My game group has an inside joke. Anytime Geoff comes over and sees hexes on the table, he’ll say, “Oh, we’re playing Archipelago?”

Rise & Fall is the first time I’ve been able to say, “No, but it was designed by the same guy.”

I’ll confess, though, that Christophe Boelinger’s latest effort has me befuddled. Part civilization game (but only a sliver), part area control game (a much bigger slice), there’s an undeniable elegance to the whole thing, almost a throwback quality in its absence of chance and willingness to turn players over to the mercy of its spikier edges. Which is maybe why I’m surprised to say that my favorite part of the endeavor is the setup.

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