Review
Origins: First Builders
Origins: First Builders is considerably more pleasant than its reputation suggests, though it never becomes an easy recommendation. It is a lighter dice-placement euro with satisfying building chains and a few unusually sharp strategic edges.
- Published
- 2021
- Designer
- Adam Kwapiński
- Publisher
- Board&Dice, BoardM Factory, CMON Global Limited
- Players
- 1–4
- Playing time
- 120 min
Origins: First Builders arrived with a poor reputation already attached, and the sunk feeling of a preorder that could no longer be undone. At three players, however, it did not earn its supposed burial; I enjoyed the session, even if this is not the conventional euro one might be expecting.
The core is fairly direct: dice go down as workers, resources come back, and those resources become buildings in your own city. Complete sets of four buildings trigger their combinations, which is where the design finds its rhythm. The resemblance to Dominations is hard to miss: its hand, wearing lighter overalls.
At three players, however, it did not earn its supposed burial; I enjoyed the session, even if this is not the conventional euro one might be expecting.
TheTrainSpotter
The interesting decision is how quickly to convert that foundation into points, since the scoring system permits some perfectly legitimate nastiness. This is not a quiet engine-building exercise; the fast advisor rush and castle abuse are extreme lines of play, pushing it beyond the familiar, carefully moderated euro space.
I would not bury it as others have, but I would not recommend it without reservation either: this is unequivocally a try-before-you-buy game.
I would not bury it as others have, but I would not recommend it without reservation either: this is unequivocally a try-before-you-buy game.
TheTrainSpotter
Source: BoardGameGeek
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