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Description
On the warmest nights of the year, the otherwise quiet waters are filled with shimmering lights as the dormant noctiluca awaken. Renowned for their restorative properties, the noctiluca are desired by many healers. Only the most skilled divers can navigate the waters to collect these mysterious glowing creatures and deliver them to healers across the land. Can you catch the embers of the sea?
In Noctiluca, 104 colorful translucent dice fill the pool on the game board to represent the different glowing noctiluca. Players take turns diving into the water from the edges of the shore to collect the noctiluca dice from the board and keep them safely in jars until they can deliver them to healers. After two rounds, players compare points from their successful deliveries and the player with the most points wins.
Thanks to a double-sided game board, Noctiluca also includes a solo mode in which one player must rescue the noctiluca from the tempest.
—description from the publisher
Year Published
2019
Transcript Analysis
Browse transcript mentions, sentiments, pros/cons, mechanics, topics, quotes, and references.
Total mentions: 2
This page: 2
Sentiment:
pos 1 ·
mix 1 ·
neu 0 ·
neg 0
Showing 1–2 of 2
Video X9fDmusQn60
Noctiluca game_review at 0:00 sentiment: mixed
video_pk 8149 · mention_pk 23924
Click to watch at 0:00
Overall sentiment (raw)
mixed
Pros
- appealing visual design with bright, colorful dice and accessible components
- tight two-round structure that reduces first-mover advantage
- deep puzzle feel that rewards careful planning and predictive thinking
- flexible enough for quick play sessions while offering meaningful decisions
Cons
- can bog down with analysis paralysis as players study dice options
- pace can drag with slower players or complex choices
- some players may find the theme abstract or the mechanics opaque at first
- the box omits an included dice bag, prompting a minor extra purchase or workaround
Thematic elements
- bioluminescent microfauna as a resource for scoring and hidden objectives
- Underwater environment with divers collecting bioluminescent Noctiluca in a two-round, color-dice driven puzzle
- abstract puzzle-driven planning with hidden objectives and moment-to-moment tension
Comparison games
- Sagrada
- Raiders of the North Sea
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- action selection tension — players decide on a line and a direction to maximize their own dice while thwarting opponents
- board with 12 spaces and pawn placement — twelve spaces around the board determine where pawns can be placed to collect dice
- Dice drafting and placement — players place pawns to select a line of dice, placing dice onto jars with color constraints
- dice economy and replacement — used dice go to a box lid; new dice are drawn from face-up piles to refill jars
- round-based structure with two rounds — game lasts two rounds; after first round, player order reverses for second round to balance advantage
- set collection and jar filling — collect sets of color dice to fill jars and score based on completed jars and secret objectives
- top-victory-point tokens from piles — when a jar fills, the top VP token from the matching pile is taken
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- Noctiluca is deceptive: breezy at first, but a brain-melting puzzle.
- the brain burning action selection
- analysis paralysis can slow the game down
- two rounds with reversed order helps balance advantage
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video VueKws8G6uE
Before You Play playthrough at 0:05 sentiment: positive
video_pk 7185 · mention_pk 21268
Click to watch at 0:05
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- Beautiful components and table presence; very appealing visuals.
- Fast, approachable filler with two-player appeal and clear rules.
- Accessible theme with tactile, color-rich components and clear scoring pathways.
Cons
- Color differentiation issues for colorblind players; symbols help but may still be tricky.
- In higher player counts, AP and waiting can creep in; some may find it less dynamic with more players.
- Certain long games can feel repetitious; the box’s 30-minute claim can stretch in practice depending on players.
Thematic elements
- Underwater bioluminescent creatures as a light, abstract engine for scoring.
- Underwater exploration where players collect bioluminescent noctiluca dice to fulfill orders and score through jar-based tokens.
- Light, playful, abstract with a charming, thematic veneer.
Comparison games
- Architects of the West Kingdom
- Raiders of the North Sea
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Dice drafting / collection in straight lines — On a turn, a player places a pawn along a line and collects all dice in that line with the same number, regardless of color.
- Jars and color-based scoring tokens — Collected dice are placed into color-specific jars; completing a jar yields a scoring token whose value depends on the token stack.
- Majority scoring and private noctiluca objective — End-game scoring combines token majorities by color, jar completions, private noctiluca color bonuses, and leftover dice penalties.
- Secret objective noctiluca — Each player has a private color noctiluca that contributes score per die of that color in completed jars.
- Two-round structure with passing dice — Turns proceed with dice passing to the left; after the first round, play direction and turn order shift, ending after two rounds.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- Beautiful components and table presence; very appealing visuals.
- Fast, approachable filler with two-player appeal and clear rules.
- In higher player counts, AP and waiting can creep in; some may find it less dynamic with more players.
- Color differentiation issues for colorblind players; symbols help but may still be tricky.
- The heart of the game besides the whole calling the number thing is in the scoring.
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Transcript Navigation
Showing 1–2 of 2