- Publisher : Sorry We Are French
- Designer(s) : Koota Yamada
- Artist(s) : Dommiy, David Sitbon, Koota Yamada
- Players : 2–4
- Playing time : 60–90 Min
- Weight BGG : 3.04
What's this?
In Iki, we have to live a whole year in Edo. The year is broken down into four seasons, with each month of the year being played (12 rounds), with a 13th round for the New Year.
You must recruit characters from different professions, make them work on the main street of Nihonbashi so that they gain experience until they retire.
The winner will be the one who has accumulated the most IKI, a philosophical concept from the Edo period considered an ideal of life.
How do you play?
The game takes place in several phases. The first consists of placing his ikizama on a track, determining the movement of our character on the main street to carry out actions at the shop where he will stop. This track also determines the turn order.
Then, in this order, you must choose between receiving income (4 coins) or recruiting an available character by paying its cost, then placing it in a free back room of a shop. The choice of room is crucial, because placing your character in the rooms bordering the board will be cheaper, but will expose them to the front lines during the fires which will occur three times in the game. The center rooms will be more expensive but will offer better fire protection. In addition, at each countdown, your characters will earn victory points based on their location in the shops
Then, the players advance their pawn onto the main street and carry out an action or a transaction with the shop of the square on which it is located, as well as with one of the characters present in one of the two back rooms, if there is one. The twist is that if you make a transaction with a character placed by another player, this character will gain experience and can even retire, which will have the advantage of generating income for its owner. Obviously, if you make a transaction with one of your characters, they will not gain experience.
Is it good?
Iki was a real favorite for me. As an avid fan of Japan, the theme of the game immediately captured my attention, and the hardware and visuals are simply magnificent. On the other hand, the game stands out for its elegance, thanks to simple mechanics which nevertheless offer multiple reflections and strategies.
The strategic aspect is rich, allowing players to explore various approaches. Whether by collecting different fish, jokes and tobacco pipes, by scoring the Iki (victory points) of constructed buildings, or by recruiting characters of various colors, the possibilities are varied.
In addition, the interaction between players is well thought out, adding a social dimension to the game. I warmly recommend this game to all Eurogame fans and Japan enthusiasts.
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Review Iki
Positives
- Elegant, fluid expert gameplay
- Several strategies
- The Japanese theme
- The material and the magnificent AD
- The interaction
Negatives
- The hazard of fires could be a source of frustration for some players.
Breakdown
- Components and illustrations 10.0
- Mechanics 9.0
- Theme 8.5
- Replayability 8.5
- Handling 9.5
- Interaction 8.5
- Originality 9.5
