Moon River – Kingdomino’s Western Cousin with a Twist

Welcome to the fertile lands of Moon River, where players seek to grow their inherited plots into thriving ranches. Set in the scenic landscapes of the Wild West, Moon River is both about strategic planning and the challenges of the West, such as thieves and droughts.

👥 2-4 players, ages 8+
⌛ Playing time: 45 minutes
📝 Designers: Bruno Cathala & Yohan Servais
🎨 Artwork: Régis Torres

🏢 Publisher: Blue Orange Games (review copy provided)

At its heart, the game revolves around players trying to combine their plots into domino-like formations. By optimally organizing these dominoes, players create their ranch, expanding herds and maximizing the utility of the land. The ultimate aim? To gather as many points as possible.

🤠 In Moon River, the sequence of play is determined by the rancheros’ positions. The player whose ranchero is on the topmost plot goes first, followed by the next in line, and so on. During their turn, each player collects the plot their ranchero is on, deciding whether or not to expand their ranch and then picking a new plot for the upcoming round. The reservation board has storage spaces where players place their collected plots. Players can expand their ranch by joining plots together in dominoes once they have at least two plots. However, if all storage spaces are filled, they must expand their ranch.

🔗 As players expand, they have to be mindful of connection rules. The dominoes should fit within a 5×5 grid above the reservation board, and should connect to existing dominoes or bridges on the board. But the strategic depth doesn’t stop there; some plots come with special symbols – cows, skulls, and circles – each initiating different actions that can influence gameplay. Cows help populate your land, but the skull symbol, representing drought, can decrease your herd. Circle symbols allow players to recruit partners, each with distinct abilities to manage their ranches. These abilities range from moving cows and stealing from opponents to providing extra end-of-game points based on specific resources present in the ranch.

🔄 Once every player has taken their turn, a new set of plots is revealed for the next round. Partner tokens get replenished too. The game comes to its conclusion when there are no more plots to draw from. At this point, players get a final turn and, once done, adjust their ranches for overpopulation, making sure each plot only has one cow. After these adjustments, it’s time for scoring. Players earn points based on the size of their territories multiplied by the number of cows present, the resources they’ve collected, and the effects of their partners.

🌟 For those looking for a twist, Moon River offers the ‘Legends of the West’ variant. Here, players assume the roles of legendary characters, each with different ranch layouts. Additionally, players can partake in shared scenarios like Timber Rafting, Gold Rush, Outlaws, and Moon River City, each introducing a fresh way to score points.

Moon River, a family game designed for 2-4 players aged eight and up, comes to us from the minds of Bruno Cathala and Yohan Servais, with artwork beautifully executed by Régis Torres. Published by Blue Orange Games, this title is steeped in inspiration drawn from Cathala’s renowned game, Kingdomino. Yet, there’s a distinctive spin: players must craft their own dominoes by drafting plots before laying them out.

🧩 For enthusiasts of Kingdomino, the novel changes in Moon River might be evident. Here, you’ll find half-dominoes featuring one edge designed with a jigsaw puzzle-style connection. This novel mechanic pushes for a more proactive gameplay style. Instead of the familiar castle-start from Kingdomino, in Moon River, players kick off their landscapes from the bridges across the river and then branch outwards. The crowns from Kingdomino undergo a transformation as well; they’ve been replaced by cow meeples, with players, courtesy of the cowboy effect, repositioning them across different territories.

🎯 The gameplay of Moon River cleverly incorporates a domino-like mechanism, urging players to amalgamate plots in a strategic manner. The special symbols—cows, skulls, and circles—augment the game’s depth, influencing gameplay decisions. Moreover, the sequential turn-taking rooted in ranchero positions offers a spirited pace to the rounds. Completing in roughly 45 minutes, the game provides an engaging experience without lingering unnecessarily.

📘 Blue Orange Games has ensured that Moon River’s rulebook is thorough, delving into the game’s intricacies with clarity. Accompanied by ample illustrations and examples, the learning curve is smooth, making the game easy to grasp and relay to others. Those playing with just two players will find adjusted rules tailored for them. While Moon River leans into strategy with its domino mechanics and resource management, the element of chance embedded in the plot and partner token draws fosters some unpredictability. Players should brace themselves for a dash of competitive spirit. There are mechanisms in place for stealing cows or swapping plots with adversaries, which can be a source of occasional frustration.

🔄 Moon River might deviate slightly from the streamlined gameplay and elegance of Kingdomino due to its amplified complexity. However, this trade-off brings forward more variability and randomness in each session. When strategizing, players have a buffet of routes to explore: from concentrating on resources such as gold nuggets, beavers, and the oh-so-critical corn (pro-tip: Never let one player hoard all the corn!) to focusing on enlarging territories and stationing numerous cows, thereby amplifying the territory’s point multiplier. The game’s allure is further bolstered by the ‘Legends of the West’ variant. This alternative play mode offers four scenarios, each emphasizing a different facet. Whether players are keen on establishing productive lumber regions or bustling urban centers, this variant continually refreshes the gameplay, injecting variety and challenge.

💭 Moon River is an entertaining puzzle game, presenting players with a fresh challenge each time. The engaging domino mechanics, coupled with the variety of scenarios, ensure replayability. For those who have a penchant for Kingdomino but yearn for a slightly more intricate ordeal, Moon River might just be up your alley.

📝 Disclaimer: We received a review copy of Moon River from the publisher, Blue Orange Games.