Publisher: The Op Games
Designers: Dan Halstad & Tristan Halstad
Artist: Vincent Dutrait
1-4 Players
Playtime: 30-45 Minutes
The ocean is pretty, and, surprisingly, we haven’t seen more board games capitalize on just how pretty the ocean is. After all, all of the colors and life are perfect for a board game. Tabletop Game Review: AQUA: Biodiversity in the Oceans is here to show that the ocean is perfect for a tile placement board game, which isn’t all that surprising when you think about it. Let’s make an ecosystem within 45 minutes!
A Brief How To Play
During the game, players take turns in a series of rounds, with each round consisting of a few phases. In the first phase, a player selects a tile from the market and adds it to their reef, ensuring at least one side matches a previously placed tile. This grows their coral reef and can potentially form habitats or reefs, attracting small and large marine animals. Small animals are attracted to habitats formed by hexagonal arrangements of coral, while large animals are drawn to specific configurations of small animals. These small animals all need to be unique for a large animal to be placed on top, so players need to be aware of the shape they are forming as well as the color tiles that they are using at the bottom of the formation.
The market refreshes every turn but always has the same amount of tiles present as the number of players. In a mechanism similar to Kingdomino, players draft the tile they want most, and the last player to choose on the previous turn will get to choose first during the next one. A player that chooses earlier can even opt to pass, making them last on the current turn, but setting them up for what could potentially be the tile they desire on the next turn.
Scoring in AQUA involves tallying points from large and small marine animals attracted to your reef, as well as points from the development of habitats and reefs. There are also specific scoring conditions that were established during setup that players will want to shoot for as well, and these are decided from a large pool of condition tiles that are shuffled and dealt.
The game ends after 17 rounds, and players calculate their scores based on the biodiversity they’ve achieved. The player with the highest score.
Pacing and Interaction
Anyone who has played a game like Calico or Kingdomino will have a decent idea of how AQUA‘s pacing moves. Turns are swift, and players don’t have to make too many decisions on any given turn, though each decision comes with tons of weight. Sure, they only have 2-4 tiles to choose from (Depending on the player count), but where should those tiles go? What is the best location to maximize a reef or habitat? Should players focus on getting all of the biodiversity they can, or should they go all in on one of the objective tiles? Turns are designed to be short, but players who are prone to action paralysis won’t have an easy time while playing AQUA. Still, that isn’t the game’s fault, and most groups will find that turns in AQUA are swift, thus making the entire game feel more action-packed since players are always flipping and placing new tiles to make their oceans look beautiful quickly.
The speedy turns lead to a speedy game, and unlike some of AQUA‘s peers, a game can quickly end. We had a few games with 3 players end within 30 minutes. There is already a lot of depth here and that is almost made deeper by how short the experience is. Players will constantly chase scores and work to be more efficient in future playthroughs. Just when you think you know what you are doing, the game ends, and the player who committed to a certain strategy early tends to win. Finding the optimal strategy fast is what makes AQUA so engaging, and it only makes the pacing feel more frantic.
Unsurprisingly, AQUA isn’t an interactive game. The most interaction lies in simply having your favorite tile taken by somebody else. What could be a peaceful tile-placing game is a harrowing experience as the player going last prays that their opponents don’t take the tile that they need. Anyone who has played Calico will know exactly what I am talking about. It’s calming until it’s not, and then the table gets loud as everyone blames everyone else for their ecosystem not being as pretty as it should be.
Replay Value
AQUA is a highly replayable game with tons to offer especially for perfectionists. Not only do the tile decks add enough variation on their own, but the various scoring tiles, animals, and objectives make the possibilities feel infinite. No one game plays quite the same if you are shooting for the best score possible. The beginner game on its own, with its consistent six scoring conditions, can sustain at least 5 plays, but once players utilize all of the tiles, is when the game feels as deep as an ocean.
There is also a solo mode that has tons to offer on its own. Like most solo board games, it mostly comes down to chasing high scores over many playthroughs, but AQUA also offers a few extra achievements and conditions to chase for those who like a good challenge.
Theme and Components
AQUA focuses on biodiversity in the ocean, and it certainly makes the most of that theme. Vincent Dutrait’s art is gorgeous, giving players colorful tiles full of reefs, fish, and other sea creatures. Each tile looks nice on its own, but players get a full little ecosystem when they are done playing, and players will be rewarded when they create something beautiful. The components themselves are of great quality too. The tiles are made with a thick cardboard that feels like it will last.
There is an organizer in the box that makes setup and cleanup a breeze, which not only keeps the components tidy and in good condition but also encourages players to take AQUA off the shelf more. It’s a game that looks good and feels good.
AQUA Is Great For Fans Of…
Those who love tile placement games may think that they already have enough of these games on their shelves, but they would be wrong. AQUA is great for fans of the mechanism, and the brisk pacing with layering elements gives AQUA a unique place in the genre. It plays fast and has enough variety to entertain those who prefer to play Calico or Cascadia often.
AQUA
AQUA is one of the best tile-placement games in the market, earning its spot with other genre greats.
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Pacing and Interaction
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Theme and Components
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Replay Value
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Enjoyment
