Iceman's Board Game Topic (Rankings, Reviews, Sessions, Discussion)

I'm still alive even though Seabass put me to shame with how quick he finished his topic!

22. Sushi Go!
Expansions Played: None, unless you'd count Sushi Go! Party

With how super light and approachable it is, I don't feel like I have much to say about this game and I don't really feel like I need to, either. The second simultaneous drafting game on the list after 7 Wonders, as I mentioned in that game's writeup, I think this one is just better in every way. The theme is more unique, more pleasant, and fits the mechanics better. It's quicker and simpler without sacrificing interest. There's no setup and teardown overhead so it's incredibly easy to play more than once at a time, and it's a super welcoming package all around for even the most inexperienced of board gamers.

Everything here just feels very tight in a way I don't think you'd initially expect at first glance, and I think it's because the scoring options are pretty perfect in their simplicity. Ten different cards with exactly the right variety, especially if a good group meta develops. Sashimi and especially Tempura always seem like they get a little undervalued in my group, so I'm able to swoop in under the radar and rack up some mildly uncontested points that way. Wasabi can be incredibly strong, but if the players next to you are paying good enough attention and/or want to hate draft, OR if you yourself aren't counting cards well, it can backfire hard. You always have to keep the Puddings in the back of your mind, too... Unless you're willing to just sacrifice those 6 points from the very beginning and focus on exploiting the card plays you consequently free up while all your opponents fight for them amongst themselves... Of course, if you take that tactic in too many games, maybe one friend catches on and quietly just plays one Pudding at the very beginning to do your strategy better.

There's a deceptive amount of thinking going on under the hood here if you really want to try hard. Read the friends, keep track of which cards you see, stay cognizant that Brian will never let anyone beat him in Maki Rolls if he can help it, so on. But if you want to just shut your brain off and throw down some adorable cards and see what happens, you can do that too. You'll still have a good time and maybe even still be competitive if everyone else has galaxy brained themselves into oblivion.

Sushi Go! excels in its reliability. It works equally well as an opener or filler for game night as it does for a casual "beer and pretzels" kind of party. I don't know if I'd quite call it a gateway game, because despite its surprisingly clever and layered gameplay, it's probably a little too light and breezy for me to think I could invite a friend who enjoyed it to play even something like Sagrada next time without them feeling like they may have gotten a little more than they bargained for. But it's easily my favorite game to play with non-gamers and it's plenty fun with gamers too. It just does its job really damn well.

Collection Status and Future Outlook: Owned by me. Sees a fair amount of table time (although less so lately since my group took so well to Here to Slay) and considering its versatility, I don't see that changing. This is the exact right tier for it, though.