We (Spider, Cat, and Squid) sat down over a week to build our dream homes. Testing out this game, we ran through each time playing 12 rounds picking rooms and resources. We jockeyed back and forth for control of the first turn in order to find our perfect combos of rooms, decor, helpers, and tools.
What did you like about the game?
Spider: So I had a blast playing Dream Home with you. It was really accessible, but with a decent amount of depth. The knowledge that each game is relatively short really had me constantly reconsidering my initial strategies. I liked all of the unique art on each of the cards. Even if rooms were the same type their art was different. The little details like cats hiding or the airplanes on roofs were really great.
Cat: I really loved the dynamic of the game and the variety of what my "dream home" could look like. I loved the aspect of functionality bonuses and uniform roof bonus. I thought it was so funny when we would end up with mismatched roofs we quickly identify the neighbors hated us. I, also, felt the game was approachable. I enjoyed playing it with each of the kids. I was able to play through with our 11 year old, 7 year old, and our 5 year old. They quickly picked up the mechanics, but it was clear the the concept of functionality and bonuses lost to the fun of playrooms and decor.
Squid: I liked that you got to choose the rooms that you wanted and you could place them wherever you wanted within the rules. I liked that it was competitive and not co-op, so if I did the best I could get the most points and win.
What were your impressions of the game length and tactics?
Spider: I liked how quickly it flowed, it made each turn feel really fresh and exciting. I felt the game offered enough routes to victory to keep the tactics varied. It was really fun trying new approaches each game. For example, I would be planning to have a uniform roof, but then quickly realize it would be more beneficial to collect skylights instead.
Cat: I think the length of the game made it more fun more me. If I was having a crappy few rounds, I knew that my total time investment wasn't that long. I realized pretty early to try and roll with the punches. When we brought the game up to three players it forced me to adjust on the fly so many times, which was fun but I could see if the game were longer then I would have gotten more frustrated. I think the 12 round limit forces you to pick your cards wisely if you want to maximize your points. I tried a few different approaches and after about 7 play throughs I've settled into a more consistent strategy to optimize rooms, decor, and functionality. I've started paying more attention to the helper cards and using them throughout when possible to influence my future card choices.
Squid: My initial impressions were that the game would be really long and complicated, but it turned out to be a lot simpler and faster than I thought. I really liked how each type of room had a color scheme and that helped me find what I needed and plot things out on my home-board.
What would you change about the game? Spider: Honestly, there wasn't much I would change. I would change the color schemes of some of the cards because there were a couple of times I went for cards that looked by basement cards, but weren't. So, that threw off my approach a couple of times. I did feel that the cards were really small for my hands. I did understand why, though. If the cards were bigger, it would change the table presence of the game and that would skew the scale. I wouldn't actually change it because the home-boards would have to be gigantic to make everything work for up to 4 players. A couple of rules could be clarified a bit better. For example, if you pick more than four roof cards, can you count roof windows on the roof cards outside of the four uniform roof tiles? I felt we adjusted and made house rules that worked us.
Cat: I liked the play through, I thought the mechanics were easy to learn and teach to younger kids. I agree though, I think there were a few rules that could be explained a bit better. When I didn't understand or couldn't find reference on how to interpret something, I liked how to discussed and came up with a uniform approach. For example, I had bathrooms on either side of a sauna card. Can I apply the sauna bonus to both bathrooms and double my sauna points?
Squid: If I could change the similarity in the colors between some of the cards, like the game room card and the garage that would be good. It got confusing when trying to move quickly. I thought that there could be something on the decor cards that would make it really clear that they're not actual room cards.
Pros:
easy game mechanics
easy to teach younger kids
quick play throughs
satisfying to try new tactics
Cons:
card size (but can't really help that)
some similarly colored cards that got confused
some missing information on how to interpret some situations
Ratings:
Spider: 3
Cat: 3
Squid: 4
