- Publisher(s) : Chilifox Games
- Designer(s) : Eilif Svensson, Åsmund Svensson
- Artist(s) : Jorge Tabanera Redondo
- Players : 1–6
- Playing time : 20–30 Min
- Weight BGG : 2.30
What's this?
Spectacular is a dice-management, tile-placement board game where each player takes charge of a nature park designed to protect endangered animal species. Your mission? Welcome new animals, provide them with suitable habitats, encourage their reproduction, and build observation towers to attract visitors.
How do you play?
The game is played in two rounds (8 turns in the first, 7 in the second). In each round, players play simultaneously following three steps:
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Choosing tiles and dice
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Each player selects one element (tile or die) from the common draw board and one element from their personal reserve.
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These items are placed in a preparation area for use.
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Build in your park
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The tiles (animals) are placed on the free hexagons of the personal board, regardless of adjacency. Some have tower pieces: combining 3 pieces of the same color allows you to build an observation tower.
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The dice represent the care given to the animals. They must be placed on tiles of the same color , with special rules:
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Only dice with a value of 1 or 2 can be placed on the “reproduction” tiles.
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The “star animal” tiles require a die of value 6.
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Constructed towers also allow you to place some 6-value dice.
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Worker tokens allow you to modify the value of the dice (+/-1 with the possibility of rolling from 6 to 1).
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Prepare for the next round
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Players complete their reserve if necessary and pass their draw board to the neighbor on the left.
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The scoring phases
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End of round 1 : we evaluate the value of the dice connected to the entrance of the park.
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End of game :
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Habitat score : total dice in an area of the same color multiplied by the number of dice placed on the reproduction tiles in that area.
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Observation towers : each tower scores the sum of the dice surrounding it.
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Animal diversity : The more different species you have, the more points you score.
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Possibly bonus points with Missions mode (specific objectives).
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A single-player mode is also offered, with additional constraints and a minimum score objective for victory.
Is it good?
Spectacular manages to combine dice management, tile placement, and simultaneous drafting in a game with a theme reminiscent of Ark Nova . The dual resource management between personal tiles and the circulating common pool is particularly ingenious.
Each turn creates tension with crucial choices: take a die or a new animal tile, knowing that it will be impossible to do everything or optimize everything. You will have to be careful not to neglect certain species, expand your habitats, place dice there and build your towers. In short, you will have a lot to manage each turn.
On the downside, we can note a somewhat heavy set-up , a theme that is ultimately quite superficial , a sometimes laborious scoring system that lacks clarity and a visually overloaded board .
In summary : Spectacular offers a satisfying strategic puzzle challenge . Despite a theme that isn’t always fully exploited and a sometimes confusing scoring system, it’s clearly aimed at fans of dice management, tile-laying, and drafting games , with plenty of depth for those who like to optimize.
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Spectacular Review
Positives
- A successful mix of dice management, tile placement and drafting
- Dual management (personal tiles + common circulating reserve) original
- Constant tension in the choices: dice or animals
- Strategic depth and strong optimization dimension
Negatives
- A bit cumbersome to set up
- Theme present but quite superficial
- Counting is sometimes laborious and unclear
- Visually loaded tray
