Ground Floor (Second Edition)

I did not buy it when it first appeared: the price held me back, and the mixed reviews did not help at all. But when I finally got it to the table with five players, the picture was much warmer than I expected. We had a great time and everyone rated it above an 8. It is one of those big boxes that earns its place on the table when the group is ready for something heavy and full of decisions.

At its core, it is a heavy euro about managing a business. You gradually build up your company, hire staff, and use the available actions to develop its operations. Its flow makes you weigh what to do now, what to leave for later, and how much your business can withstand before it starts paying off.

Players develop their own operations, but nobody is simply sealed off behind a personal board. The available options and the pace at which the table moves force you to watch what the others can get done and what they are competing for. This is not the “little friendly game” you bring out for a relaxed end to the evening; it is a demanding euro that wants focus and rewards a group willing to dive into it together.

And yes, the price stings a little. I will not dress that up, especially since it was the main reason I passed on it in the first place. Still, after what I saw at the table, I think it is worth it for anyone looking for an honest heavy euro that shines with five players. The negative impressions that had been voiced about the first edition did not show up in my plays of the second.

Updated session

My opinion stayed consistent on my second encounter with the game. Ground Floor: Second Edition returned to the table as the same enjoyable “little monster” by Mr. Short: heavy, expensive, but honest and especially strong at five players. I did not see anything that justified the old reservations about the first edition.