The first game we played when I started playing games over lunch at my new job was Pandemic. Pandemic is a game I have had for quite a while, and I also have the expansion. There really isn't much for me to say about Pandemic, but it behoves me to write about because not only does it fit with going chronologically through the game sessions I have had in the past few months, but it is also my favorite game. I'm not crazy in that enjoyment of the game either. My coworkers who played with me were instantly addicated and wanted to play it whenever we had the chance. We did not, though, because I can get sick of Pandemic just like any game. I have learned to pace myself and not play Pandemic too much in a short span. Otherwise, I get sick of it and won't want to play it for months even when others want to play it. Even when I do get sick of it, though, I still come back to it. It is simply a great game. Accordingly, it gets to my table more than any other game.
So, I guess if it behoves me to write about Pandemic because it is my favorite, then it in turn behoves me to explain why Pandemic is such a great game. You should know that in Pandemic the player is on a team of specialists that are trying to cure 4 diseases before they decimate mankind. You take turns, do actions, and play cards to travel the world and hold-off/cure disease and discover cures. I now will jump right into the game's aspects; so, if you'd like some background concerning what the game is about and what some of the rules are and etc., you can consult boardgamegeek's info or Hiew's posts on Pandemic or The Dice Tower's video review of the game.
First, it is cooperative. Cooperative games are great because you rarely if ever get mad at each other. It is the game that is mean to you and potentially beats you, not other players. Of course, one must keep in mind that this is depend on the personalities of the players. If one person is too dominant and the other players don't speak up, the game can quickly become a solitaire game with the one player vicariously performing all the actions. Likewise, even when their isn't a domineering player, the game can get boring if even one player is apathetic or too quiet. In the former case, the other players may as well not play, leaving it to just the one player. In the later case, the quiet/apathetic player may as well not play, leaving the game for the others.
Part of the reason that the cooperative nature works so well is that the roles are well defined. The roles each have special abilities, and that is where the key lies. The special abilities make you change your startegy based upon them. Moreover, it is fun to see how you can roll your abilities (& thus your turn) into your friends' roles. Using your abilities in tandem is where your team's true power lies, and when such cooperation is done well, the resulting success is fun to watch and be a part of.
Another element of greatness is the balance in this game. Some roles seem more powerful than others, but none are over-powered or too weak. Once players have played a few times, they start to learn that none of the roles are useless and all have their place and their use. The number of actions per turn versus the amount that the disease spreads each turn is well balanced as well. One loses the game via the spread of disease either by running out of cubes or having too many outbreaks. I would say I have about a 45% win rate; that gives you an idea of that balance between a player's ability to do actions and the ability of the disease to wreak havoc. The other nod towards balance that the designer implemented is the ability to ramp the difficulty up and down. There are epidemic cards in the player card deck. When they come up, they increase the rate that disease spreads each turn and they make it more likely to have outbreaks. So, the game rules give the option to have 4, 5, or 6 epidemics in the game session. 4 is easy, and 6 is hard. So, depending how good your strategic mind is and depending on how much you like to lose, you can shift the balance of actions vs. disease spread one way or the other. That ability to throttle difficult is fantastic; their is nothing more frustrating than a game that is too hard and nothing more dull than a game that is too easy.
The strategy and replay-ability are another superior aspect to Pandemic. They go hand-in-hand. The cities impacted by disease change every game. Likewise, the team's strategy must evolve and change as the cities impacted change and grow. Developing the strategy (such as player 1 will do x actions so that player 2 can do y actions) is just plain fun. Since that strategy does change every game; it is an important part of what makes Pandemic excellent.
Finally, one cannot forget about the theme. The theme of racing against time to cure disease is very well done. It feels like a ingrained, required part of the game like as if one can't have the game Pandemic without the theme (even though technically that is not true). The theme works very well with the mechanics of the game and gives a dose of the tension such specialists might feel in real life. I love it.
If you haven't played Pandemic, you have to try it. If you have the right group of people (no one too timid or too dominant), you might find yourself so addicted that you play it until disgusted (or at least bored) at the sight of it. Then you'll come back to it because it is just too good. Then, hopefully in enough moderation to not kill your enjoyment, you will play it again and again and again and again and...
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