Rogue Review- Seven Wonders- Duel

If you enjoy Seven Wonders but only have two people, there are a set of rules for that. They work only so-so. But if you like some of the concepts of Seven Wonders but would prefer a completely different game for two players, then you should check out Seven Wonders Duel.

Gameplay- B+

The basic premise of the game remains the same as regular Seven Wonders. You build up a city over the course of three eras in an attempt to gain the most points at the end of the game. Each turn, you must pick a card to “build” using resources you have or purchasing ones you are lacking. There are the same seven basic types of cards. But this is where the similarities begin to diverge.

Instead of passing around a hand of cards, each player picking one to play each round, all the cards for each era are arrayed out on the table at the start. Each turn, one player picks a card to play. They can either build the card they select, use it to build a wonder, or sell it for money. If the card the play uncovers a card, that card can be chosen by their opponent next round. This can make the choice of card difficult. Do you pick up the better card, and reveal a new facedown cards for your opponent to choose from, or do you take the slightly weaker card now so that you get the choice next turn.

Wonders work quite a bit differently as well. Instead of each player working on a single wonder in increasingly difficult stages, each player is assigned four wonders at the start of the game. Only seven total can be built, so if your opponent builds their four first, you can only complete three of yours.

Completing a wonder triggers the effects listed on its card. Some award simply money, resources or points but most have some other more varied effects. You can gain free buildings from discarded cards or destroy one of your opponents already built cards. The most coveted effect is the ability to take a second turn. With that, you can build a wonder with a so-so card and uncover better cards which you can build on your second turn.

Finally, the major difference from Seven Wonders come in the form of victory conditions. Most games, it will come down to a tallying of points at the end of the third era, like the original. But not all games. There are two other paths to victory that can end a game early. If one person is able to move the military strength tracker all the way across the board, they have conquered their opponent and won the game. Alternatively, if one player is able to acquire all seven different science symbols, they have gained an insurmountable technical lead and win the game.

Both of these alternative victory conditions are hard to achieve. I have never played a game where someone has won via science. My son has beat my wife with military, but not sure how much that was her letting him win. It’s possible to get lucky with military in the third age if your opponent doesn’t pay close attention. Science you have to aim for from the beginning, as some of the seven symbols are only available in certain ages.

Despite their difficulty, that these win conditions exist forces players to carefully consider their build choices. You could take one card that is worth a bunch of points at the end of the game, but will it allow your opponent to swoop in with an alternative victory?

Production- B+

The cards and material are reasonable quality. They do tend to fray a little more than you’d expect from cards that don’t need to be shuffled but once a game. The tokens and boards hold up well though. The biggest kudos goes to the box design. It is small yet holds everything in an easy to put away and access spot. This aids in quick clean-up and set-up.

You lose the wonder board, replaced with smaller cards which is a loss, as those centered your city and had nice artwork. While the art is the same, it’s not as eye-catching on the smaller cards. However, you gain the military strength board, which is a nice visual component. Seeing the red combat token move toward you, or your opponent, is a great visual aid to keep in mind the different strengths.

Theme- A

The game feels similar to Seven Wonders. The artwork matches and you slowly fill your game area with cards that you “build.” In some ways, the name of the game is even more appropriate, since you are not working on a single wonder but rather, there can be a total of seven wonders built.  Which is true for the regular game as well, but only if you play with seven people, which rarely happens.

Expansions- B

There are three expansions for Seven Wonders Duel, plus a few promotional wonders. I’ve played only the Pantheon one. It adds some interesting mechanics, including a nice overlay that fits right on top of the core games combat board but generally we don’t use it. The core game is balanced quite well, is relatively simple that adding in the extra layers from the expansion just is more complex than we’re interested in when playing. But your mileage may vary.

Conclusion- A

Seven Wonders Duel is a great two player game. It does not take overly long to play, has enough complexity to be interesting while still being simple enough to learn quickly and play without brain drain.

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