Rivages: Review

Rivages: Review

Information:

Mechanics: Drafting, Flip and Write, Multi-Use Cards 

Age: 8+

Player Count: 1 - 5 Players

Time to Play:  20 - 30 Minutes 
Game Designer: Joachim Thôme

Game Artist: Xavier Gueniffey Durin

Publisher: Pandasaurus Games, Catch Up Games

Year Published: 2024

Disclaimer: A review copy for the game was provided by the publisher and Lets Play Games.

Introduction:

Rivages has players venturing through forgotten islands to rediscover lost knowledge. During the game, players are drafting exploration cards and filling multiple islands in an attempt to score points through the completion of quests and missions. This is a game that is brimming with combos and variability as each island has unique challenges.

Game Anatomy:

Islands:

Islands are filled with different terrains, including those that cannot be crossed and white area that can be marked with any terrain type. On each island are two boats, one where the player chooses to start here and one that, once reached, will have the player finish with this island to start fresh on a new island. 

At the bottom of each island are exploration missions that award points or loot tokens for certain groups of one type of terrain being marked off. There is also one quest section per island. These will either have certain symbols to be collected in order, or a certain amount crossed off. Some quests will require a fort (black terrain that is unmarkable) being surrounded on the island. The awards can vary from points, loot tokens, and even telescopes that award bonus wild movement.

Exploration Cards:

Explorations are the main driving force behind each turn. Every exploration card contains three rows with numerous terrains or icons on each. These icons will determine what the player can cross off on their map. 

There are also several end-game exploration cards with a purple back that will trigger the end of the game once revealed and will have only one row of icons.

Tree of Wisdom:

Each player will have a Tree of Wisdom board that will award bonuses and points as they reach certain parts of the tree. Every time a player marks off/uses the symbol shown on the top right of either the map, an exploration card, or a loot token, they can mark off one location adjacent to a previous one and gain any bonus on that space.

Tokens:

In the game, there are scroll tokens that will either be worth one or five points. This is shown by the value on the underside of the token, along with an assigned purple or orange colour, respectively.

There are also loot tokens that can be earned throughout the game. They are either worth one point at the end of the game, or can give a bonus action to be used once at any point in the game. Some loot tokens will have a marked-off region of a certain colour. This can be used to mark an entire region of a certain terrain adjacent to a previously marked-off space.

Setup:

Game Setup:

- Remove any exploration cards that do not match the player count, as shown on the back of the exploration cards. Then shuffle the cards and separately place the shuffled end-game exploration cards in a stack underneath.

- Place all loot tokens in the blue bag and place the scroll tokens into a pile in the centre of the table.

- Place the Great Explorer tile in the centre of the table on the side that matches the player count. This reminds players that there is a bonus score for most explored islands. 

Player Setup:

- Shuffle the island cards and deal each player one face-up island. 

- Deal a tree of Wisdom to each player. The players will agree to use the A or B side for this. 

- Deal each player two exploration cards.

- Each player gains a whiteboard marker.

How to Play:

On a turn, all players will simultaneously cross off one top unmarked row on one of the two exploration cards they have. This row will allow the player to then cross off the matching terrains on their island, mark off a section on the tree, gain loot, or cross off any terrain on their island using a telescope. The row can be resolved in any order to allow the player to successfully navigate the island. Once completed, every player will pass their two cards to the player on their left. Each card with no available rows will have the marker cleaned off, discarded, and a new card drawn to replace it.

Once an end-game exploration card is at the top of the exploration pile, there will be one more turn and then the game will end. Players will gain bonus scrolls based on whomever has explored the most islands, and in larger games, the second most explored player will also gain bonus scrolls. The player with the most scrolls has gained the most knowledge and is therefore the winner.

Final Thoughts:

- Easy-to-play rules with a good range of replayability.
- Straightforward choice with the exploration cards but a multitude of choice on how you use that row.
- Fast drafting.

Drafting is a mechanism that I always enjoy in roll/flip and writes, and Rivages uses this mechanism to create a fast, exciting, combo-filled exploration game. Each turn players are deciding one of two options on the exploration cards but in this choice, there are multiple ways to explore the islands, gaining either scrolls or bonuses either immediately or for later use. Each island contains a little puzzle and aesthetic that can have players running through the island quickly, or staying to push their luck and efficiency to discover more of the island. There is another game in the Pandasaurus catalogue that Rivages reminds me of; Silver and Gold. The similarities to this game include fast decision making each turn, the exploration theme, and the game weight. Rivages is different enough to fit in your flip and write collection while having a good level of friendliness to new gamers, and is therefore an easy recommendation for me to make.

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