Game Play Review - Tranquility

Tranquility is a game published by Board Game Hub. The premise of the game is for players to cooperatively place island cards, from start to finish, before running out of cards. If the players can accomplish this, including playing a finish card once the grid is full, they win.

This post is broken into the following 3 sections, feel free to jump directly to one:

1. General summary - consisting of information about overall enjoyment, theme, replayability, and upgrades
2. Complexity - consisting of information about the rulebook, setup, player turns, and overall learning curve
3. Player turns - consisting of game type, game flow, rule you are likely to miss, and favorite aspect

Number of players we had: 4
Our play time (not including setup): 35 minutes

Overall Enjoyment

While this game is simple to setup, learn and play, it can be surprisingly challenging to win which is one thing we really like about it. The game is not impossible to win, but due to the limited number of cards, it is difficult. This is especially true with more players. While I typically prefer games that include boards and clearly defined playing areas, I like that this game is so quick to set up and can basically be played anywhere. It would be perfect for taking on vacation with any group of people.

If we had to pick one thing that was frustrating about this game it is that the difficulty level of the game varies based on the number of players. While some games have dual-sided boards - Godspeed and Tungaru to name a few - that ensure the difficulty level remains mostly static regardless of the number of players, this game does not.

Theme

The game comes in a small box that the components fit well within. The artwork on the cards, which varies as the numbers increase, each include a light image on half of the card as well as a delightfully dark image on the other half. Both images are pleasant and detailed.

Replayability

Though Tranquility is not overly complex, there are several reasons why I think it has decent replayability. First, it is a great game for what it is:  an easy to play cooperative game where players work together, albeit silently, to reach their goal. Second, this is a quick game that is easy to set up, easy to teach, it is appropriate for any group of players while being surprisingly challenging to win. Lastly, it all fits in a box with a really small footprint so anyone can find room for it on their game shelves.

Upgrades

As far as I know, there are no available upgrades for this game. However, there is a new stand-alone game titled: "Tranquility: The Ascent", currently on Kickstarter.

Rule book

The rulebook is about the size of a standard piece of paper tri-folded twice to fit nicely into the box. It is succinct and to the point, and since this game is easy to learn, it really does not need to be much more than this.

Setup

Tranquility can be set up in about five minutes. Once the border cards are set up, you have your playing area and you simply need to split up the cards based on the number of players. One thing I will say about the cards is that they are impossible for anyone in our group to successfully shuffle. This is because the cards are thicker than normal cards.

On a positive note, I do feel like the cards will last a long time and not break down easily or show wear. Additionally, because the cards are not very slick they do stay in place pretty well after being placed, even when being played on a slick table top.

We have a player in our group who suffers from a disability that affects his dexterity. The cards are especially difficult for him to separate because they are not slick like playing cards and instead sort of grip each other. Most people will likely not have an issue, but it is worth mentioning.

Turns

Turns are very simple: each player either plays a card into the sea, or if strategically better than playing one of the cards in their hand, they can opt to discards two cards. This makes player turns pretty fluid, though there are times when you are faced with a difficult decision to make: which cards to discard and which to keep. Because players never know what cards other players have thrown out or have yet to draw, this can be more challenging than you might think.

Another thing that increases the difficulty of this game is that you cannot predict when a player will draw a Start card from their card pile. Once this happens, they must play the Start card on their next turn. Playing a Start card triggers the discarding of a total of eight cards from the collective players' hands. Discarding due to the Start card being played is the one time having fewer players is more challenging.

Overall learning curve

The overall learning curve for this game is low. While Tranquility is easy to learn, you definitely get better at it over time. Also, this game has a bit of luck involved. Players never know what numbers other players have thrown out or what numbers are left to draw. Card numbers are also not necessarily evenly distributed amongst the player card piles which can lead to more challenging games.

Play Type

Tranquility is a cooperative game where players need to fill the sea with islands numbered 1-80 inside the play area, all without talking to one another. This is a symmetrical game where each player has an equal chance to play cards that will help move the game towards a win.

What makes this game challenging is that players cannot discuss their cards, players never see which cards other players are discarding, and even when you place a card next to the next chronological number, you still have to discard a card from your hand. This is because every time a card is played next to an existing card, you must discard the difference between the two numbers for a minimum of one and a maximum of four since you only have a total of five cards in your hand.

Game Flow

Since players have only two choices on their turn - play a card or discard two cards, the game flows fairly quickly. The one thing that can slow players down is when another player plays where they had intended to play, possibly leaving them without a play on their turn. This just means they have to discard two cards, but you must be careful discarding this way as it is very easy to run out of cards. If any one player discards too quickly, they will trigger the end of game and players will lose.

Rule you are likely to forget or miss

Though this is a simple game, and perhaps because of that, there are a few things we forgot when playing.

1. After playing, immediately draw your hand back up to five cards.
2. When playing a tile next to the next sequential number, you still have to discard one card.
3. The cards are numbered 1-80, not 1-100!

Favorite aspect

We love how challenging this game can be to win compared to how little time it takes to set up and teach someone to play. Tranquility is an extremely versatile game that would be great as a gift for friends looking for better games, people who travel a lot or anyone looking for a smaller game to kick off game nights.

Overall this game is one worth having and keeping on your shelves. Tranquility is a fun game to play with groups since it is cooperative and players win or lose together. Also, the game takes up a small space, is great for starting or ending a game night, and would be a perfect way to introduce friends to new games they have possibly not heard of and that are more strategic.