Cascadia: Rolling Rivers

Why Cascadia: Rolling Rivers.

Rolling Rivers takes the Pacific Northwest wildlife of Cascadia and turns it into a roll-and-write that plays in under half an hour. Each round the dice are rolled for everyone, and you pick which results to draw onto your own sheet, placing animals into habitats and trying to line up the scoring patterns without painting yourself into a corner. Because every player uses the same dice there is no waiting for your turn, so four people finish about as fast as two. The choices are small and satisfying rather than agonising, which makes it a good game for a cabin table or a couple who want something after dinner that does not become a project. The solo mode is a real mode, not an afterthought, with its own targets to beat. It carries over the thing people like about Cascadia: it is peaceful, the art is lovely, and nobody is attacking anybody. What it does not carry over is the tile-laying spatial puzzle, so if that was your favourite part of the original, this is a different pleasure rather than a smaller version of the same one. Players who already own Cascadia get a lighter, quicker cousin they can take on a trip. Players who do not get a gentle introduction to roll-and-writes that they can teach to a grandparent or an eight year old in a few minutes.

No paid placement. No sponsorship. We chose it on merit. The Amazon link funds the lights - if you'd rather buy direct from a local game store, find one via BoardGameGeek.