Landed is a tile-laying terraforming game that’s just wrapping an already funded Kickstarter campaign. Designed by Marcin Zarycki and published by Argyle Games, it’s a 2-4 player game where players are laying down tiles and trying to claim pieces of land to fill various contracts. Each turn players can lay a tile, draw back up to 4 tiles, or draw new contracts. They can also play Wonder Tiles acquired any time during their turn, or use one of their cubes to claim land after they place a tile. It’s very simple to learn, easy to play, and a fun light-weight game.
Landed requires careful tile-laying to maximize lands you’re looking to profit from, while also making sure you break up formations that may score your opponents points. Of course you can always piggy back off opponents’ formations, and they off yours, for a slightly less profitable score. Each contract card has several conditions that can be met, each more profitable than the last. Most of these have two values: one from the first person to claim the territory, and one for the second. You also need to keep in mind that you only have a limited amount of cubes to claim land. Once you’re out, you can’t complete any more contracts.
The whole game plays in about 15-45 minutes depending on the number of players. Two player games tend to be quick, and offer more flexibility on the board. Four players are a bit longer, but also a bit more tense as land is quickly taken by other players. You can make sure you get a copy of the game for a $34 pledge, and the more they make, the more stretch goals are unlocked.
It’s a fun game that can be learned and played quickly. A good choice if you’re into tile-laying games, and aren’t looking for anything very heavy.
A prototype copy of Landed was provided free for preview by Argyle Games.