Kingmaker the Second Review – Part 2: Components

In the first part of our Kingmaker The Second review, we took a look at some of the changes you’ll find from classic Kingmaker. In this second article, we are going to look at the components included in the box! Let’s take a look.

The changes to Kingmaker for The Second version of the game are very positive in my opinion, and make the game of Kingmaker move much quicker. This is huge for players who don’t want to spend 3-5 hours playing a long game of Kingmaker. While Part 1 of the review was very positive, this is a little less so. The components of Kingmaker (2023) make me feel like we are still playing a really old game. This might have been an aesthetic choice by the design team, but I think it was a poor one.

You can never escape the business of the Kingmaker board, and therefore, it should be no surprise that Kingmaker The Second has an equally busy and unappealing board. I actually don’t fault the development team here, as there is just so much that needs to be put on the board that it’s hard to escape the very practical nature of the board, in lue of beautiful presentation. That being said, that same excuse doesn’t extend to the cards or the tokens used in the game.

When I look at Kingmaker on the table I just feel like everything is very bland and boring to look at. The game itself is fantastic, and the strategy is super deep. As a game, it’s amazing. As something you want to look at, it’s a bit lackluster.

I generally want my games to look really good AND play really good. Unfortunately, I don’t think Kingmaker has a good aesthetic to it. The cards and tokens are just bland, and make me think that this 2023 version of the game was still being released back in the late 80s and early 90s.

Fortunately, Kingmaker is one game where the fun of playing trumps the look, so it’s still a game we would recommend to hardcore board game fans. Just don’t expect it to look good, because it just doesn’t.

With all that said, the quality of the components is still very good. Cardboard is thick and seems like it will hold up to frequent touching and use, and the cards are more than acceptable for this style of game. Linen finish is always nice, but we know that drives prices up exponentially. With so many cards in this game, they made the right choice of balancing affordability with quality.

There is so much more to unpack with Kingmaker The Second, so stay tuned to Part 3 of our review!