SUMMARY:

Ages: 8+
Players: 2-4
Est. Length: 30-45 Minutes
Game Design: Michael Kiesling
Illustrations: Chris Quilliams
Producer: Sophie Gravel
Publisher: Plan B Games Inc.
Genre: Abstract
Mechanics: Tile Placement, Set Collection

Reviewer: Lex Judge

INTRODUCTION

After hitting the board game scene in 2017, Azul’s instant rise in popularity can only be described as meteoric. Any game that becomes so quickly beloved has certainly earned the title of a “modern classic”. In three short years, the games success has already led to two sequels and an expansion (more on those later); an impressive feat in the board game industry.
Although it’s considered an “abstract” game like chess or checkers, Azul is dripping in theme. The artwork and components instantly transports you back to 13th century Portugal. The game mechanics, or player actions/strategies, give you the satisfaction that comes with skillfully laying beautiful tiles on a wall, without the hard work and sore hands that come with manual labor.
In Azul, players take turns choosing different colored tiles from shared piles in the middle of the table. They take these tiles and place them into rows on the left-hand side of their individual player board. After all the tiles have been taken, players take one tile from each of their completed rows and place it on their “wall”, located on the right side of the player board. Players will score one point for every tile placed, as well as bonus points for placing them adjacent to tiles that were placed in previous rounds. Players will also score even more points for completing rows and columns on your wall, and collecting sets of colors. Any tiles that can’t fit into the rows falls onto the “floor”, losing the player points.

THE MOMENT THE GAME “CLICKED”

Unlike watching television or reading a book, board games inherently have a learning curve. Every time you want to play a new game, you first have to learn how to play it. Games vary in difficulty and complexity, but every game has a moment where it just “clicks”. Once this moment happens, you’re able to fully grasp how the game is played, and what the goal is. This moment happens at different times for different people, but having an idea of when it can happen is a good indicator of whether or not you’ll enjoy learning and playing a game.

In Azul, this moment arrives quickly and naturally. I have taught this game to friends, families, coworkers, children, grandparents, even strangers. Every single person I have played with has been able to fully grasp all the rules and mechanics by the end of the first round. I speculate that part of the reason the game has become so popular is how wonderfully simple the rules are. The rulebook is printed on a single tri-fold piece of paper, and it very clearly explains everything you need to know to pick the game up and dive right in. Even though the rules are simple, the strategy is compelling and there is enough randomness that the game begs to be played again and again, giving it good replay value.

SHOULD YOU PLAY IT?

Emphatically, yes. I have yet to introduce or recommend this game to a single person who did not enjoy it. It’s a staple of my personal collection and I can pull it out for a reliably entertaining and enjoyable time, regardless of the age/tastes of the group I’m playing with. Hitherto has a copy of Azul available to play in our demo collection, so you can come in and try before you buy.

Like I mentioned earlier, Azul also has an expansion (Azul: Crystal Mosaic) and two sequel games (Azul: Stained Glass of Sintra and Azul: Summer Pavilion).
The Crystal Mosaic expansion can only be played with the base game Azul. It adds unique player boards, as well as plastic overlays that keep the tiles and cubes from moving around. It is a nice add-on, but not required to play the base game.
Stained Glass of Sintra and Summer Pavilion are standalone games that do not require you to have any of the other Azul products. Both of these games look and feel similar to base Azul, but are very different in strategy and complexity. There is a lot of debate in the board game community to which version of Azul is the best. I personally believe that Summer Pavilion is the best of the three, and that Stained Glass of Sintra isn’t even worthy to be part of the series, but I know others who feel exactly the opposite. (Let us know in the comments which one is your favorite, and why.)
In any case, the base game of Azul is a great starting point, not only to the Azul series of games, but to the hobby of modern board gaming.
Hitherto has all the different types of Azul currently available*, so come check them out for yourself!

Happy Gaming!

*subject change based on availability