It's a familiar game, for sure, but I think it's more like a refinement than anything else. It's like making the most amazing sandwich, then someone saying, "You know what, let's see what happens when we add fewer flavours of crisps in this".
Depending on your age and demographics, you can think of it as a rap battle, an Errol Flynn duel, or, for me, the insult swordfighting from Monkey Island.
Ladies, gentlemen, children, and everyone in between. Roll up, roll up! We have a brand new Lacerda game to look at today. That's right, a new Lacerda game, and it's a Lacerda game you probably haven't even heard of, let alone played
Once you have more than four people sitting at the table, that's when Between Two Castles has its 'hold my beer' moment.
Solstis is one of those games where you need your head on a swivel. Knowing what your opponent is up to is as important as knowing what you are doing.
Sometimes a game is good enough to stand on its own. It has a theme, but that theme is like a dog wearing a bumblebee costume - it's cute, but it's not fooling anyone.
The combination of trying to do well in the current round whilst setting things up for the next round is at the heart of Jackpot. And you know what? It's tricky. It's really tricky.
I love it. No pretence. No trying to make something fit which really doesn't, like a hermit crab wearing a Coke can. It's just a case of the game mechanisms being enough to sell the game on their own, and you know what? They do. Digit Code is great.
Mars Expedition: SOL43 pits you as someone in the combined roles of geologist, navigator, cryptologist, physicist and many more besides, exploring our red neighbour, trying to unlock its secrets.
Different coloured hollyhocks at either end of the garden? Go for it. You want the lavender under the tree? Do it your way, Titchmarsh.