Brass: Birmingham

All right, what a beast. Brass was already a favourite, but we just could not cope with the first edition: that map was one of the few ways a game could dampen your mood before the session had even begun. Roxley’s current production, by contrast, is a masterpiece, and it finally makes the whole thing look as imposing as it feels once it is spread across the table.

At its heart, it is a game played across the map, as you build and extend your presence through your network. The comparison to Ticket to Ride for Serious Children (tm) lands exactly there: the map is not merely decoration, but the place where your progress becomes visible and where your choices gain weight.

Players share that space and, precisely because everyone is spreading across the same map, one player’s moves matter to the others. This is not the leisurely ride of a little train-and-connect-lines game; it is the more serious, denser version of the pleasure of watching a network take shape in front of you while trying to fit your own plans into it.

I think we are all happy now, and Brass: Birmingham will be appearing on our table many times this year. There might even have been room for Whistle Stop with the expansion at the season’s first gathering, but the lamb and the fatigue of returning to everyday life cut our momentum short. Have a great season, everyone — Better Lucky than Good (tm).