El Grande is an area control game where players bid to choose particular action cards, the lowest bidder then getting the chance to bid first in the next round. There are three scoring rounds, and nine action rounds. I have found that it's a medium length game, usually taking a couple of hours to play depending on the number of players. It plays well with three, four or five players (I haven't tried it with just two players). I personally prefer it with four players, as with five it's a bit too chaotic and with three it's a little predictable. But then you probably know all this and more already. So what do I think of the game?

Well, I very much enjoy it! The random element is kept to a minimum, but high enough so that no two games feel exactly the same. The bidding system is fun (and not unlike German Whist if you've ever played that). There is a good balance between short-term tactics and longer-term strategy (at least in theory). I like the fact that there is a good deal of player interaction. You can choose to concentrate on your own game and maximise your points per turn, or turn your attention to your opponents and aim to maximise your points relative to opponents by choosing an action that gets you a few points but also takes some points away from your opponent. I think that the region spinner is a nice touch, adding an element of bluff and double-bluff to the game. I have enjoyed every game that I've played.

I have two main gripes that would stop me considering this as a top tier game. Firstly, the Mario Kart effect. It seems to me that it is a disadvantage to be in the lead early in the game. The scoring track makes it all too obvious who is winning and other players respond accordingly (it might be interesting to play this game with hidden scoring). Mario Kart has an inbuilt mechanism to help the trailing players catch up - they get better items (e.g. lightning, blue shells). Although El Grande has no such mechanism, it does seem to me that it's too easy for the chasing players to gang up on the leader. An early lead gained through good play will too often translate into defeat. A corrollary of this is the free-rider effect (yes, I'm an economist). Any player/s who takes it upon themself/themselves to bring down the leading player will often be overtaken by the last placed player/s. The chasing player expends all his energy catching the first placed player but allows the last placed player to march unmolested to a victory that they would never had got were it not for the second player's actions. You might say that this is just poor play but I think it's partly a result of the game design.

Secondly, while El Grande is good fun to play, I feel that it is not sufficiently rewarding of good strategic play (in fact because of the Mario Kart effect it may even punish good strategy). Of course I realise that this is partly due a lack of sophistication in my strategy, but I do believe that elements of the game itself exacerbate this problem. I think that the very best games give players early reward for improvements in strategy, whereas El Grande does not. I have played a number of games of El Grande where the player with the best strategy ended up not winning. Of course, even in the best games this will happen occassionaly, but I feel that in El Grande short-term tactics, and tacit co-operation between players tends to dominate over strategy.

However winning isn't everything! A particularly fun aspect of the game is that (in my experience) all or most players stand a chance of winning right up to the latter stages of the game. It can be quite dull when you a play a game where you've lost all hope of victory before the halfway mark. El Grande does tend to produce some nailbiting finishes as it comes down to the last scoring region to determine the winner. This, of course, is the positive side of the Mario Kart effect.

Despite my concerns I would recommend this game. It is a welcome addition to my boardgaming group's collection, not least because it is the only area control game we have. The game produces some tough decisions, close finishes and plenty of chances to get one-up on your opponent. Good stuff.