opened their home to all their friends/family for a weekend of gaming. From Thursday evening to Sunday afternoon – their home is a game-lovers haven. Wall to wall game tables and throughout the house, people are enjoying their favorite games, learning to play new ones, eating wonderful food (Kong is a fabulous cook and everyone brings treats & drinks to share), and enjoying one another’s company. Previously, we’ve played only the basic version. Since then, we’ve added two expansion sets – The River Expansion and The Princess & The Dragon – to our repertoire. It is a great game for young gamers because once they have been shown how to play, they don’t need to be able to read. At the games end, however, a little assistance is needed to help determine the score for each player or team.

We played twice yesterday; each game taking at least an hour to complete. Sweetie is catching on remarkably… I don’t have to help her with strategy anymore. She understands where to place her meeples to get the most points and works the charms of the fairy (Princess/Dragon expansion) to her advantage. On occasion, however, I do need to remind her of the rules (she’ll change her mind after her turn and want to move tiles or her meeples). She beat me yesterday by a huge margin!

Watch out, Bar & Kong! She is already asking, “How long until BarCon?”