Cascadero

I bought Cascadero as a bundle with its little sibling, Cascadito, which essentially takes the same idea into roll-and-write form. Having played several games of both, I have come down in favour of the bigger sibling—especially with the farmers variant included. It has that compact, clean feeling of a game that does not demand the whole evening, yet works very nicely as the first or second choice of a game night.

At its core, it is a route-building game with cubes, with the familiar economy and restraint I expect from Knizia. I build my routes and try to make the best possible use of the options opening up in front of me, without the game ballooning into a big, heavy euro. The feel is tighter and more immediate: I look at the map, place, connect, and try to get value from my position.

Interaction mostly comes through the shared board, and through how everyone else's routes and choices affect the space that remains available. I did not find it a game of major confrontations or dramatic blows; rather, it keeps me occupied reading the situation and not giving away the good opportunities too easily. It reminded me somewhat of the old Kingdom Builder, with that gentle but pleasantly thinky process of squeezing my decisions onto the map.

It is not exceptional, nor is it a new obsession for me. Still, Cascadero has the virtue of being able to fit almost any group and see the table now and then. It is an honest, light companion for comfortably playing one or two games in a row—and, for me, the better choice over Cascadito.