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Lead the Netherlands into the Industrial Age in the latest version of the cooperative classic! It is the dawn of the Industrial Age in the Netherlands. For centuries, the country has relied upon a series of dikes and wind-powered pumps to keep it safe from the constant threat of flooding from the North Sea. But this system is no longer enough.
blueatheart
Two plays in: Surprised at how much I enjoy this game, the small tweaks on the Pandemic formula works fantastically here. The water flow mechanics and sea level rise combine to make the game continuously tense and interesting. I wouldn't recommend playing with just the base 4-color game, it really opens up and feels like it's meant to be played with the population/objectives "variant" (and 5 objectives feels like it should be the standard). Mayyybe play the base way once if all players in your group are new. Second game, we had a situation where everything looked great, we were on a great path to get our four objectives, getting half the population put in place in the red/red/yellow/green 9 population objective, barely any water on the board...and a single storm raised the water level to 3, half the dikes broke in the northsea, and all but two water cubes were suddenly on the board and we're fighting for survival. Taught us to plan ahead for the storms better.
burstfire99
Decent variation on the classic pandemic game. Worth playing a few times to understand the dynamics at play. Less luck based than the normal pandemic but relatively easy in comparison.
bcnevan
Excellent reimplementation of Pandemic that is much more than a reskin. For example, via the operable pumps, incentives are shifted in a way that the players walk along a line that's close to both success and disaster. There's a trade-off between quickly building one of the game's four systems that are needed to win the game, and getting the most out of its bonus. Further, we aren't simply here to eradicate water--water can't be destroyed. Instead, we need to shape how it flows through the low lands so we can manage its increasing presence. So, the puzzle is engaging, there are thematic touches throughout, and those thematic touches provide a logical connection to solving the engaging puzzle. Finally, the game comes with a couple modules to mix up the puzzle more, so there's plenty of game inside the box.