Page 25 - spielbox_0717_EN

play deliberately to get the extra points that often come with them.
I Collapsing and scoring Finally, the players’ attention turns to collapsed organs. A collapse can be caused by mutation cards, but it can also happen if there are too many viruses in an organ. The self-healing processes in the body help to fight off the pathogens – however, these are at the same time rewarded for their activities: They must
that continuously change the majorities. Besides their responsibility for activating and moving the viruses, the mutation cards facilitate the viruses’ fight against each other and allow you to temporarily secure your own viruses. Especially inter- esting are the additional mutation cards that enable movement and the repulsion due to magnetic forces or cause a col- lapse even if an organ has been infected by not so many viruses. And there are par- ticularly exciting mutations, such as “Greedy” or “Guzzler,” that have the
areas, you can still be
successful in less profit-
able zones; in most
cases, this comes with
the advantage that the research status rises much more slowly.
The Portuguese company Mesa- boardgames did many things right. Miha- jlo Dimitrievski (Raiders of the North Sea) contributed fantastic graphics; this applies especially to the virus cards and event cards. The short rules on the game board are very well done, too. The sequence of the phases explained on the left side contains all information neces- sary, so that there are almost no ques- tions left. If there are, they might be ques- tions regarding the blood circulation – but the indication with arrows should make this clear. The possibilities of action that the mutation cards provide are addi- tionally explained on the player boards. All this is exemplary and real fun.
If you like majority games and, for vari- ety, want to get away from Corleone’s empire or the Vikings, you will be served in a refreshingly new way with this unusual setting of body organs. Viral is definitely no Fast Food, as one of the event cards might suggest, but a real
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Bu
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The
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legant way for
ls
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vering of the int collectors.
point-potent zones.
A surprise often comes toward the finish when the absorption abil- ity develops its full strength; at this stage, it is most
advantageous to go last. At that point, majorities can still change fundamentally. The changing of the starting player brings justice only in the two- or three-player game, since here, each player can go last twice (with two, because there is a dummy in play). In the four- or five-player game, though, this unfortunately doesn’t quite work out; but this doesn’t take much away from the playing fun. If you want to stay away from the fiercely contested
h
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le
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e
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utm
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an
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ea
ad
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s perfectly inter- twined thematically and always leads to a sus- penseful fight for the majorities in the
Every
yt
th
hi
in
ng
g i
Number 1 game.
Wieland Herold/sbw
Title: Publisher: Designer:
Artist: Players: Age: Duration: Price:
Viral
MESAboardgames
Gil d’Orey, Antonio Sousa Lara
Mihajlo Dimitrievski
2–5
about10+ years
about 60–90 minutes about 45 €
leave the organ, but the player with the most viruses gets two viral points
fo
f
or
r them and each other player
re
epresented there, one point. Viral develops its special
Reviewer Playing appeal
Wieland Herold . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Stefan Ducksch*. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Matthias Hardel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
a
ppeal through the card phases
ap
* Fresh theme, great graphic design.
23
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