Title: Go Goa
Designed By: Andy Desa and Suyog Kamat
Art By: Alecester Silveira
Published By: Kheo Games
Released: 2021
Player Count: 1-6
Time to Play: 15-25 Minutes
Ages: 12+
Overview:
Go Goa is a great little roll and write game about exploring Goa, India. In the game you are working to plan out your vacation plans so that you can see the best spots to visit. Check out beaches, waterfalls, forts, religious sites and more. Roll dice and map your route. Whoever can create the route that scores the most points by the end of 12 days (rounds) wins.
What's purr-ty cool:
Game Design: So I want to preface this section by saying I play a lot of roll and write games, and I do mean A LOT. But despite all the ones I have played before, Go Goa uses dice in a way I have not seen done yet and that I absolutely loved. The design of how the dice are utilized to create your map is genius. Each round three dice are rolled. Players will then assign each dice to either be the direction, distance, or deviation. Direction determines which of the six directions you can move from the space you are currently on (Go Goa uses hex shaped spaces so they have six sides, each corresponds to a number on the die). Then the number on the distance dice indicates the amount of spaces you must move in the chosen direction. Finally, deviations allow players to make turns on their route; on a 1-3 players may make one deviation and on a 4-6 they may make two deviations. It really is a fascinating movement mechanism and it makes players think strategically about how to best map out their routes.
Ease of entry: Another thing I liked about Go Goa is its ease of entry. The rulebook is short, sweet, and to the point. It provides clear pictures and examples to help get players started. The rules are easy to pick up, which made getting it from the box to the table quick and painless. Don't let the simplicity fool you though, there is a good amount of strategy when it comes to building your tour plan. The first time I played, I played it solo and failed miserably due to poor planning. Learning how to maximize your moves with the dice options is very important!
Components: There is one component feature that I want to highlight as I think it is a nice touch. The player sheets have checkboxes on the left side that line up with the tour plan cards so that as you visit the destinations in your tour plan, you can check them off. It is a nice touch and a cool way to integrate the score sheet with the cards,
Wanderlust: Prior to Kheo Games connecting with me during a Game Crafter Game Design Contest to talk about the games we were designing, I had never heard of Goa, India. After playing their game, I was inclined learn more about it. And wow! It looks absolutely amazing, and now I really want to visit!
The cat's meow:
"The box is too small for me to sit in but that has not stopped me from trying!" - Pudgy Cat
You can learn more about Go Goa on Kheo Games website.
Disclosure: Pudgy Cat Games was provided a copy of this game in exchange for a review, however, this review reflects the honest thoughts of the author.