{"id":269230,"date":"2023-02-03T08:00:50","date_gmt":"2023-02-03T14:00:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.meeplemountain.com\/?post_type=articles&#038;p=269230"},"modified":"2023-02-02T23:44:12","modified_gmt":"2023-02-03T05:44:12","slug":"first-take-friday-february-03-2023","status":"publish","type":"articles","link":"https:\/\/www.meeplemountain.com\/articles\/first-take-friday-february-03-2023\/","title":{"rendered":"First Take Friday &#8211; Holotype: Mesozoic North America, \u2026and then, we held hands, Solar Sphere, Puzzle Dungeon, Savannah Park"},"content":{"rendered":"\n            <div class=\"alignright\" style=\"text-align: center;\">\n    \n            <a\n        href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/dp\/B0CSX11NDC?tag=meeplmount-20&linkCode=ogi&th=1&psc=1\"\n        rel=\"sponsored noopener\"\n        target=\"_blank\">\n        <img decoding=\"async\"\n        data-src=\"https:\/\/m.media-amazon.com\/images\/I\/412E9bbMF6L._SL300_.jpg\"\n        width=\"200\"\n        alt=\"Brexwerx Games: Holotype: Mesozoic North America - Base Game, Strategy Board Game, Worker Placement, Paleontologist Dino Game, Ages 14+, 2-5 Players\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" class=\"lazyload\" \/><noscript><img decoding=\"async\"\n        src=\"https:\/\/m.media-amazon.com\/images\/I\/412E9bbMF6L._SL300_.jpg\"\n        width=\"200\"\n        alt=\"Brexwerx Games: Holotype: Mesozoic North America - Base Game, Strategy Board Game, Worker Placement, Paleontologist Dino Game, Ages 14+, 2-5 Players\" \/><\/noscript>\n            <\/a>\n    \n            <p style=\"margin-top: 10px; text-align: center;\">\n            <a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/dp\/B0CSX11NDC?tag=meeplmount-20&linkCode=ogi&th=1&psc=1\" rel=\"sponsored noopener\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"external-link amazon-button\">\n                Purchase from Amazon\n            <\/a>\n        <\/p>\n    \n            <\/div>\n    \n\n<h2><i>Holotype: Mesozoic North America <\/i>&#8211; David Wood<\/h2>\n<p><i>Holotype<\/i> is a worker placement game about digging up fossils, conducting research, and publishing papers on new dinosaur species.\u00a0 You have three different types of workers \u2013 a Paleontologist, a Grad Student, and a Field Assistant \u2013 that you will send out to conduct one of five different actions. The type of worker used affects the strength of the action, and whether you can bump another worker, even your own.\u00a0 Each player is trying to score victory points by publishing papers on new species and by completing both their own secret Personal objective and Global objectives.<\/p>\n<p><i>Holotype<\/i> is an ideal family game.\u00a0 It\u2019s easy enough for teens to learn, yet still fun for us adults.\u00a0 It can accommodate up to five players, with a minimum of downtime between player turns.\u00a0 That means it can be played in two hours or less even at 4 or 5 players.\u00a0 The components are beautiful, especially the specimen cards.\u00a0 The number of cards, and the fact that there are five different card types used in the game, means there is a lot of variability from game-to-game.<\/p>\n<p>I usually play wargames and complex Euros but backed this game on Kickstarter because I love dinosaurs.\u00a0 I\u2019m glad I did.<\/p>\n<p><b>Ease of entry?<\/b>:<br \/>\n\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605 &#8211; No sweat<br \/>\n<b>Would I play it again?<\/b>:<br \/>\n\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605 &#8211; Will definitely play it again<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.meeplemountain.com\/authors\/dave-wood\/\">Read more articles from David Wood.<\/a><\/p>\n\n            <div class=\"alignright\" style=\"text-align: center;\">\n    \n            <a\n        href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/dp\/B017LJIHWU?tag=meeplmount-20&linkCode=ogi&th=1&psc=1\"\n        rel=\"sponsored noopener\"\n        target=\"_blank\">\n        <img decoding=\"async\"\n        data-src=\"https:\/\/m.media-amazon.com\/images\/I\/41nujsuZ-zL._SL300_.jpg\"\n        width=\"200\"\n        alt=\"Funforge and Then We Held Hands Board Game\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" class=\"lazyload\" \/><noscript><img decoding=\"async\"\n        src=\"https:\/\/m.media-amazon.com\/images\/I\/41nujsuZ-zL._SL300_.jpg\"\n        width=\"200\"\n        alt=\"Funforge and Then We Held Hands Board Game\" \/><\/noscript>\n            <\/a>\n    \n            <p style=\"margin-top: 10px; text-align: center;\">\n            <a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/dp\/B017LJIHWU?tag=meeplmount-20&linkCode=ogi&th=1&psc=1\" rel=\"sponsored noopener\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"external-link amazon-button\">\n                Purchase from Amazon\n            <\/a>\n        <\/p>\n    \n            <\/div>\n    \n\n<h2><i>\u2026and then, we held hands<\/i> &#8211; Bob Pazehoski, Jr.<\/h2>\n<p>I know it\u2019s unwise to chase an abstract game because of its theme, but I couldn\u2019t resist. The premise of <i>\u2026and then, we held hands <\/i>is a couple working out their issues by navigating an emotional field to a place of unity. Come on, that\u2019s fascinating. Two players move their tokens through three concentric rings, landing on spaces by playing cards from either their own visible hand or their partner\u2019s. The goal is to unlock and reach the center. Oh, and it\u2019s silent.<\/p>\n<p>My wife and I had an interesting time with our first play. We talked a little bit (don\u2019t worry, the rules said that\u2019s OK) just to clarify rules and hammer out details, but we honored the code as much as possible. I really appreciate the way David Chircop created a system that requires full attention from both parties. I also love that the system requires invading another person\u2019s \u201cemotional stores\u201d to reach the target. There is a fair amount of tension as the deck dwindles and the various cards are needed by all. Flippant behavior equals disaster here. I\u2019m not at all disappointed. There are variants to increase the difficulty. I\u2019m sure we\u2019ll try those too before long. Maybe not the best game ever, but definitely a curious creation.<\/p>\n<p><b>Ease of entry?<\/b>:<br \/>\n\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605 &#8211; No sweat<br \/>\n<b>Would I play it again?<\/b>:<br \/>\n\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605 &#8211; Will definitely play it again<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.meeplemountain.com\/authors\/bob-pazehoski-jr\/\">Read more articles from Bob Pazehoski, Jr.<\/a><\/p>\n    <!-- error code: TL -->\n\n<h2><i>Solar Sphere <\/i>&#8211; David McMillan<\/h2>\n<p><i>Solar Sphere<\/i> is a spacefaring game about subcontractors, working for a megacorporation to build a Dyson sphere around a sun in order to harness its energy for humanity\u2019s needs. It\u2019s a dice rolling, dice placement game with a smattering of set collection, resource collection, and resource management thrown into the mix. In the game players roll their personal dice and then take turns placing those dice onto the game\u2019s various locations to carry out their associated actions: collecting resources, hiring crew members, fighting off the rebels, adding to the sphere, and manipulating your drones (the currency spent to do many of the actions in the game). The game ends after six rounds and the player with the most points wins.<\/p>\n<p>First off: this is a beautifully produced game and the artwork is fantastic. If I\u2019d backed this on Kickstarter and received it as a final product, I would be most pleased. The only thing that I think could have used a bit of polish is the rule book. There were a lot of questions on my first playthrough and, even though the answers were there, it wasn\u2019t always easy to find them. That detracted from the experience somewhat, but it was still enjoyable overall.<\/p>\n<p>Watch out for my upcoming review.<\/p>\n<p><b>Ease of entry?<\/b>:<br \/>\n\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2606 &#8211; The odd bump or two<br \/>\n<b>Would I play it again?<\/b>:<br \/>\n\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605 &#8211; Will definitely play it again<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.meeplemountain.com\/authors\/david-mcmillan\/\">Read more articles from David McMillan.<\/a><\/p>\n    <!-- error code: TL -->\n\n<h2><i>Puzzle Dungeon <\/i>&#8211; Tom Franklin<\/h2>\n<p>A solitaire card game where you\u2019re playing as one of 25 double-sided heroes (for a total of 50) with the goal of defeating a set number and type of monsters in the dungeon. That dungeon is\u00a0 laid out in four columns, with five monsters each.<\/p>\n<p>To defeat these monsters, you\u2019ll work with an opening hand of six cards along with another six laid out left-to-right for your Arsenal. Monsters each have the icons of the suits needed to defeat them. However, you can only use the right-most card in the Arsenal and you don\u2019t get to automatically replenish your hand of cards. And, of course, you don\u2019t have enough cards to defeat every monster.<\/p>\n<p><i>Puzzle Dungeon<\/i> is a small, portable game that doesn\u2019t take up a lot of room on a table. It\u2019s fun, challenging, and you\u2019ll rarely ever just play one game at a sitting.<\/p>\n<p><b>Ease of entry?<\/b>:<br \/>\n\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2606 &#8211; The odd bump or two<br \/>\n<b>Would I play it again?<\/b>:<br \/>\n\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605 &#8211; Will definitely play it again<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.meeplemountain.com\/authors\/tom-franklin\/\">Read more articles from Tom Franklin.<\/a><\/p>\n\n            <div class=\"alignright\" style=\"text-align: center;\">\n    \n            <a\n        href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/dp\/B08ZCF3D27?tag=meeplmount-20&linkCode=ogi&th=1&psc=1\"\n        rel=\"sponsored noopener\"\n        target=\"_blank\">\n        <img decoding=\"async\"\n        data-src=\"https:\/\/m.media-amazon.com\/images\/I\/514QOZ7f5BL._SL300_.jpg\"\n        width=\"200\"\n        alt=\"Capstone Games: Savannah Park, Strategy Board Game, Simple Gameplay, Highly Interactive Strategies, 1 to 4 Players, 20 to 40 Minute Play Time, Ages 8 and Up\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" class=\"lazyload\" \/><noscript><img decoding=\"async\"\n        src=\"https:\/\/m.media-amazon.com\/images\/I\/514QOZ7f5BL._SL300_.jpg\"\n        width=\"200\"\n        alt=\"Capstone Games: Savannah Park, Strategy Board Game, Simple Gameplay, Highly Interactive Strategies, 1 to 4 Players, 20 to 40 Minute Play Time, Ages 8 and Up\" \/><\/noscript>\n            <\/a>\n    \n            <p style=\"margin-top: 10px; text-align: center;\">\n            <a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/dp\/B08ZCF3D27?tag=meeplmount-20&linkCode=ogi&th=1&psc=1\" rel=\"sponsored noopener\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"external-link amazon-button\">\n                Purchase from Amazon\n            <\/a>\n        <\/p>\n    \n            <\/div>\n    \n\n<h2><i>Savannah Park <\/i>&#8211; Justin Bell<\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.meeplemountain.com\/articles\/first-take-friday-october-28-2022\/\">After giving <i>Caldera Park<\/i> a spin recently<\/a>, it was fun to go back in time (all the way to 2021) to try <i>Savannah Park<\/i>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.meeplemountain.com\/publishers\/capstone-games\/\">Capstone<\/a>\u2019s more family-friendly Kiesling and Kramer design with bush fires, tiles, somewhat wonky artwork, and meerkats.<\/p>\n<p>I liked <i>Caldera Park<\/i> a bit more than <i>Savannah Park<\/i>, but <i>Savannah Park<\/i> gets the edge as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.meeplemountain.com\/top-six\/top-6-big-people-games-you-can-play-with-your-kids\/\">a game my kids could pick up<\/a> and ideally sort through the animal area-majority requirements tied to scoring. The rules are so straightforward: starting with a grid of 33 tiles (and a few empty spaces), take turns moving one tile called out by the current player to an empty space somewhere else on the grid. Keep single tile animals away from single bush fires, and try to keep your grass and tree spots empty to score extra end-game points. The difference between the two games? I would only play one of these regularly with adults.<\/p>\n<p><b>Ease of entry?<\/b>:<br \/>\n\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605 &#8211; No sweat<br \/>\n<b>Would I play it again?<\/b>:<br \/>\n\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2606\u2606 &#8211; Wouldn\u2019t suggest it, but would happily play it<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.meeplemountain.com\/authors\/justin-bell\/\">Read more articles from Justin Bell<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In First Take Fridays we offer hot takes on games that are new to us. This week we have<br \/>\nHolotype: Mesozoic North America, \u2026and then, we held hands, Solar Sphere, Puzzle Dungeon, and Savannah Park.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":61,"featured_media":269356,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"MSN_Categories":"Uncategorized","MSN_Publish_Option":false,"MSN_Is_Local_News":false,"MSN_Is_AIAC_Included":"Empty","MSN_Location":"[]","MSN_Add_Feature_Img_On_Top_Of_Post":false,"MSN_Has_Custom_Author":false,"MSN_Custom_Author":"","MSN_Has_Custom_Canonical_Url":false,"MSN_Custom_Canonical_Url":"","footnotes":""},"tags":[1866],"coauthors":[3711,6420,892,2466,6089],"class_list":["post-269230","articles","type-articles","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-article","tag-first-take-fridays"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.8 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>First Take Friday - Holotype: Mesozoic North America, \u2026and then, we held hands, Solar Sphere, Puzzle Dungeon, Savannah Park &#8212; Meeple Mountain<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"In First Take Fridays we offer hot takes on games that are new to us. 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