Caltrops - Overboard! - Lost Ruins of Arnak

Forum Overview :: Overboard!

by Mischief Maker 03/27/2025, 6:44pm PDT

I don't know if this is the biggest boardgame I've ever played, or if the vertically aligned board just makes it look that way, but this game is currently neck-and-neck with Quest for El Dorado for the favorite game in my collection:

It's a little bit worker placement, and a little bit deckbuilding, and a little bit racing, but the sum is greater than its parts.

There's also a card-based "AI" opponent that allows for solo play, or it can be incorporated into 2-player games to make it feel like a full 4-player faceoff bringing the entire board into play.

It's also the prettiest boardgame I've ever played. The artwork and the plastic tokens are a delight to behold. Czech Games is fast becoming my favorite publisher except...

Like all Czech Games, the box is just a box, and the game comes packed with a roll of the cheapest, shittiest bags they could find. Lord of the Rings Duel's box, for comparison, is designed like a swiss watch, holding everything snugly in place. Plus the box is unusually wide, so it doesn't fit on my shelf properly with everything else. But maybe their packaging is shitty like a fox because they're currently selling an $80 replacement box with normal proportions and plastic organizer trays (and the upcoming fourth expansion included).

Sorry for ranting so much about the box. I really love this game but it's such a pain to set up and take down, even after I replaced the shitty bags with decent Ziploc equivalents.