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Jamaica: The Crew
Jamaica: The Crew
2017 | Nautical, Pirates, Racing
In the expansion review series, we take a look at a game expansion to discuss whether it is a necessary purchase/addition to one’s collection.

This breakdown is for the expansion for the popular pirate game Jamaica called The Crew. It is sold in a box in similar size to Jamaica’s main box, just a bit thinner.


This expansion will add a bevvy of new pirate characters to the game that can be recruited once a player pays the full amount at a port town (if you are unaware of the Jamaica base rules, read our review here). The red bottle of rum token in The Crew’s box acts as the main recruitment pawn by allowing any pirate adjacent to it to be recruited. The bottle may also be moved by paying one gold doubloon per space moved. Once recruited the pirate will command a space on one of the recruiting player’s ship’s hold and be treated like any other resource. Each recruited crewperson, however, will also furnish the player with special abilities and bonus points at the end of the game (more bonus points for crossing the finish line, less otherwise).
Should all owners of Jamaica run out and also grab The Crew in order to enjoy Jamaica? Maybe. Jamaica may evolve into a game that can become “samey” with many plays. Adding The Crew will inject a whole new aspect of play and various levels of new strategies to be applied. Having another resource to manage during the game may become more stressful, but those same resources, this time in the form of crewpersons, provide bonuses that range from helpful to immediate victory after special conditions are met.

Official recommendation: I love the base game of Jamaica. I never really thought I would NEED an expansion for it. In fact, I only picked this up because it was on sale and I saw many players enjoyed it. When I added it to my game my eyes were opened, and Jamaica became a new beast altogether for us. I say that if your games of Jamaica are becoming less and less enjoyable, then you should definitely grab a copy of The Crew. My only gripe is the box art. Why is it a book now instead of continuing with the treasure chest theme? It’s brown and has the Jamaica logo on it, but that’s where the similarities end. I wish they looked better together, that’s all I am saying.
  
Horizon Zero Dawn
Horizon Zero Dawn
2017 | Action/Adventure
Amazing
I am so madly in love with this game! The world is gorgeous, the combat is fantastic and the machines are some of the coolest I've ever seen. I live playing as Aloy and exploring the world of the Horizon game. The questing isn't too difficult and the graphics are gorgeous. I admit I've gotten frustrated in some areas, but aside from that, I adore Horizon and I would love to see another expansion or a second game!
  
Dominion: Prosperity
Dominion: Prosperity
2010 | Card Game, Fantasy, Medieval
Platinum and Plantations are excellent additions (2 more)
Action cards are simple
Slightly extends the length of the game.
The Best Dominion Expansion
Prosperity is by far the best of the Dominion expansions, and once you have it, you will not play without it again. The addition of platinum and plantations extends the game just enough to make investing in actions worth it.

A lot of the new expansions focus on adding too much complexity. Prosperity keeps things simple.
  
Ticket to Ride
Ticket to Ride
2004 | Transportation, Travel
simple (2 more)
elegant
charming
Perfect Gateway Game
take that has never been more civilized. you are trying to build your routes before someone else does. And don't tip your hand, but hurry to get it done. This will always be an all time top 10 game for me and I never grow out of it. with tons of different expansion and maps to play with it's always a great choice with non-gamers.

I cannot recommend this game highly enough.
  
Catan
Catan
1995 | Economic, Territory Building
Easy to play (1 more)
Different every time
A bit of setting up (especially with some of the the expansions) (0 more)
This is one of my all time favourite games and something we play a lot of as a family. I love introducing this game to new people and have yet to find a friend who hasn’t enjoyed it. There are so many expansion packs available so once you’ve mastered the basics, there are so many variations to try.
  
Show all 3 comments.
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Lisa Padley (1090 KP) Jul 31, 2018

Currently explorers and pirates, but so far I’ve only had chance to play that and traders and barbarians

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The Marinated Meeple (1848 KP) Aug 1, 2018

I play this game on the ipad much more than I do in real life. But even then it's every once in a while.

Fantastic Beasts: Crimes of Grindelwald (2018)
Fantastic Beasts: Crimes of Grindelwald (2018)
2018 | Adventure, Family, Fantasy, Mystery
Cast (2 more)
SFX
Story (Some parts)
Imagination (0 more)
A good, but underwhelming sequel.
A good film, an expansion to the Potterverse, providing more background the beloved wizarding world of Harry Potter.

While the first film in this series was good, this film contained more nods to characters from the Harry Potter saga, which added absolutely nothing to the story, not so far anyway.

A good film, with some impressive acting from Johnny Depp, though not overly memorable overall.
  
Zodiac Starforce: by the Power of Astra
Zodiac Starforce: by the Power of Astra
Paulina Ganucheau, Kevin Panetta | 2016 | Fiction & Poetry
6
6.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
I really wanted to like this more than what ended up happening. With its Jem-like coloration, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic girl power theme, plus good versus evil, it was right up my alley. The main problem was that it needed fleshed out. The characters, mostly Emma/Gemini, the relationships, and the overall plot should have had more expansion. It felt like slightly more than an outline. Major events happened in the past that were alluded to, which made me wish this had been an origin story instead. The artwork is wonderful and I have no problem with that. I did like the three team members (Kim is awesome!) who were featured more and would like to know more about them, plus more expansion of Emma and Lily. I will read the next one and hope that the series improves from here. Plus, anyone who throws out a Mystery Science Theater 3000 reference has my admiration.

<img src="http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d6/satilanna/GR/zodiacstarforcemst3k_zpszzjattll.jpg">;

Check out more illustrations from Paulina Ganucheau: https://paulinaganucheau.tumblr.com/
  
Super Fight
Super Fight
2014 | Entertainment, Humor, Party Game
Silliness meets creative thinking (2 more)
Many expansions
Can be played with anyone who knows how to argue
A riot for all ages!
Super fight is pretty hilarious, actually. The basic premise is that you draw cards to create your fighter, and then you argue about whose fighter would win in a battle! The winner is picked by group consensus.

This is a game that can be played with basically anyone who can argue. I have played against some ridiculously hilarious children, amd some highly creative adults as well. There's no wrong answer... I mean, when you're trying to decide between a giant fire breathing out haha and a robot with lazers for eyes, the only way to win is to get creative!

It should also be said that there are multiple expansion packs for this game, each one a different color. For example, I believe th Pink expansion is anime-related, while the yellow is books/ book characters/ abilities.

I will have this available at most parties, and hope to see others playing it too!
  
Dominion: Adventures
Dominion: Adventures
2015 | Card Game, Fantasy, Medieval
Hard mode of normal Dominion (0 more)
Complicated (0 more)
The Pro Expansion of Dominion
Adventures adds more complication than most of the Dominion expansions. It focuses heavily on end-game cards, and features some of the most powerful cards in Dominion. It is not what I would recommend for new Dominion players, but is great for experienced players.

It also features the first experience-based cards! You purchase weak, initial cards that rank up every time they are played, and eventually end up being overpowered.
  
Disney Villainous
Disney Villainous
2018 | Entertainment
Gameplay is fairly straightforward and I like the "take that!" ability that you can play against other players. (0 more)
A bit of a learning curve for newer gamers (0 more)
A Disney game that's actually well done
I love the theme of this game as I have always been a Disney fan.

I bought the expansion the moment I saw it.

If you like Disney, you'll like this game, but be warned it's a bit heavier than you might expect, probably too difficult for most kids.