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FINCA

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Authors:
Ralf zur Linde &
Wolfgang Sentker

Publisher:
HANS IM GLÜCK 2009

No. of Players:
2 - 4

EVALUATION

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G@mebox author Ralf Togler writes about the game:

There must have been a time when the Spanish island Majorca had not been visited by thousands of German, English and Swedish tourists day by day. Otherwise it cannot be explained why the Majorcan inhabitants should have had time enough to cultivate their fruits and bring their harvest to the villages by donkey cart themselves. Okay, maybe there is still the one or other farmer on the island. But I doubt whether they can satisfy the hotel tourists of today. Anyway, in the old times, the islanders already had their preferences as far as fruits were concerned. And today the players as Majorcan farmers have to deliver the fruits to those villages where our fruits are popular at the moment.

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Fruits can be taken from a big windmill playing area that is divided into 12 mill wings, each of which is standing for a specific fruit. In the game we move our 3 to 6 farmer figures (depending on the number of players) from one mill wing to another. The number of available movement steps of a farmer is determined by the number of farmers that stand on the wing where the figure is starting. When the farmer has moved fruits are collected corresponding to the mill wing on which the farmer has stopped his movement, and the harvest is calculated in almost the same manner as the movement, only that this time the number of farmers of the field the farmer ended on is the important one. So if there are three farmers of my own or of other players I get four fruits of the indicated kind (three farmers standing there plus the farmer I just moved there). Also, it is important to note that at two points on the windmill a parting line can be found. Crossing this line during movement gives the player a donkey cart that can be used to deliver fruits. Lucky ones can cross both lines in one turn and get two carts, too.

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As you can see, harvesting was quite easy in the old times. But what can we do with all the fruits? The answer has already be given. Of course, we use our donkey carts and deliver them. And this is not so easy as it seems to be. The reason for this is the special desire of the Majorcan villagers, because fruits can only be delivered to a village if its inhabitants have ordered exactly the kind of fruits which the player can provide. To make a delivery the player must discard one of his donkey carts (I suppose that the cart is always part of the order or maybe the donkeys were used elsewhere afterwards - anyway I canīt use it twice). With one cart I can deliver up two six fruits to as many villages I like. And, when the desired fruits are delivered in the required number, the player takes the top disk at the village which show the fruits I just delivered and also the victory points which the disk will be worth at end of the game. The next disk then shows the new favorite fruit of the villagers, and when the last disk of a village was taken a bonus is given to the player that delivered the villageīs favorite fruit.

To allow smooth gameplay and some timing effects, each player has four special actions he can use once in the game. This gives a little bit more possibility to play tactically, because the players have to find the right moment to use it for its best effect. So, should I really use my special action "one fruit less" for a disk that gives me four victory points in the end. Or can I wait, because no other player seems to have the right fruits in this moment, so I can provide the village in the next turn?

In the end, when all inhabitants are fed up with fruits, we add up the victory points and determine the real king of Majorca. However, the population now probably cannot stand fruit for a long time, and we are left to wonder what their next favorite food may be…

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Finca was a nominee for the Spiel des Jahres prize in 2009, and as it seems it was only barely beaten by Dominion. Although the game mechanics may sound rather straightforwards, the reason and justification for the deserved nomination is that the two authors have developed a light-weighted family game that works really well. It is fast because the available decisions are limited, but still the gameplay is rather involving and tense. A high pace is kept up for a long time, since in most cases it is only in the end game the one or the other player will take some time to find the right turn. Still, Finca also is a tactical game where re-evaluations of a player's strategy are necessary in every new turn, a fact which is mainly due to the windmill where our movements and the possible harvest mainly depend on the movements of our opponents. The game will please the occasional and the experienced players likewise - another qualification which was necessary to gain a nomination for the most famous German games awards. And finally, since the game will not get boring even if it is played several times in a row, an average playing time of 45 minutes just serves the desire of an immediate replay rather well.

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Looking for this game? Visit Funagain Games!


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Copyright © 2009 Frank Schulte-Kulkmann, Essen, Germany