Released: 06/17/07
Cost: 800 Microsoft Points ($10)
More Info: Carcassonne @ Xbox.com
Screen Shots: My Gallery
About the game:
The Xbox Live Arcade Game Carcassonne is based on the German board game with the same name. It is a board game with a midieval theme in which you place various tiles on to create towns roads and farms. There is a limited number of tiles that are distributed across all the players of the game, and you dont see the tile until its your turn to place it. Obviously the goal is to make the longest road, the biggest cities, and the largest farms, thus raising your points.
Single Player: 7/10
Single player mode is essentially the same as multiplayer mode - but against Computer based players. You have the ability to create a custom or standard game, and to select the difficulty level of your opponents. Most importantly is the Tutorial! Without being familiar with the board game that the game is based on, you can find yourself very lost without going through the tutorial and getting a good grasp of the rules and gameplay of the game. I feel the tutorial is very well done, and does a great job of explaining how the game works. I previously played the game when I visited with the microsoft guys, on a pre-release build of the game, and either the tutorial wasn’t included, or we never loaded it - and I was extremely confused and lost all the time. I could say it was the beer, but even when sober I still loose all the time, but at least I know what I am doing :-) The game requires a bit of luck (hoping you get the right tiles at the right time) and a lot of skill and planning. For example just because you have built the biggest city, and just need that final tile - depending on your settler placement another player could get that much needed tile, place it and get all the points from the city you worked so hard to build.
Multiplayer: 8/10
I am rating multiplayer a little higher, not because it is changed in any way - in fact its the exact same scenarios provided in the single player game; but because you have the ability to play against real people and friends, making it much more interesting. After stealing that huge city talking trash to random computer players just isn’t the same. You can play friendly player matches, or if you think you are up for the test try your hands at a Ranked match. The game allows for 4 player local multiplayer (often overlooked with todays internet driving gaming), or 5 player multiplayer over xbox live.
Graphics/game play: 6/10
Being based upon a board game, and a Xbox Arcade game you can assume that the graphics aren’t going to be the selling point of the game. Don’t get me wrong, the graphics are actually very well done, and if you zoom in close you can see the detail put into the structures that are built after placing your tiles ,and the small animations that happen when scoring or just placing the tile, etc. So for an arcade game, especially one based on a board game - I am rather pleased with the graphical implementation. The gameplay controls are pretty well laid out, and there is a HUD that provides you with information on what buttons to hit at all times that it is your turn - making it even more user friendly.
Achievements: 7/10
The achievements are spread out nicely. There are some that can be obtained by playing single player, some by playing friendly player matches, and some that are for ranked play only. Some of the achievements are made so that they can be obtained by simply playing the game such as “Top Score” which you obtain after you have collected a total of 2,000 points over every game you play (win or loose). I like that the achievements are not completely insane or considered possibly impossible and also that they are not as simple as “press the left bumper on a players stats card”. I have said a number of times that an Achievement should actually feel like you Achieved something. This game does a great job of allowing you to obtain the achievements as you play, without just dropping it on your lap for hitting the power button.
Value: 9/10
Any game that allows for multiplayer instantly grows in replay value. Add in the fact that you can play on xbox live at any hour of the day with strangers or friends (or locally if you prefer) and the bonus fact that playing field is an empty campus which unfolds on how you (and your opponents) place the randomly distrubted game tiles makes the replay value very high. I am sure that this game will continue to be played for time to come. If you are looking for a lasting game that actually stimulates your brain - this might just fit the bill
In Short..
Carcassonne is a interesting game with a small learning curve. With the board being based on a limited number of randomly generated tiles for a given game it provides a unique and new experience each time you play it. The game offers you the ability to play or practice on your own, and also the ability to take on friends either locally or over the xbox live system. All of these factors make it a fun and interesting game to fire up from time to time - and helps extend the value of the game, instead of some of the arcades which you buy, finish all the achievements and never touch again.
I give it a 7.5 out of 10
