Beta Testing

Thursday: after early-evening Timeline and The Mind (we crashed and burned on level 8) with the boys, Adam and Ian and I (Sam) regarded the alcove of joy deciding what to play. Adam suggested Caverna, which made Ian and I both nervous. Even his pointing to the box playtime (half an hour per player) didn't entirely convince us that this was 8.30 start-time fare. Plus of course we'd be fighting for second place from the get-go: far better to make Adam play a new game in the hope he wouldn't instantly master it and comprehensively beat us.

You can probably guess where this is going...

We settled on Beta Colony, the curiously-produced (looks very 1980s) puzzle in space. Round and round the central rondel we circled, choosing which pods to build where and when, as we collectively constructed the game's three colonies. We discovered that blue pods were water and pink pods were habitations. Adam asked why they had an apple on them. I said that's what they eat in space.

The game does offer a classic push/pull between points now or points later. Points now was the route Ian took, as he forewent the majority scoring in the colonies and focused on objectives at the end of the three cycles. He even (more than once!) sacrificed artefacts in order to use them as resources: this is like burning down the Acropolis to keep the chill off.

I started out trying to go big on colony majorities but kept getting distracted. Partly by Adam's ruthless efficiency, as he steered a clinical line between my route and Ian's: scoring enough points to keep him on Ian's tail, whilst also building a presence in one colony (the one I'd neglected) that bordered on over-population.

We all stood at various times: it was one of those games. Ian even put his foot on the chair like he was on the verge of dashing off on some great adventure.

I thought I had a devastating (or effective, at least) last couple of rounds planned out, when I'd get the statue that rewarded resources and then do some decent harbouring of said resources - but I hadn't realised we were actually on the final round already; and even a do-over suggested by Ian and Adam couldn't save my score. This is why they don't give astronauts Merlot:

Adam 86
Ian 71
Sam 64

The victor cycled off into the night whilst Ian and I nursed our wounds over a quick game of Railroad Ink. Turns out drunkenness isn't a route-planner thing either, as we both scored pretty low. I pipped Ian by the narrowest of margins!

Sam 41
Ian 40

A very nice night of puzzles. Thanks chaps!