Dave
United Kingdom
Basingstoke
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OK so I have been a long time lurker / occasional poster on BGG, but I decided to start reviewing my games. If nothing else it gives me the chance to play all my games again as I review them. So I figured there was no better place to start that the one I played this weekend - Automobile by Martin Wallace. I am going to try (and probably fail) to not reiterate the rule book, but draw out the key points as to why it works (or fails) and how they worked during a game.
Background:
I was fortunate enough to spy one of the original Treefrog copies on the shelf of my FLGS a while back and having seen the buzz on here about it I was very interested in playing it - so I figured I would get a copy and hope I liked it. It took a while to get it to the gaming table, but I am definitely glad I purchased a copy now.
Design and mechanics:
The game is set in the early years of the automotive industry in the USA - the artwork and board design help to set the theme and draw the users into the experience. The use of key figures (Ford, Chrysler, Durrant, Sloan, Kettering, Howard) is well integrated to give each player use of the characters benefit, so for example Ford allows you to build an extra factory and take advantage of Mass Production lines, Howard allows you to sell extra cars etc... You get lots of nice little wooden components to mimic factories, cars, which also help to build up the immersion factor.
The game runs across 4 turns, each with multiple phases for the users to interact in. As the game goes along it forces the user to recreate the evolution of the automotive industry, which creates a boom in demand, and allows the user to build better (and more costly) cars.
Constraints on action rounds:
In the 3 action rounds you can build factories, produce cars, carry out R+D, set up distributors or close factories, which is where the tough choices are. Do you push the industry forward, by R+D and building new factories, do you consolidate and produce cars and set up a distributor network, or do you look to reduce losses on old factories. In reality you probably want to do 4 of those actions rather than 3 at any one time, which is where the delicate balance of the game is. You probably want to push forward one go, and then reign in the next - all the while producing cars to keep the revenue stream generating.
Judging Demand vs Distributors:
Everyone gets a sneak peak at part of the demand for Mid (and in later turns Low) priced cars with a demand tile(s) at the start of a turn. As the turn goes on you can judge whether you think there are enough cars manufactured by other players to meet what your estimate for demand is (as you can also make some basic assumptions about what demand tiles other players have). If you think there are too many cars then you could have problems (losses) on your hands, if there are not enough then you might be able to take advantage and produce more to meet the demand.
As well as selling using market demand, sales can also be achieved via the distributors network - in fact in some instances this is the only way to sell certain types of car (high priced models earlier in the game). Again this is another fine balancing act, if you can’t sell via all the distributors you have selected then you will get losses.
Losses:
Herein lies one of the real interesting parts of this game. If you get all the guessing wrong - or happen to be at the back of the sales chain, then there is a fair chance you won’t sell all your cars - and as a result you will incur losses. Alternatively the game punishes you for not keeping up with the industry moving forward - and so the factory at the front of each price range is innovating, but the further behind that you are the more you are punished.
As a result both aspects earn you loss cubes. At the end of each turn you have to pay a penalty on each cube, which increases in value for each turn. Therefore ongoing losses really start to cost you money. The harshness of this mechanic is saved by the fact that you can dispose of loss cubes, either in total or collected on that turn, by using the industry figures. Therefore you can effectively manage the losses, but at the cost of using the benefits of the other industry figures.
Summary:
I found it to be a complex game that challenges you in many different ways during the gameplay. The mechanics of this game mean that you have to react to other players actions, and likewise also gives you the capability to force their hand in certain ways, all whilst trying to balance your own strategy for producing cars and thus generating revenue, which for the main part needs to be reinvested during the game to reap the rewards at the end.
9/10 - a very intriguing game that presents many challenges and will always be welcomed on my gaming table.
Recommended for:
- Fans of challenging games that constrict your actions and force you to plan ahead and react to other users actions.
- Fans of economic engine games (such as Container)
I also realise this review is very wordy without any nice pictures, but I didn’t take any whilst playing the game - a situation I intend to rectify for my next review...
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