Game Info
Year
2025
Players
1-4
Age
10+
Playtime
60 min
Collection
Your Tier
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Description
Day of the Dead card-placement game arranging portraits of relatives on altar boards fulfilling their wishes
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All mentions
Browse transcript mentions, sentiments, pros/cons, mechanics, topics, quotes, and references.
Total mentions: 6
This page: 6
Sentiment:
pos 4 ·
mix 0 ·
neu 0 ·
neg 1
Showing 1–6 of 6
Video qC88i4vY2UA
The Dice Tower Analysis at 6:02 sentiment: negative
video_pk 96786 · mention_pk 265945
Click to watch at 6:02 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
negative
Pros
none
Cons
- It felt too restrictive.
Thematic elements
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Card placement — Placing cards in the middle of the table where the scoring depends on adjacency.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- Hey everybody, I'm Tom Vassal.
- This is look back, a series where I go through uh games that I reviewed last year during this time frame and 5 years ago, 10 years ago, and 20 years ago.
- And I tell you what I think about the games now, if I think about them at all.
- Twinkle Twinkle from All Play Games.
- Men Nefer. This is from Firman Million who did Petoku and the very modern Covenant.
- Infiltrators. This is a deduction style game, and you are working together trying to figure out these infiltrators at the playing the cards at the right time.
- And those are the games that I reviewed 1, 5, 10, and 20 years ago.
- Thanks so much for watching.
- Hey. Thanks for watching another video here on the Dice Tower.
- If you really like what we're doing here at the Dice Tower, then there are different ways to support the Dice Tower.
- Until next time though, I'm Tom Vasel, and I hope you enjoyed this video.
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video C2Wv9d3HxNQ
Board Gaming Ramblings Discussion at 10:29 sentiment: positive
video_pk 85358 · mention_pk 218526
Click to watch at 10:29 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- Really fun
- More brain burning than anticipated
Cons
none
Thematic elements
Comparison games
- Ko
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Puzzle — Described as a special puzzle.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- My biggest let down is the rules for uh Transgalactica.
- I think it's fun that a game can be the biggest disappointment and number one in the same month.
- It's an old school Euro. Like it's high interaction, very low on the rules overhead, but a lot of interesting choices.
- I still am unbeaten in Shipyard, which I think I I just have to stop playing it now because at some time I will not I will not win.
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video XNp6_Syfjwc
The Dice Tower Top List at 22:58 sentiment: positive
video_pk 81632 · mention_pk 203648
Click to watch at 22:58 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
Mixed to Positive (for one speaker), Negative (for others)
Pros
- Great theme
- Looks great
- Great return on investment (few rounds, high engagement)
- Engaging and thoughtful throughout
- More control than Calico
- Gorgeous production
Cons
- Actively disliked by some speakers
- Not for everybody
- Requires being in the mood for a thinky, puzzly game
- Can potentially betray you
Thematic elements
- Appears to be related to a day of the dead or offering theme based on 'Ofrenda'.
Comparison games
- Calico
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Hand Management — Involves managing a hand of cards.
- Set Collection — Implied by managing cards to achieve goals in a puzzly way.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- Um I like this one a lot. It's a very It's It's It's a relaxing game. You You got a few minutes, you don't know what to do while you're waiting for such and such thing to come around, shuffle up the deck and start playing.
- I will say I absolutely hate the cover. That is one of my least favorite covers from last year, period.
- This game manages to feel cozy to me because of the theme, but very not cozy in the gameplay. It's very thinky.
- And no matter who I play it with, we always find ourselves getting into the theme and talking about the family like, 'Oh, my mom's going to go play play um Whist over here with my, you know, sister.' Or whatever.
- I think if either side holds back, especially the heroes because you're you're you've been kind of conditioned to do that um by playing other games. If you hold back, you get steamrolled and I think this game got a lot of pushback for that.
- I just the Mancala thing, I wish more games did it. And this one does it in such a very satisfying way.
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video -2Qg0TK8ZMw
Our Family Plays Games Review at 1:00:21 sentiment: positive
video_pk 81527 · mention_pk 202963
Click to watch at 1:00:21 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- beautiful artwork
- educational about Dia de los Muertos
- honors culture
Cons
none
Thematic elements
- altar building with portraits
- Dia de los Muertos
- cultural celebration
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- family interaction — meeting relatives' preferences and placing near or away from loved ones
- pattern building (drafting / open drafting) — drafting and arranging family portraits with candles and marigolds
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- This is all we got.
- ENDORSED.
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video b7cmA-QaWVU
Rules Teach at 0:00 sentiment: positive
video_pk 69063 · mention_pk 165383
Click to watch at 0:00 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- Super duper smart
- Very fast playing
- Drop dead gorgeous, bright, vibrant, and colorful
- Wonderful to look at
- Incredibly simple, elegant rules
- Challenging and fun puzzle
- Crunchy and puzzly
- High positive player interaction through drafting
- Satisfying sense of pride at the end with a colorful ofrenda
- Strategic depth with many considerations per move
- Appeals to both gamers and non-gamers as a gateway game
- Unique and characterful art on every piece
- Less cutthroat than Azul, more focused on personal puzzle
- Fast play time (12 rounds, 15-20 minutes)
Cons
- Solo mode uses a score chart, which could be more engaging
- The optional variant (public goals) can take the game to '11' and might be overwhelming for some
- Compromises are necessary, and not all cards will score
Thematic elements
- Honoring departed family members by creating a beautiful display (ofrenda)
- Mexico, Day of the Dead
Comparison games
- Azul
- Small World
- Forenza
- Neotopia
- Century Spice Road
- Calico
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Card Drafting — Players draft cards from a central display, with costs increasing for cards further down the line. This mechanism is compared to games like Small World and Century Spice Road.
- Player Powers (Implied) — Different family members have unique preferences for what they want to be next to or not next to, acting as individual objectives or constraints.
- Resource Management — Players manage 'marigolds' (currency) to draft cards and candles, with strategic decisions about spending and saving being crucial.
- Scoring objectives — Points are scored based on adjacent cards, whether they are 'lit' or 'unlit', and fulfilling specific conditions for cards and candles.
- Set Collection — Players aim to collect specific types of family members (e.g., green, orange) and desires (e.g., sweets, fruit) to satisfy placement conditions and score points.
- solo mode — A solo mode is included where a die roll determines the AI's choices, simulating opponent actions.
- Tile Placement — Players place drafted cards onto their personal 'ofrenda' board, considering adjacency requirements and potential scoring opportunities.
- Variable Goals (Variant) — An optional variant introduces public goals that players race to achieve for additional points, increasing complexity and strategic considerations.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- Azul lovers, rejoice. Your next um super passionate obsession is here.
- I practically melted down.
- This is the one I'm going to play guaranteed.
- The rules for this game, excuse me, could not be simpler or cleaner or more elegant.
- It's the complexity of trying to make sure all every single one of these cards is an objective you are giving yourself and it's an objective based on proximity to other objectives that are their own unique requirements and puzzling that out.
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video Y12UkIK2hn0
kovray Rules Teach at 0:00
video_pk 60302 · mention_pk 164469
Click to watch at 0:00 · YouTube ↗
Pros
none
Cons
none
Thematic elements
none
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
Mechanics unknown.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- In Aphrenda, you'll be building an Aphrena, a colorful, inviting altar with offerings to the dead for Dia de Muertos, which is a Mexican festival of the dead.
- The game will end after each player has taken 12 turns, at which point the player with the most points wins.
- Looking for an extra challenge? Well, you can try the common goals variant.
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Transcript Navigation
Showing 1–6 of 6