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Max Jamelli
United States
Chambersburg
Pennsylvania
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#4 in my countdown - Power Grid
In my game comments for Power Grid, I say "It has everything I love in a board game. Money, territory, economic issues involving resource management, and the color blue." I forget when I wrote this, but I wanted to make sure that just because PG has the color blue doesn't make it one of my favorites. Sure, having it helps (see my entry on Tikal for color choices) but Power Grid is a very good game regardless of colors.
When I really got back into gaming in 2007 and rediscovered BGG, Power Grid was ranked #2 (I think) behind Puerto Rico. I did some looking and decided to add it to my wishlist. A couple months later, I saw Tom Vasel announce a Secret Santa. I signed up for it. I looked back upon the Secret Santa Geeklist entry for that year:
The Game I used was the Power Grid: The New Power Plant Cards.
Quote: Santa sent me a note a while back asking if my gift had arrived. As it had not, I was a little worried that the reindeer may have veered off course, or worse yet dropped the package off at the wrong house. I live in a new community, so this was a real concern.
Luckily, Santa got in touch with the workshop elves and they said my gift was being worked on (backorder) but they had one part of it done and could send it my way. So Santa told me to be on the lookout and today I go home for lunch and there is a small little envelope in it.
My curiosity got the best of me so I ripped it open. Having no idea what it could be as nothing on my wishlist appeared to be this small. It was a surprise which I didn't have on my wishlist, but gave me a pretty good idea what could possibly be on backorder. I'm thinking,
and now I'm REALLY excited. I had this on my wishlist for a while as my only "love to have" but a few days before targets went out I dropped it to "like to have" because I wanted to give Santa more options. Santa, i don't know how you did it, but I'm glad you did. Thanks so much!
That's not where the Christmas connection stops. I've also joined in the Christmas card exchange every year as well. I've tried to create some fun Photoshop designs based on games I like. Power Grid made an appearance there as well.
I was really excited when I was finished with this one and I was thrilled to see that it had made an appearance on the front page of BGG. It's easily my most thumbed contribution at 319. Not too shabby.
I remember my first game of Power Grid. I brought it to Hazleton to play with my dad, sister, wife, and brother in law. I know we made a lot of mistakes dealing with payments and pay-outs. I also remember the final plant selling for around $100. We had fun at least. I've been able to teach my in-laws how to play as well and we've enjoyed many good games. The game I remember the most was during a Super Bowl. It was the 2007-08 season and the Patriots were 18-0 going into the Super Bowl. Jen, her sister Julie, and I played a 3P game of Power Grid while we watched. Our PG game ended about 3 minutes before Plaxico Burress caught a TD pass that put the Giants ahead 17-14 with just over 2 minutes to play. I can't remember who won our PG game, but I was happy the Giants won.
As I played more, I learned more about the nuances. I played in one of the longest games of PG during a heat at the 2008 WBC. I learned then to request a "fast" game with little mathematical computation. The way I look at PG is simple. It would be great to make the absolute most optimal move. I try my best to make the most optimal moves. I also try to have fun while I'm playing and sitting there adding things up and counting and adding and figuring and re-figuring ... that's not fun. Do I win PG a ton? Not when I play against serious or experienced gamers. I do enjoy the ride though.
The expansions have been a hit with me as well. One goal of mine is to create an expansion board of Pennsylvania. We'll see if that ever comes to fruition. I'm too busy with a design of my dad's at the time to really get creative with a new Power Grid map. I also like the new power plants. For as many expansions as Power Grid has, it doesn't feel like an over-expanded game. I guess it'll reach that level if we see a Power Grid Antarctica edition. I do think Power Grid is among game leaders in Convention expansion give-aways though, and I've seen a few of them, but never played with any.
I'm glad this is a game Jen enjoys. According to our combined rankings geeklist, Power Grid comes in at #2, only .01 points behind the top game. Pretty remarkable considering we haven't tried it as a 2P game. I really prefer at least 4 with this, so it's a game I rarely see on the table, but I do play by email on this page. People take their turns kinda slow there though.
Final Thoughts
Power Grid's "cousin" Power Grid: Factory Manager is also a pretty fun game. I picked it up in a BGG trade and enjoy it. Jen and I both like Power Grid more though.
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