Today, we look at “Blue Lagoon,” a vibrant and strategic board game designed by the renowned Reiner Knizia and published by Blue Orange Games. As avid board game enthusiasts, we recently delved into this captivating world suitable for 2-4 players. Blue Lagoon offers a rich blend of strategy, resource management, and area control, all set against the picturesque backdrop of a newly discovered archipelago. Over several play sessions with different groups, we explored every nook and cranny of this game. Our goal was to provide a comprehensive review based on our firsthand experiences and insights gleaned from various other reviews. The combination of its accessible ruleset and deep strategic elements makes it a standout title that we were eager to fully immerse ourselves in.
Game Overview
In The board game Blue Lagoon, players step into the roles of tribal chiefs, guiding their people on an adventurous expedition to claim and settle the islands of a recently discovered archipelago. The game is elegantly divided into two distinct phases: the Exploration Phase and the Settlement Phase. Each phase requires careful strategic planning as players place settlers and villages, collect valuable resources (coconuts, bamboo, water, and precious stones), and vie to control various archipelago areas. It is an area majority type of game for 2-4 players. The dual-phase structure ensures that gameplay remains dynamic and engaging, with each phase presenting unique challenges and opportunities for tactical decision-making. As players navigate through these phases, they must balance immediate gains with long-term positioning to outmaneuver their opponents and emerge as the most renowned tribe in this lush, resource-rich paradise.
Components
The Blue Lagoon board game has elementary components, making it easy to play and understand. You can see the components laid out when you open the box, as shown in the image below.
Blue Lagoon has various high-quality components that enhance the game’s visual appeal and strategic depth. Each component is thoughtfully designed to ensure both functionality and aesthetics. Here’s a detailed look at each component and its role in the game:
Game Board
The game board is the centerpiece of Blue Lagoon, depicting a vibrant and colorful archipelago made up of eight islands surrounded by sea spaces. The design is both functional and visually appealing, with clearly marked spaces for resources and statuettes. The islands vary in size and shape, providing diverse strategic opportunities for players to explore and settle. The board’s layout encourages players to think critically about their placement strategies, balancing resource collection with area control.
Wooden Resources
There are 24 wooden resource tokens in the game, each representing one of four different types:
- Coconuts (White): These tokens symbolize food resources essential for the survival and prosperity of the tribe.
- Bamboo (Yellow): Representing building materials, bamboo tokens are crucial for constructing villages and other structures.
- Water (Light Blue): Water tokens signify vital hydration resources for sustaining island life.
- Precious Stones (Green): These tokens represent rare and valuable jewels that can be found on the islands.
Each resource token is uniquely shaped and colored, making them easily distinguishable during gameplay. Collecting these resources is a crucial aspect of the game, as they contribute to scoring at the end of each phase.
Wooden Statuettes
The game includes eight wooden statuettes (brown), adding an extra strategy layer to Blue Lagoon. These statuettes represent cultural artifacts or symbols of prestige within the tribe. Collecting statuettes provides additional points, encouraging players to prioritize their collection alongside other resources. The statuettes’ distinctive design makes them stand out on the board, allowing players to identify and target them during their turns quickly.
Wooden Villages
Each player also receives five wooden villages in their chosen color. Villages play a critical role in both phases of the game:
- During the Exploration Phase, villages can be placed on land spaces adjacent to previously placed pieces. They serve as hubs for further expansion onto the islands.
- In the Settlement Phase, villages left in non-resource spaces from the Exploration Phase act as starting points for placing new settlers.
Villages are designed to be easily distinguishable from settlers, with a larger size and unique shape that signifies their importance in establishing control over key areas.
Linen Bag
The linen bag included in Blue Lagoon holds and randomly distributes the resource tokens and statuettes at the beginning of each phase. The bag’s durable construction ensures it can withstand repeated use, while its size allows for easy mixing and drawing of tokens. This random distribution mechanism adds an element of unpredictability to each game, ensuring that no two playthroughs are exactly alike.
Score Pad
The scorepad is essential for tracking players’ scores at the end of each phase. It includes sections for recording points from various scoring criteria, such as island occupation, links between islands, majorities on individual islands, resources collected, and statuettes acquired. The scorepad’s clear layout helps players quickly tally their points and compare scores throughout the game.
Art and Design of Components
The artwork in Blue Lagoon is vibrant and thematic, capturing the essence of a tropical archipelago teeming with life and resources. It almost reminds us of another favorite game Finca which also has wooden fruits and tropical theme. The illustrations on the game board and components are detailed yet clear, enhancing both immersion and functionality. The overall design aesthetic contributes to an engaging gaming experience by creating a visually appealing environment that draws players into the world of exploration and settlement.
Combining high-quality materials with thoughtful design elements, Blue Lagoon offers a premium gaming experience that appeals to casual players and experienced strategists. Each component facilitates smooth gameplay while adding depth and replayability to this captivating board game.
Blue Lagoon Setup
Setting up Blue Lagoon is a straightforward yet crucial part of the game, ensuring that each playthrough is unique and engaging. Here’s a comprehensive guide to setting up the game:
1. Game Board: Begin by laying out the game board, which depicts eight islands that form the archipelago. The board is visually appealing and marked with spaces for resources and statuettes.
2. Resources and Statuettes: The game includes 24 wooden resource tokens representing coconuts (white), bamboo (yellow), water (light blue), and precious stones (green). Additionally, there are eight wooden statuettes (brown). Place all these items into the provided linen bag and give it a good shake to mix them up thoroughly. Then, draw the pieces individually and place them randomly on the island spaces with a circle of stones. This random distribution ensures variability in each game, making every session feel fresh and new.
3. Score Pad: Put the score pad near the game board, where it is easily visible to all players. This will be used to track scores at the end of each phase.
4. Player Components: Each player chooses a color and takes their corresponding pieces. Depending on the number of players, distribute the following:
- 2-player game: Each player takes all 30 settlers and five villages.
- 3-player game: Each player takes 25 settlers and five villages, leaving five settlers in the box.
- 4-player game: Each player takes 20 settlers and five villages, leaving ten settlers in the box.
Blue Lagoon Gameplay Mechanics
Blue Lagoon combines strategy and resource management, which are standard euro-type mechanics. There are two main phases: the Exploration Phase and the Settlement Phase. Both phases require strategic placement of settlers and villages, efficient resource collection, and control of key areas on the board. Let’s explore the gameplay mechanics in detail:
Exploration Phase
Starting the Phase: First, the youngest player starts, and the play proceeds clockwise. During their turn, a player must place one of their pieces (either a settler or a village) on an unoccupied space on the board. Settlers can be placed in any sea space initially, boat-side up, which allows players to establish points of entry onto the islands later. Afterwards, other settler pieces can be placed next to them (land side up) in order to inhabit the island. Villages also cannot be placed in sea spaces but on land adjacent to previously placed pieces.
After the initial placement, subsequent settlers or villages must be placed on unoccupied island spaces adjacent to a piece already placed by the player in a previous turn. This rule enforces a strategic expansion from the sea onto the islands.
Players collect that item immediately when placing a piece on a space with a resource or statuette.
Collecting these resources is vital for scoring points at the end of each phase. Statuettes provide additional 4 points per statue and can be a deciding factor in close games.
All collected resources and statuettes must always be visible to all players. This transparency allows players to adjust their strategies based on what their opponents have gathered.
The Exploration Phase ends when all resources have been collected or all players have placed their settlers and villages on the board.
At this point, scores are tallied based on several criteria, including islands occupied, links created between islands, majorities on individual islands, resources collected, and statuettes acquired. The image below shows an example.
Scoring After the Exploration Phase
- Islands: Players score points for having pieces on multiple islands (e.g., 20 points for being present on all eight islands).
- Links: Points are awarded for creating chains of pieces that link multiple islands (e.g., 5 points per linked island).
- Majorities: Players with the most pieces on an island score points indicated on the board (6, 8, or 10 points). Ties result in divided points.
- Resources: Points are given for collecting sets of matching resources (e.g., 20 points for 4+ matching resources).
- Statuettes: Each statuette collected is worth 4 points.
Settlement Phase
Preparation: First, remove all settlers from the board along with any remaining resources and statuettes. Villages placed on island spaces with stone circles are removed and discarded. Then, redistribute all resources and statuettes by placing them back into the linen bag, shaking them to mix them up, and drawing them out one by one to place them randomly on the board again.
Starting the Phase: The player to the left of the one who took the last turn during the Exploration Phase starts this phase, and then play continues clockwise from this point.
Placing Settlers: Unlike the Exploration Phase, players can only place settlers adjacent to their existing pieces or villages left over from the previous phase. Settlers can also be placed in sea spaces, but only if adjacent to previously placed pieces.
Resource Collection: Similar to the first phase, placing a settler on a space with a resource or statuette allows players to collect that item immediately.
Strategic Considerations: Players must carefully plan their moves to maximize resource collection while also positioning themselves advantageously for area control; balancing immediate gains with long-term positioning is key to success in this phase.
Ending the Phase: The Settlement Phase ends when either all resources have been collected, or all players have placed all of their settlers on the board. The end of the second phase is shown in the image below.
Final Scoring
Scoring Criteria: The same criteria used in the Exploration Phase apply:
- Islands occupied
- Links created between islands
- Majorities on individual islands
- Resources collected
- Statuettes acquired
Totaling Scores: Players add scores from both phases to determine their final score.
Determining the Winner: The player with the highest total score wins. In case of a tie, the player with the most resources and statuettes wins; otherwise, tied players share victory.
By understanding these detailed mechanics and strategic nuances, players can fully appreciate Blue Lagoon’s depth and enjoy crafting their paths to victory through careful planning and tactical execution.
Pros and Cons of Blue Lagoon
Pros
- Easy to Learn: The rules are straightforward, making it accessible for new players while still offering depth for seasoned gamers.
- Strategic Depth: Multiple scoring avenues ensure no single strategy dominates, keeping gameplay fresh and engaging.
- High-Quality Components: The game features durable wooden pieces and a beautifully illustrated board that enhances the overall experience.
- Dual-Phase Gameplay: The transition between the Exploration and Settlement Phases adds complexity and requires adaptable strategies, keeping players engaged throughout.
- Replayability: Randomized resource placement ensures that no two games are alike, providing endless replay value.
- Appeals to a Broad Audience: It is suitable for both casual family game nights and more competitive gaming sessions with friends.
- Easy on the eyes: The board and the components are easily distinguished, not too detailed making this game a relaxing experience.
Cons
- Abstract Theme: Some players may find the theme somewhat pasted on and not fully integrated with the gameplay mechanics.
- Scoring Complexity: Remembering all scoring criteria can be challenging without frequently referencing the scorepad, which might slow down the game for new players.
- Luck Factor: The random distribution of resources can introduce an element of luck, which might not appeal to players who prefer purely strategic games.
- Component Management: Setting up and resetting between phases requires careful component management, which could be slightly cumbersome for some players. Some small components can be a little bit fiddley.
- Player Count Limitations: While the game plays well with 2-4 players, it may scale less effectively for larger groups looking for a similar experience.
Conclusion
After several playthroughs of Blue Lagoon, we can confidently say this game stands out in strategic board gaming. Designed by Reiner Knizia, known for classics like “Tigris & Euphrates” and “Lost Cities,” but also newer games like Witchstone. Blue Lagoon offers an elegant blend of simple rules and deep strategy.
One memorable game involved strategically linking islands and collecting diverse resources, with tension rising as we countered each other’s moves. The dual-phase structure—exploration and Settlement—adds complexity and requires adaptable strategies. But as you can see in the images, the yellow player dominated us all.
The game balances accessibility and depth, making it suitable for both casual and seasoned gamers. Its high-quality wooden pieces and vibrant board enhance the experience. Fans of “Catan” or “Ticket to Ride” will find familiar yet distinct challenges here.
Whether playing with family or competitive friends, everyone enjoyed the mix of strategy and direct interaction.
In conclusion, Blue Lagoon is a testament to Knizia’s design genius. It combines strategy, resource management, and area control in a beautifully designed package, offering endless replayability. If you’re looking for an engaging and strategic adventure, Blue Lagoon is a fantastic choice that will become a cherished addition to your collection.
