New board game FTW! Unpacking Forbidden Island

My lovely postal person brought me a new toy today: my copy of the board game Forbidden Island.

Board game cards and pieces

I haven’t played this game before, but TableTop’s Wil Wheaton highly recommended it on his blog, and after reading the description and seeing pictures of the pretty cards, I decided I wanted it. (Other selling points: it’s a cooperative game, so I can play it solo, and the price was very reasonable — under $20.) Just looking all at the pretty pieces, I’m very impressed! The location cards are nice and thick so they’ll hold up well, and they’re beautifully illustrated. They aren’t quite as big as I’d expected, but that’s okay since I have limited room on my desk for game pieces. I love the treasure tokens too; the shapes and colors are fun and they’re nicely detailed. I also like that the box is designed with dividers to store the pieces handily, unlike some games I could mention.

I’ll share more of my thoughts after I’ve had some time to play with it a bit.

UPDATE: I like this game! And not just because I won my first time. :-)  I had fun, and it’s easy to learn — a definite plus. (The mechanics remind me of Pandemic, which probably helped.) All in all, I think this game is a definite win!