Alhambra

Today's review is of the 2003 release, Alhambra. For 2-6 players, it takes 45-60 minutes.

Overview

You are a master builder in Europe, eager to demonstrate your skill. You do so by constructing the most picturesque complex of buildings- the Alhambra. Can you manage your resources effectively to do so?

In Alhambra, you obtain currency and purchase buildings to place them in your Alhambra.

- There are six different types of buildings. Each building (regardless of type) has a cost which may vary based on the number of walls around it.

- There are four different types of currency. 

To start (after shuffling the money card deck, giving initial hands to players, and shuffling the tile pile), players lay out four money cards and four building tiles in the building market. Each tile is placed in a currency column (randomly assigned). 

On your turn, you will perform one of three actions:

- Take some money. Take one money card face-up in the staging area OR multiple cards if their total value is five or less.

- Buy and position a building tile. You must pay for it using the currency in its corresponding column. (If you pay the exact cost, you may perform another action. Any overpayment is lost.) You place it either in your Alhambra or on your reserve board. 

- Redesign your Alhambra. This can involve placing a building from your reserve board in your Alhambra, moving a building from your Alhambra to your reserve board, or exchanging tiles in the two zones. 

After these actions, you place any building(s) purchased in your complex following the placement rules. At the end of your turn, replenish the building market so four money cards and four building tiles are available for the next player's turn. Play proceeds clockwise.

The game is scored at three times- at two points during the game (randomly determined through placing scoring cards in the draw deck) and once at the end. In each case, players who have the most building tiles of each type are awarded points (second and third place may also get points, depending on the round), and all players get points based on their longest continuous wall.

game in progress; image from here

Review

It was nice to finally play this game after years of hearing about it. Almost 20 years old at this point, it still holds up. The buying action was interesting- it rewarded exact payment with an extra action, which in turn encouraged money card collection and resource management. The only ding is aesthetic- both the building and currency types are represented by colors, two of which (green and blue) overlapped. That could create confusion I felt was avoidable. That aside, this is a nice one.

Rating: A