Age of Wonders: Planetfall: The Board Game Review

Video games adapted into board games are not always the best, but over the past year we’ve been enjoying a long list of great board games inspired and built upon the video game IPs. Age of Wonders: Planetfall is a fantastic 4x Strategy Game on PC and console, but it’s also a fantastic card game on your kitchen table! We took this game for a spin ahead of its release in North America, and had a blast! Here are our early impressions of the game!

Each player can select their own starting character, and one of the first things I love about this game is that there are so many different characters to choose from. Because they start with different stats and desires, playing each character feels fresh, even if the turn-to-turn gameplay is very similar each round.

The strategy you employ depends on the character you have, and I really enjoy that. It keeps things competitive between players, while also making sure that not all players are necessarily looking to do the exact same thing. The little bit of overlaps keeps the game from getting stale, but also keeps players engaged by making sure they can achieve the things they want.

Players will explore 7 different planets before the end game triggers, and each planet will provide different opportunities and experiences. Cards for each planet are laid out in a tableau for all players to see. On each planet, players will be ‘going’ to two cards and will collect those cards into their hands in an attempt to score empire points. Empire points are key to winning, because it signifies your level of control over the other factions.

Each card will have a number of numbers on it that seem daunting at first, but once you figure out how they all work, it’s actually really great. You will be balancing your different tracks on your player board (experience, strength, etc) in order to move along on other tracks. Yes, in general, it’s a bit of resource management! Ultimately, however, you just want those Empire Points!

With a nice variety of cards on each planet, and them getting put out into different rows each game, there are some really fascinating choices to make, and they all feel really good. Things feel especially amazing when you get something that just works with your character. Everyone will get these moments throughout the game, but it was one of the more immersive things for me. “Oh look, my max experienced faction just made use of experience I normally couldn’t gain. That feels amazing!”

On top of that, there are different card types, including enemy, landmarks, and science cards. Landmarks are great for end game scoring if you can get multiple of the same type, enemy cards provide nice bonuses if you have the strength to defeat them, and science cards provide ongoing bonuses to your faction that might help you earn more points down the line. What you choose will partially depend on the bonus your faction gets, and partially will be determined by what resources you currently have access to.

The real reason I love Age of Wonders: Planetfall so much is how easy it is to teach. It has so many great concepts that work in other games, but does it all in a very simple, yet engaging way. While not said as a determent, I think this is a great gateway game that teaches set collection and resource management very well. And it does it all in a fantastic package that not only plays great, but looks great as well.

I have played Age of Wonders: Planetfall in the past on PC, so I understand how the game works. I think the design team has done a great job of recreating that feeling in board game form. If you want an easy to play, but extremely fun game, then this is definitely for you. Even for veteran board game fans, this is a great game that is easy to table, easy to play, but provides a great experience each and every time.

Trailer