Agricola 15th Anniversary Big Box – Tale of Two Boxes

One of the very first ‘real’ board games I ever played (and purchased) after Catan was Agricola. I was mesmerized by the pieces, the cards, the boards, and more. It looked like a really great game, and as someone infatuated with farming video games, I thought a farming board game would be a lot of fun. Recently, Asmodee and Lookout Games launched a 15th Anniversary edition of the game in a big box – does it hit like it should? Let’s take a look.

This is not a review of the Agricola game! That will be available soon on GamesReviews.com.

There is a lot going on in Agricola, and a ton of expansions have been released, some of which add new content, and others that fix the original game and make it better. Everything outside of the Farmers of the Moor expansion is included in the box. That includes all the upgraded pieces that were originally released in the Agricola Goodies expansion box. That means this game comes with all the animal tokens (sheep, cows, and pigs) as well as the resource tokens (wood, stone, food, and more).

There have been some changes to the boards, which makes them more appealing to look at. Additional art was also used to give each farm board a unique look, based on the  seasons of Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter. Everything looks so much better than the original game I bought more than a decade ago, and to that end, I love this big box.

What I Really Liked

Improved art aside, this is the ideal way to get into the Agricola game. Sure, you can purchase the original game new or used for cheaper than this 15th Anniversary box, but here you are getting everything outside of the Farmers of the Moor expansion. That includes replacing the original square cubes in the original with shaped items. The Goodies box that was sold after the launch of the game is currently very hard to find, and without going this route, you might be stuck playing the game with just little cubes to represent resources and food.

I also like having this big box. Between the Goodies Expansion and my base game of Agricola, I could not fit all the items in my base game box. I’m a sucker for organization, so I purchased a clear fishing tackle box so I could sort all the pieces. While it did fit nicely in the box, it did slightly come above the lip, which meant the lid did not fit properly on the box. The insert in the original is great, perfectly separating all the pieces, and leaving space to spare. Nothing worse than sectioned containers where you need to stuff the items in. There is plenty of room with this expansion, and I love it.

When it comes to getting the game to the table, it is much easier now than it has ever been. Prior, I would have to unload bag after bag of pieces from the box, before sorting them on the table in piles. Now, I simply lift out the two sorting containers from the box and I’m basically ready to play. Cleaning up is equally as easy, and much less frustrating as well. Again, if you have NO access to Agricola but you want to own it, the slightly increased price over regular edition is worth it.

What I Don’t Like

I think perhaps a bit more thought could have been put into the Agricola 15th Anniversary Box. For everything it promises to be, it still comes up short in some key ways. The biggest disappointment is that Farmers of the Moor is not included in the box. This is a fantastic expansion, and I wouldn’t recommend playing without it. In fact, in terms of expansion I’ve played board games in the past, this is one of my favourites!

The other major disappointment is the insert that holds all the pieces. Out of the box, it does not hold it’s shape well. Unless you pick it up in a very precise way, the entire thing will shift and fall apart, spilling the pieces all over the table. I was able to easily piece it back together and superglued the joints so that it would never fall apart again. However, I do believe that the insert should have been designed better. The consumer shouldn’t have to glue the box together just so it will hold.

Is it Worth Getting?

Ultimately, the decision is going to come down to the purchaser. I think it’s probably a bit too expensive for what is in the box, but not so much that I wouldn’t drop the few extra bucks that I think it is worth. Not having Farmers of the Moore included in the box is unfortunate, but not a deal breaker.

This is a really great product, and if you don’t own the revised version of Agricola and just have the original, this is definitely worth the purchase. If you love Agricola, and want to have an impressive box on the shelf – and it is an impressive box – grab it up. I think long term it will be an investment you are happy with.