Pandemic: Contagion first play

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I'm working through all my unplayed games at the moment, and Pandemic: Contagion is the fourth of nine unplayed games currently in my collection. This number will probably go to at least 11 when Dresden Files and High Frontier arrive. If I remembered to order Kaiju Incorporated, then 12. But 4/12 is better than 0/12.

The game comes in a small box and is billed as fast playing. Three quarters of the way through my first play, I can definitely agree with the fast-playing, 30 minutes as advertised seems about right.

I'm playing it solo, going back and forth on between two players on each turn. As usual for solo learning games, I'm simply interested in getting the mechanics figured out. I'll worry about how to play it well later. To make is easier to explain scoring, I'm playing purple and red.

Here's the end of the game, with purple taking the day with 42 against red's 36:

Pandemic: Contagion Game 1

Overall I like it. It's just the sort of game that will fit right in between heavier games, especially heavier wargames.

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What to play next?

Deciding what to play next is always a tough call when faced with a closet full of games, all of which were purchased with intent to play. Here's one I'm dealing with the decision.

  • Something New: this means both something new to me and a game which has been published recently, within the last two or three years.
  • Something Classic: I've acquired a number of games properly considered "classic" which haven't yet been played. The current example would be PanzerGruppe Guderian.
  • Something Again: mastery requires constant practice, which means playing games many, many times to allow nuance to appear.
  • Something Vietnam: as I'm on a Vietnam binge. I don't have all the Vietnam games ever published, but I can say that I have a lot of them, and probably more than most people.
  • Something Obscure: as it's fun to poke around in the dustier corners of game design.
  • Something Different: break away from the same old publishers and try a game from one of the new kids on the block. Or, conversely, dip into legacy with a classic tried and true.
  • Something Light: once in a while it's nice to actually finish a game all the way through in one sitting, in an hour or two.
  • Something Heavy: if possible, it's nice to set up something big and complicated which can be left out for days or weeks or even months, for a leisurely stroll through a very large or long game.

There are surely many more ways to choose, but the above method keeps me busy enough, helps me get both breadth and depth into my play, and provides me with a sense of progress.

The odd man out

When there is an odd man out:

  • Have a solo game ready to play.
  • Keep score or advise on a game in progress.
  • Referee a game in progress.