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Quick Look: Hispania

Designer: Miguel Marqués
Artists: Paco Arenas, Miguel Marqués
Publisher: Draco Ideas
Year Published: 2024

No. of Players: 1-4

Ages: 14+

Playing Time: 30-60 minutes.

Find more info HERE.

From the Publisher:

Disclaimer: The publisher provided the copy of Hispania. The opinions expressed in the review are completely my own.

Disclaimer: Anytime you see a link to Amazon on our site, it is another way to get your product there for the normally listed price as well as a way to support Everything Board Games and everything we’re doing here, without paying any extra. We appreciate the support!

Review:
 

I knew ever since EBG previously covered 1212: Las Navas de Tolosa that Draco Ideas is a publisher to keep an eye on. 

Having respect for the views of my fellow EBG reviewers (and also having myself covered Nexum Galaxy from Draco’s joint publisher, Eclipse Games), I knew that I could look forward to whatever ideas the minds behind their games could offer.

When given the opportunity to try another of Draco’s offerings, Hispania caught my attention because it is first and foremost a cooperative experience —my family is sometimes adverse to taking beatings from one another,  so this seemed the perfect opportunity to test something else in Draco’s catalog. 

What arrived in my hands ended up being a small, very portable box that is only slightly larger than that of something like Boss Monster, which already sports a very minuscule form factor. My first thought was that I could easily take this game on my recent trip to Indonesia and Japan, which I did quite comfortably within the confines of my backpack. Plus one for being travel ready!

The rules take roughly 30-60 minutes to read through. While I normally try to memorize everything in advance before playing, this time around I found it was swifter and more efficient to simply learn the game by taking turns and following the listed procedures within the manual step-by-step in simulating a full game by myself before sharing the experience with others. And this approach worked, and I would highly recommend doing so if you are just learning.

The game itself is based historically around the conquest of Spain by the Romans circa 200 B.C., and sports a map of the Spanish / Iberian peninsula that easily fits on any small table. Your role (contrary to what I might have expected of a design that came from Spain!) is to take on the role of the Roman invaders and squash uprisings that are in the area to secure the territory for your empire. If you can eliminate all revolts within a province, you can establish a garrison within its respective capital ; if you manage to place a garrison within 6 capitals before the game’s timer runs out (11 rounds), you win. Otherwise…the Spaniards manage to reverse history and remain their independent and autonomous selves.

Designed for 1-3 players, the game allows for turns that are swift and efficient , offering each player (a General) the opportunity to move themselves (or their fleets), or attack various revolts or opposing armies on the map. After each player has taken a turn, the armies and revolting factions of Hispania get a chance to bolster their defenses or potentially move and attack. There is some light dice-chucking involved whenever either side makes an attack, but thankfully there are ways for you to modify your strength, either with paying in-game money/Denari or surrounding yourself with local allies/generals to bolster and secure your chances of winning a fight. Though careful, those pesky resistance forces can also have their dice rolls modified by local armies and defenses as well!

Things to like about the game:

Component wise, everything is beyond “just fine”. While the board itself is quite small, and initially can seem a bit underwhelming if you are used to your games hogging entire tables, this peculiarity is offset by simultaneously being very portable and travel-ready.  Wooden meeples and discs are all very usable, but the Denari / money tokens really stand out with a wow factor that makes one think they might have legitimately been excavated from an archeological dig. These are very visually impressive!

Iconography and board layout do not stand out in any offensive ways, making it relatively easy to see what you are doing at all times. The game plays within about 20-30 minutes when you get the hang of it, and quite easily lends itself to solo play. It plays with enough strategy to keep things interesting, with a number of ways to customize a number of variables so you can modify the difficulty to your playing style and preference. It really does feel like a mild brain teaser, which is great for situations when you happen to want to enjoy some mind work without overwhelming yourself—perfect for a bit of coffee shop enjoyment, if I must say…

Was there anything I did not enjoy about the game?

Not really. While it may feel like too simple of a game to be enjoyed by 3 players and leave a mild expectation for something “more” if you are used to heavier material, it is nevertheless functional as a multi-player experience. For myself, I found this to be a perfect solo distraction from the troubles of the world as I was waiting to pass the time while overseas and at home. 

All-in-all, Hispania manages to deliver. Between the respective works of Draco Ideas / Eclipse Games, I have never heard anything bad about the offerings of either company, and I am happy to report that the trend continues here at Everything Board Games. I eagerly look forward to trying more from the minds behind these wonderful games in the future!

A+

After reading Jazz’s review, if this sounds like a game for you at the time of this posting Hispania is available to purchase on Draco Ideas website for only €35.00. Or check it out and get the only one GAMEFOUND edition of HISPANIA left in stock on AMAZON HERE.

Disclaimer: Anytime you see a link to Amazon on our site, it is another way to get your product there for the normally listed price as well as a way to support Everything Board Games and everything we’re doing here, without paying any extra. We appreciate the support!

Did you get it based on our review? Please comment below letting us know!