Takahe’s Solo Den: Upcoming Releases for Solo Gamers

There are literally thousands of board games being released annually so it can be really daunting finding out the perfect one for you. And this is especially true for a solo gamer – many games are now being released with solo modes included, however, a majority of them have these solo variants only tucked in to “tick the box”.

Thankfully, being a solo gamer, I know my board gaming “stuff” quite well and because of that, I also have a solid list of upcoming games I am very excited about. Which ones are on top of my most-wanted list at the moment? Keep reading and you’ll find out. Just a quick note – the following games are not Kickstarter projects so they will be (fingers crossed!) hitting retailers as soon as they are released.

Tiletum

Let’s start with two upcoming released from Board & Dice publisher, the team responsible for many medium-to-heavy euros with fantastic solo modes designed by David Turczi (Teotihuacan, Tekhenu, Tawantinsuyu…) – Tiletum and Terracotta Army. Not much has been seen or heard about medium-heavy euro Tiletum except for the design of the box (pictured at the top of this article) and a promo shot of game board and components which you can see below. However, from the official publisher-provided description, this game (set in the golden age of the Renaissance) it will use dice for both resources and actions.

So, if you’ve played Teotihuacan or Tekhenu, you should be getting some idea of how things will work in this game. The promo shot hints of Tekhenu-style player boards and rondel action selection, both of which were implemented in the Egyptian-themed euro almost to perfection. I am only hoping the solo mode will be on par with Tekhenu/Teotihuacan, not an unfinished mess that is in Tabannusi – no official confirmation from David Turczi regarding his involvement with this game as of yet. The game is expected to be fully revealed at October’s Essen Spiel and released to retail shortly after.

UPDATE: David Turczi confirmed that he is indeed responsible for the solo mode included in this game - happy days!

Tiletum main board and components

Terracotta Army

Second game from Board & Dice publisher that is going to be released this year is Terracotta Army. There has been multiple playthroughs published recently, with tons of materials to read-through and go through so my hopes are that this game hits retailers earlier than Tiletum.

The solo mode is done by David Turczi so expect to have a smart and very engaging solo bot to compete with. In terms of mechanisms, this game is a worker placement euro with a strong spatial puzzle component represented by a variety of different terracotta army soldiers that players place on the board, creating formations that score different amounts of victory points. Overall, this one will fit the family of “T” games very nicely and can already be pre-ordered from certain overseas retailers.   

Atiwa

Next stop is a new medium euro from Mr. Uwe Rosenberg – Atiwa is an interesting looking mashup of several different Uwe-style mechanisms: worker placement, resource production, husbandry… pretty much all the proven and tested stuff we all love in his games. Atiwa is inspired by the Atiwa Range region of south-eastern Ghana in Africa and as such, provides a refreshing new thematic background for what can be considered a dry, by the books euro.

The solo mode will be a good old-fashioned beat your own score one with gameplay mechanism similar to one seen in Nusfjord (shadow workers blocking action spots you have taken the previous round). The game will be playable at October’s Essen Spiel and should hit the stores shortly after. If you’re a fan of Rosenberg games (the same way I am!), you should definitely put this one on your radar. You can find the rulebook HERE.

Skymines

Another popular German board games designer – Alexander Pfister – has several games coming up this year. Besides a stand-alone spin-off to Great Western Trail called GWT: Argentina (release is scheduled after the Essen Spiel), the second big release from this guy is Skymines.

Skymines is essentially a massively upgraded and rebranded Mombasa (which had a controversial theme hurting its popularity) – a heavy euro game utilising all the good stuff this designer is known for, mainly a well-balanced action selection, resources and economy wrangling, and complex card play. The game will come with a double-sided board offering 4 different levels of complexity (chained together as a 4-scenario mini-campaign) and will also include a solo bot, just like most of his recent releases did. The game is scheduled for a September release, and you can already find some play throughs of it online. Since I am big fan of Mr. Pfisters euros and absolutely love all the solos in his games, this one is probably on top of my most wanted list.

Discordia

Another game on this list without a dedicated solo bot is Discordia. Discordia is essentially a city building / civilisation euro with a strong emphasis on tile and worker placement. You place city tiles to expand your town and you deploy workers onto these tiles to “produce” a corresponding resource which can be used to develop your city. The victory condition in this game is quite interesting – you are basically trying to “employ” all your workers in your reserve and whoever does that first is the winner.

Even by just reading the rulebook (HERE), I am struggling to figure out how this game will play – but that’s what makes this one so intriguing to me! Components look amazing and the theme is well executed; just an interesting euro with some new and refreshing ideas. No exact release date has been set but the game will probably be released around the Essen Spiel.

Viticulture World

Officially releasing in just a few days (22nd of July to be precise), this expansion adds a cooperative twist to this universally loved competitive euro classic. With 7 asymmetric, differently themed scenarios, this expansion is promising to deliver a variety very few expansions managed to do so.

The reason why I am so excited about this expansion is how the solo bot operates in coop – Burattino (solo bot’s name) still gets in your way (by blocking worker spots) but at the same time, offers you some neat options in terms of cooperative play. Some early adopters of this expansion claim the bot to be a fantastic addition to the game and elevating this expansion to a must have one for a solo fan… so I can’t wait to test this one out real soon!

Empires of the North: The Wrath of the Lighthouse

Not much has been written nor seen from this solo campaign for Empires of the North. All we know for now is that it will be a 15-scenario, story-driven campaign which will include new types of cards such as event, lighthouse of legacy cards.

This expansion was originally targeting last year’s Essen Spiel for its release; however the new official release date is this coming September (yay!). As a massive fan of the base Empires of the North solo scenarios, I can’t wait to get back to this neat little, card-based civilisation builder!

Meadow: Downstream

One of the most relaxing and soothing solo experiences out there, stunningly beautiful Meadow, is getting an expansion later this year. Downstream -as the name suggests- will add aquatic environments to the game. In addition to new flora and fauna introduced by this theme, players will also be able to go kayaking down the river to compete for new fields of exploration.

This expansion will add over 80 new cards to the game and will be -as expected- solo friendly. Oh, and it was confirmed that it will fit into the core box of the game. I always like hearing this! Meadow: Downstream is scheduled to be released in the last quarter of this year. Fingers crossed!

This is just a small list of solo-friendly stuff releasing this year and obviously, there are tons of games I am not even aware of that might end up being solo masterpieces – have I missed anything worth mentioning? Let me know, please!

In the next few days, I will also summarise some of the upcoming kickstarters that I have supported - and as you have probably guessed by now, all of them have solo mode included in the box. Stay tuned!