Civilization: A New Dawn First Impressions
Civilization: A New Dawn is a board game based on the very popular video game.
Can you use your civ to your advantage?
Players act as the rulers of history’s most memorable empires. Over the course of the game, players will expand their domains, gain new technologies, and build many of humanity’s greatest wonders. In the end, one nation will rise above all others to leave its indelible mark on history.
Civilization: A New Dawn Game Overview
Quick Rules Summary
Players each have a civilisation, I was Sumeria, and will take actions to expand their civilisation.
These let you:
- build wonders that have abilities
- upgrade your ability cards, making them stronger
- place and reinforce control tokens to slow down your opponents and upgrade your cities
- trade with other players to gain abilities
- move armies to attack other players and game-controlled Barbarians
How do you win?
There are a number of random goals on the table. These can be to build a certain selection of wonders or have so many control tokens etc
When a player has completed enough of them they win the game
Main Mechanisms
Apart from all of the standard civilisation-style mechanisms, there is that action selection.
This is where the action cards are in order, the more to the right they are in the row the stronger they are. But, when you take an action it moves to the very left and the others move up. So you have to take everything but that action again to build up its power.
USP
It’s based on a very popular video game so the IP is the USP.
Theme
Again, the video game gave this everything it needed.
The civilisation’s special abilities make sense.
Setup
Things everywhere! There is a lot to do all over the table.
Components & Artwork
I mention this every time but FFG has a very consistent quality and style when it comes to game components. It’s never great, but rarely below quality.
I’ve never liked their cards though and this game is no different.
Ease of Teaching
It’s all open information which is a good start. Once you teach the 6 actions and explain how the goals work you’re most of the way there.
Similar Games
Any civ game of course. Monumental is my fave at the moment, that’s also card driven but less complex.
Another one I like and own is Tapestry which is again much more simple.
This is (obviously) the most civ game I’ve played.
Civilization: A New Dawn Review
Positives
I love the action selection mechanism. I didn’t know it was in this game so Ark Nova is now completely redundant for me.
With the action selection pretty quick, the game goes along at a decent pace.
The factions make for a decent amount of replayability.
The gameplay is fairly simple in relation to the amount of strategy required.
You can have a satisfying turn where you complete the requirements of a few goals at once, but…
Negatives
…you can feel so far behind and hopeless if someone gets a good start.
I can’t remember exactly what elements the expansion adds but I remember it’s a must-buy adding to the cost of the game.
Turn order sucks. My civ got a bonus for killing barbarians which spawn after the last player’s turn. As I was always player 4, there were never any left by the time it got to me.
Civilization: A New Dawn Summary
A very good game that’s well worth a go.
Jesta ThaRogue
