Footprints (2023) Board Game

Footprints is a board game set in prehistoric times, where players take on the role of early humans competing for resources and survival. Designed by Eilif Svensson, Åsmund Svensson, and Geir André Wahlquist, and published by Chilifox Games, the game features stunning artwork by Andrea Alemanno. With a release date of 2023, Footprints offers an immersive gaming experience that combines hand management, modular board, race, variable player powers, and variable set-up mechanics.

Game Components of Footprints

7 Game Board Pieces

6 Dual-layer Player Boards

144 Cards

6 Wooden Pawns

6 Wooden Cave Painting Tokens (Engraved)

24 Wooden Skill Markers

97 Cardboard Tokens

1 Score Pad

1 Rulebook.

How To Setup Footprints

To set up Footprints, start by placing the cairn board to the right of the table and laying out six game boards to the left. Home tokens are placed on the leftmost edge of the last board for each player. Caves are positioned on each cave site on the rightmost four boards. The Fire and Footprint decks are shuffled and placed nearby. Each player receives a random player board, all the components in their player color, a clan marker, and a clan deck with the same symbol. The clan deck is prepared by dealing the top four cards face up under the player board as the clan display. Each player also gets a player aid card and a random footprint card to start the game.

Gameplay Mechanics and Game Objective

Asymmetric Player Powers: Each player has their own unique clan deck.

Modular Board: Variable setup through a modular game board.

Resource and Hand Management: Players manage resources and cards to navigate the board.

Engine Building: Improve skills to advance more efficiently.

Objective: The goal is to chalk up the most points by creating engravings, cave paintings, upgrading tech tracks, reaching the end of the map, and completing footprint cards.

Turn Structure: A player’s turn consists of six phases, including executing actions from cards, moving through terrain based on skill levels, and collecting bonuses.

Endgame Conditions: The game ends when a player reaches a cairn space or when all clan cards are played.

Scoring: Points are awarded for cairn spaces, engravings, skill tracks, footprint cards, cave tokens, and remaining resources.

Player Experience

Footprints offers a strategically tight game that is more about exploring the landscape and achieving various goals rather than a straightforward race. Players need to maximize every turn by efficiently using their cards and resources. The game is praised for its depth in decision-making, despite having relatively simple rules. However, the luck of the draw can significantly impact gameplay, and some players might find the game’s visual presentation somewhat bland.

Pros

Efficiency Puzzle: Maximizing every turn provides a challenging and engaging experience.

Solid Components: The game includes good-quality components, such as dual-layer player boards.

Fast Gameplay: The game plays quickly, even with six players.

Replay Value: The variable setup and unique clan decks offer high replayability.

Cons

Visual Presentation: The game’s art and board design are described as beige and uninspiring.

Luck of the Draw: The shuffling of cards can greatly influence the game’s outcome.

Repetitive Turns: Some players might find the turns feeling similar, lacking significant variation.

Personal Thoughts on Footprints

Footprints is ideal for players who enjoy strategic planning, resource management, and engine-building mechanics. It is not a traditional racing game but rather a game that encourages players to explore different strategies to accumulate points. While it may not stand out visually, the game’s depth and replay value make it a solid addition to any board game collection. It is suitable for players aged 10 and above and supports 1-6 players, with a game length of 30-60 minutes.

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