Fromage
review by Taylor
“Compete to run the most prosperous creamery in France.”
Live out your European cheesemonger dreams while playing Fromage from R2i Games. Fromage takes all the best parts of worker placement games like Viticulture, Everdell and others without the long play time. Cleverly designed, the board allows all players to simultaneously take their turns and then players rotate the cheese wheel to take actions on the next quadrant of the board. I would consider this a great gateway Euro game; the fast pace and different quadrants make it easy to focus on different goals as you move from turn to turn.
On your own personal board you can use resources to gather fruit, infrastructure and livestock to fulfill various orders while also working on different goals of each quadrant of the main board which thoughtfully resembles a cheese wheel.
Wedge one is the Bistro, in which your goal is to serve cheese to various restaurant patrons. There are various tables with pairs of plates. Different ages and various kinds of cheese garner different amounts of points; you gain more points for each table that you fill.
Wedge two features the Festival which allows players to play a bingo-esque cheese organization game. Using a 5x5 grid with assorted free spaces, you earn points for each of your continuous groups of cheese. Cheese that is next to more of free spaces tends to be worth more points, but requires being aged longer.
Wedge three is the Villes which focuses on your cheese distribution plans throughout the country. Divided into six sections, your goal is to gain the most points by gaining the most cheese selling influence in different regions. Higher aged and rated cheeses border multiple regions to gain you more points and with less cheese. Although it may take your workers longer to cultivate those cheeses they pay off in large point bonuses
Wedge four is the Fromagerie where you display your cheeses to impress customers and also receive other resources. Depending on which cheeses you choose to create you can gain more resources instantly, trade one resource for another or be forced to take a penalty if you can’t get one of the better cheese spots in time
The end game is triggered by one player placing their last cheese. You win the game by collecting the most victory points which are gained by completing the tasks and goals of each quadrant, fulfilling cheese orders and adding up excess resources and other bonus points you may have acquired throughout the game.
Fromage is brilliantly designed with how your workers return to you. Depending on the direction that the cheese you are working on is facing, you can have your cheese aged up to 3 months (or 3 turns of the board) before your worker token is facing front towards you again, at which point they return to your hand and can be used to create new cheeses. The theming is adorable and relevant to the cheese making process, with sturdy and cute tokens for all resources.
The speed of the game is a huge win; instead of taking the whole evening, a quick round can be played in 40 mins or less. Not only that, but as everyone is simultaneously taking their turns, there is less waiting around for indecisive players. The simultaneous gameplay makes Fromage the perfect game for impatient players and players trying to fly under the radar in their strategy as there is so much going on at once. Fromage is a current favorite in my apartment and for sure a great recommendation for those who love a worker placement game.
Fromage is available now from our webstore.