Ankh: Gods of Egypt

Ankh: Gods of Egypt arrives in the familiar manner: large, handsome pieces and an Egypt spread across the table, patiently waiting for its gods to start being petty. But it is not merely a display piece. Beneath all that plastic sits a clean, agreeable game whose actions fit its theme rather nicely.

At heart, it is area control. You contest regions, establish your god’s influence, and keep checking which rival is about to claim the territory you had mentally labelled yours. The rules are coherent and sensible — a solid mark for the rulebook — so the game finds its rhythm without asking you to wrestle exceptions into submission.

The player interaction is exactly where it ought to be: the fight for space creates reversals, and nobody gets to play in private. Then the catch-up mechanism arrives. The two trailing gods merge into one, with enough combined force to threaten the leader. Two rivals become one problem. Can you get clear in time?

That device is fresh, clever, and keeps the final rounds tense, precisely when many area-control games have already made their winner obvious. A good piece of work: enjoyable, substantial beneath the presentation, and quietly excellent; it is simply rather expensive for what it delivers.