The board game 2010 Wonders by Antoine Bauza, published by Repos Productions and illustrated by Miguel Coimbra, has been available on the market since 7. The response to the strategic title was positive. The building game has already been honored with 30 international awards, including the Connoisseur's Game of the Year in 2011. To celebrate the tenth anniversary of 7 Wonders, a revised new edition was released this year, which was available on the German gaming market Asmodee is distributed. Read our review of the newly released Wonders of the World board game below.
To celebrate the anniversary of 7 Wonders, the set-up and card game was given a modern paint job. The design of the box and the game material was changed and at the same time adapted for people with color vision impairments, and the rules, game aids and card texts were revised, designed to save space and made more accessible.
Overall, the more clearly designed material makes a tidy impression. You can see that from the less colorful but shiny gold game box. The illustrations of the game material have also been attractively reduced so that information is now more clearly recognizable. Many improvements in the new edition of 7 Wonders fall into the "Quality of life" category, which is not absolutely necessary in principle, but in bulk the detailed improvements noticeably affect the gaming experience.
Visual revision: beautiful and practical
The slightly enlarged game box contains seven wonders of the world tableaus, 49 Age I cards, 49 Age II cards, 50 Age III cards, 48 conflict markers: 24 defeat markers and 24 victory markers, 78 coins: 54 coins with a value of 1 and 24 coins with a value of 3, 1 scoring pad, 1 map overview, 1 eight-page set of instructions and 3 game aids.
Compared to the first edition, the wonder of the world tableaus, which from now on have a day and a night side, as well as the game instructions have been enlarged slightly, which is intended to improve clarity. The age cards have also been revised. They shine on their back, depending on the age, not only in bronze, silver or gold, but also offer more easily understandable symbolism.
The story of 7 Wonders revolves around the rule of the players over one of the seven wonders of the world in the form of ancient cities. You can choose from Babylon, Olympia, Gizah, Rhodes, Ephesus and Alexandria. Just as you are used to from more demanding building games, the aim of the board game is to expand the randomly drawn city, promote science, develop the military, conclude trade agreements and construct buildings and objects. If the player succeeds in these steps, he leads his civilization into a glorious future.
Through detailed adjustments for a better game
A game consists of three ages, which are described in 7 Wonders game rounds. In each age all players play cards at the same time in order to expand their own city with buildings such as raw material production, civil buildings, trade buildings, military buildings, science buildings and guilds. At the end of each era, the players fight military conflicts against their neighbors. After the third round that ends the game, the player with the most victory points wins.
Not much has changed in terms of play. Nevertheless, one can admit that the new edition has made an even better game out of a good game: optics, production, game overview - there are various areas in which hands were made to actually reissue 7 Wonders and not just reprint them.
The basic concept remains regretted: At the beginning of the game the players randomly draw a miracle: the hanging gardens of Babylon, the lighthouse of Alexandria, the mausoleum of Halicarnassus, the colossus of Rhodes, the temple of Zeus of Olympia, the temple of Artemis or Ephesus Gizah pyramids. Now you decide on a time of day, day or night, which contain different construction phases. If the construction phases are carried out with the required resources, victory points, resources or military strength are available. The miracles also produce a certain resource. The game then takes place in three age phases. Each phase corresponds to a deck of cards. The rounds of the ages play each other steadily.
First, cards are picked up, of which there are seven different types: raw materials (brown) and manufactured products (gray) are used to construct buildings, civil buildings (blue) and science buildings (green) are worth valuable victory points when combined correctly, commercial buildings (yellow) make this possible Negotiating with fellow players and gaining currency or resources, military buildings (red) enable victorious campaigns at the end of an age and guilds (purple) that only appear in the third age and lead to victory points through the right strategies.
Then three actions can be carried out in each round: The players can play a card if they can pay out the necessary resources. You can either build a building, complete a section of a world wonder or sell a card for currency. At the end of the round, a military phase is ushered in. The players compete against their two neighbors to the left and right of them. The one with the strongest military wins the test of strength and thus the victory marker of the age, which is worth additional victory points at the end of the game.
All this sounds little complex, almost simple. You have to have played 7 Wonders yourself to appreciate how intertwined the game elements are. From this and from the resulting complexity, this strategic board game draws its attraction. Players are urged to optimize their moves, closely monitor and react to opponents' actions. This is exactly what makes the new edition a lot easier: Thanks to the optical and design-related detail adjustments, you can keep an eye on what is happening in the game and draw your own conclusions from it. This is particularly noticeable in a larger group of players, where things quickly became confusing in the original version. An almost simple system clears up the chaos and at the same time puts the focus back on the game itself. What once felt exhausting with the version that could become a cramp is now "only" entertaining.
Unlike before, the new edition can only be played with three or more players and a maximum of seven. Previously, two to seven players could join a game of 7 Wonders. This is based on the unwritten requirement, which is exactly the right one when it comes to the fun factor: Instead of having to struggle through 7 Wonders in a duel, you should now enjoy the board game as it was actually intended: with at least three players, so that the complex mechanisms can actually unfold. If you want to play 7 Wonders for two, you can use the special duel variant "Duels".
The recommended playing age is at least ten years and is aimed more at clever kids in this age group. Behind 7 Wonders there are clever tricks and links that you become more aware of from game to game. As a rule of thumb, the new edition is also more fun with each new run, the teaching and learning effect is noticeable, but not overwhelmed.
A game of simultaneously played board and card game with collecting and assembly mechanics takes about 30 minutes to play. Revised extensions have also appeared on the market for the new edition of the basic version of 7 Wonders. So three of a total of seven of the add-ons have been revised: Leaders, Armada and Cities.
Infobox
Number of players: 3 to 7 players
Age: from 10 years
Playing time: 30 minutes
Difficulty: medium
Long-term motivation: high
Published by Repos Productions / Asmodee
Website: Link
Year of publication: 2020
Author: Antoine Bauza
Illustrations: Miguel Coimbra
Language: German
Cost: 33 Euro
Conclusion
Even if 7 Wonders is not a highly complex building game, it brings family and frequent players to one gaming table. The brief and understandable game instructions, the clear game aids and playing cards enable a quick introduction to the game. During the course of the game, the game offers its players many options for strategies that other players cannot understand so quickly due to parallel play. However, at the end of each of the three rounds, the game offers a competitive component. This mixture in particular offers a lot of potential for exciting games on the board. The fact that three to seven and no longer two to seven players are allowed to sit at the table is an advantage that players appreciate who have played 7 Wonders in pairs in the past in a non-ending game. What still applies: Hardly any waiting time.
The redesign compared to the first edition from 2010 offers some graphical improvements that make the game clearer and therefore easier to understand. The symbols of the resources, the military cards and the miracles have been significantly revised, such as the day and night side of the miracle tableaus. The game box and the back of the cards now appear classic and uniform thanks to their gold-plated and reduced design.
At the same time, the playing cards were balanced from a balancing point of view and made more contrasting and legible. People with poor eyesight can now play along without any problems thanks to a new system of symbols. Another positive aspect is the possibility of placing the playing cards one below the other next to the miracles, which have been significantly enlarged in the new edition, this saves a lot of space on the gaming table, and the abbreviated and more understandable rules of the game also offer reason to be happy. These now enable casual gamers to enjoy 7 Wonders without having to study the rules for hours. In summary, the new edition of the building game looks modern and tidy. The only downer: the new 7 Wonders is not compatible with the old extensions. It is not yet known whether further revised add-ons will appear in addition to Leaders, Armada and Cities. The strategic depth also unfolds without fireworks expansion, but the successive rebuilding of the brand should have a positive effect on long-term motivation - even if the replay value is already high enough for the basic game.
After our games with the new edition of 7 Wonders, we are impressed by the golden version of the game. First of all, the tidy design appeals to us. The differently designed day and night sides of the miracles are also impressive. Overall, we find the building game just as entertaining as the first edition, but clearer and this benefits the flow of the game. Is it worth buying a new one with the new edition of 7 Wonders? That depends largely on how much you like the classic. Anyone who brings 7 Wonders to the table regularly and in larger rounds of players will benefit from the adjustments, the greater overview and the completely redesigned, fresh look. Anyone who has found 7 Wonders to be rather solid so far will hardly change their mind despite the new edition. Players who get started with the idea ideally take advantage of 7 Wonders (2020) and get to know the complex strategic building game with all its new advantages.
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Repos Production | UNbox Now | 7 Wonders | Core Set |...* |
35,99 EUR |
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