Wouter & Ymke 
Set against the backdrop of a burgeoning metropolis in the early 1920s, Rolling Heights is a board game where players step into the shoes of ambitious contractors. The goal? To construct towering skyscrapers and cement your legacy by creating the city’s next iconic landmark. The competition is as intense as the era itself, with each player vying to outbuild their rivals.
👥 1-4 players, ages 10+
⌛ Playing time: 60 minutes
📝 Designer: John D. Clair
🎨 Artwork: Kwanchai Moriya
🏢 Publisher: White Goblin Games (Dutch version, review copy provided) Originally published in English by Alderac Entertainment Group.
The Dawn of a Skyscraper Age
As a contractor in Rolling Heights, you begin the game with four workers at your command: two brown carpenters and two gray construction workers. Over the course of the game, you might handle up to ten meeples per turn. Players decide which meeples to roll based on their current strategy, setting aside extras when their crew expands beyond ten. Additional meeples can be acquired by completing specific types of buildings, enhancing your workforce and capabilities.
The outcome of each roll determines the meeples’ effectiveness: meeples standing upright are highly productive, those on their side work steadily, and those on their back are too exhausted to contribute, halting progress. Players continue rolling until at least half of their meeples are productive, though they can risk further rolls to optimize their workforce. However, should all meeples land on their backs, a strike ensues—halving your active workforce due to over-exertion.
Players utilize their active meeples to build structures, purchase new building plans, or trade commodities. The game cleverly integrates the meeples’ colors into gameplay; four colors yield resources, while four others provide points, spending power, or strategic advantages such as strike prevention or boosted work ethic. The ninth color triggers special actions related to the building tiles that initially produced the meeple.
The endgame is triggered when players exhaust all resource cubes of one color, signaling the final scoring phase. Points are tallied from both public and personal goals alongside the ones scored throughout the game The player with the highest score earns the esteemed title of the most famous contractor in Rolling Heights.
Designed by John D. Clair, Rolling Heights is a board game for 1-4 players. It is suitable for ages 10 and up and takes about an hour to play. We had the opportunity to review the Dutch version supplied by White Goblin Games, though it was originally launched in English by Alderac Entertainment Group after a well-supported Kickstarter campaign.
A Closer Look at Rolling Heights’ Components
Inside the game box of Rolling Heights, you will find an assortment of pieces that enrich the gameplay. There are six double-sided neighborhood boards that are configured differently depending on player count to ensure competitive play remains engaging. The game also includes a scoreboard that lists different actions and benefits associated with various meeples, which is particularly handy during your first few plays. Additionally, the game comes with 78 building plan tiles that promise a diverse experience in each session, and 90 robust plastic meeples meant to be rolled in individual trays provided to each player. The quality of all components is excellent, and they are beautifully illustrated by Kwanchai Moriya.
The rulebook is clearly written and easy to follow. It is structured to guide players through the game phases with plenty of visuals and examples, making the learning process straightforward. The simplicity of the rules makes the game approachable for the recommended age group of 10+.
The Thrill of the Roll: Gameplay and Strategy
In Rolling Heights, players roll meeples to simulate managing a workforce, integrating an exciting push-your-luck element. You can choose to keep rolling to enhance your workforce but run the risk of losing progress and potentially halving your workforce due to a strike. This introduces a luck factor as the outcomes of meeple rolls largely dictate the actions available to you. This balance of risk and reward can make the game both thrilling and, at times, a bit frustrating. Adding more meeples of a specific color or ones with special abilities can help mitigate bad rolls, allowing for more consistent strategies.
The game’s buildings each offer different scoring opportunities and provide rewards based on their placement relative to other buildings, proximity to water, or specific spots on the board. Timing the completion of these buildings when their scoring potential is maximized is key. The diverse array of buildings ensures each playthrough is different, and various strategies can be pursued. However, it’s always wise not to overlook the importance of both public and personal goals when planning your path to victory.
Rolling Heights: A Game Worth Checking Out?
Rolling Heights’s meeple-rolling mechanism brings a fresh approach to board games. At first, the idea of rolling meeples instead of dice might seem unusual, but the gameplay rule requiring at least half of your meeples to be active ensures that you always have options to advance. This game is a good pick for those who enjoy a blend of strategy and the excitement of push-your-luck elements. If you’re interested in a game that steps away from traditional board game mechanics, Rolling Heights might be worth checking out.
📝 Disclaimer: White Goblin Games provided us with this game for review purposes.
