Author Topic: Mint Works  (Read 3848 times)

Offline dirk2112

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Mint Works
« on: March 28, 2017, 04:27:26 AM »
We don't travel much, but when we do, we like to take little games with us.  Usually card games (Sushi Go) are about all that fit in a pocket.  When I saw the kickstarter for Pack O Game and Mint Works, they were instant buys.  Here is my tiny review of a tiny game called Mint Works.

Components:
  • They look like Mints!  Make sure nobody eats them.  They are wood and not plastic so they feel nice.
  • The cards looks and feel nice.  There is a decent variety of plan cards.  There are 4 optional extra locations and you can use 2 during any game.
  • The tin looks like a real Altoids tin! 
  • The instruction manual doesn't fit in the tin, so you have to cut the corners.  No big deal, but the one downside to this product.
  • I was missing 2 mints, so I emailed the company.  I hope they send me replacements.

Rules:
  • Easy to understand.  There are 2 phases, placement and upkeep.
  • Whoever gets 7 stars first wins.  In the case of the tie, the tied person with the fewest buildings wins

Player Interactivity:
  • Being first player is really an advantage.  It is always worth it to spend a mint to become the first player
  • When Supplier or Building slots fill up, there will be someone at the table groaning. 
  • Sometimes it is worthwhile to build a building that doesn't help you as much as it prevents an opponent from scoring big
Overall Impressions:
  • This game is a lot of fun and well worth the price.
  • The game only takes about 10 minutes to play after learning the rules, so you can order dinner at a restaurant and play before your food comes out.
  • It is a really cute game and a good introduction to worker placement for those who have never tried that mechanic.
  • There seems to be 3 strategies to winning this game.   A) Creating a money/mint creation engine.  B) Creating a Star creation engine (some buildings increase the stars they provide as time goes on or other buildings are made.  C) Blocking others while minimally helping yourself

Our first 2 games:
Game #1 my son built a museum early which gives you one additional star per turn.  He frequently went for the first player token and was able to build 2 more buildings over 3 turns to give himself the win.  Final score son 7, me 6, wife 3. 

Game #2 I went for buildings that generated money.  By turn 3, I could buy and build anything I wanted.  The temp agency kept them from blocking me, so I won fairly quickly.  Final score me 7, son 4, wife 4. 

Linkback: https://www.carcassonnecentral.com/community/index.php?topic=3227.0
« Last Edit: March 28, 2017, 04:57:03 AM by dirk2112 »

Offline danisthirty

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Re: Mint Works
« Reply #1 on: March 28, 2017, 05:00:22 AM »
Thanks for your post dirk2112, I always enjoy reading your reviews.

I've seen people posting about this on Facebook, but most of these posts related to the fact that it was really small and didn't go into what was actually in the box or how good the game was.

+1 merit for your efforts! :) :(y)

Offline Decar

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Re: Mint Works
« Reply #2 on: March 28, 2017, 12:56:18 PM »
    • There seems to be 3 strategies to winning this game.   A) Creating a money/mint creation engine.  B) Creating a Star creation engine (some buildings increase the stars they provide as time goes on or other buildings are made.  C) Blocking others while minimally helping yourself

    These sound like good strategies to life to be honest...  :(y)

    Thanks for the review Dirk - This one was totally off my radar, but it looks neat, so might have to find a copy.  With a short play time, it might it the table....between meals ;)

    Offline danisthirty

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    Re: Mint Works
    « Reply #3 on: May 16, 2017, 02:53:46 PM »
    Decar and I played a couple of games of this a few days ago and I really enjoyed it. I think it's fair to say that when we first tried to set it up and learn the rules I wasn't expecting much, and it took us a few "practice games" to get to grips with the rules properly, but once we knew what we were doing it turned out to be a fantastic little game. Very little in fact.

    I'm looking forward to seeing how different it is when played as a 3 or a 4 tomorrow at work, and have bought a pack of Tic Tacs so that I'll be prepared if we run out of mints! ;)

    Components:
    • The instruction manual doesn't fit in the tin, so you have to cut the corners.  No big deal, but the one downside to this product.

    The instruction manual and the reference sheet do just about fit into the box I have, but only with a little bit of persuading. I don't think they would stand up to being taken out and put in again many times over, but I haven't had to resort to cutting the corners off yet!

    Rules:
    • Whoever gets 7 stars first wins.  In the case of the tie, the tied person with the fewest buildings wins

    My understanding was that since the number of stars aren't evaluated until the Upkeep phase, you might be the first to get 7 stars but if another player gets to 8 (or more) during the same turn they would beat you when scoring takes place. Is this correct?

    Player Interactivity:
    • Being first player is really an advantage.  It is always worth it to spend a mint to become the first player

    Definitely agree with this; being the start player can be very powerful indeed. However, I'd argue that since you get a mint back as soon as you have claimed the Leadership Council, you're spending a turn rather than a mint (which can be equally hard to justify if you have other plans too).

    Offline Decar

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    Re: Mint Works
    « Reply #4 on: May 16, 2017, 03:05:48 PM »
    Decar and I played a couple of games of this a few days ago and I really enjoyed it. I think it's fair to say that when we first tried to set it up and learn the rules I wasn't expecting much, and it took us a few "practice games" to get to grips with the rules properly, but once we knew what we were doing it turned out to be a fantastic little game. Very little in fact.

    Yes I just played my wife and we both liked it, the short play time is good...sometimes a little too short perhaps.


    The instruction manual and the reference sheet do just about fit into the box I have, but only with a little bit of persuading. I don't think they would stand up to being taken out and put in again many times over, but I haven't had to resort to cutting the corners off yet!
    Burn the rule sheet - it's terrible!


    My understanding was that since the number of stars aren't evaluated until the Upkeep phase, you might be the first to get 7 stars but if another player gets to 8 (or more) during the same turn they would beat you when scoring takes place. Is this correct?
    That's right, you can't rush that ending, my wife managed to win 10 points in the last round!

    I still think 3 mints should be worth a Star in the final upkeep phase too :)

    Offline dirk2112

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    Re: Mint Works
    « Reply #5 on: May 16, 2017, 06:53:14 PM »
    Wow!  We haven't had any games go over 7 stars.
     We have had a few ties and in both instances a winner was declared based on number of buildings.
    « Last Edit: May 16, 2017, 07:06:36 PM by dirk2112 »

    Offline Decar

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    Re: Mint Works
    « Reply #6 on: May 16, 2017, 11:47:54 PM »
    My wife had 4 points, then in a single turn bought a building that was worth "2 stars for every building"  so that made 6 + the 4 she already had  :o :o. It only cost 5 and she had 7 mints!

    Offline Decar

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    Re: Mint Works
    « Reply #7 on: June 30, 2017, 05:38:13 AM »
    FYI:  Mint Delivery is in progress:

    https://www.instagram.com/p/BV8d_QpjURA/

    Offline Hproctor1478

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    Re: Mint Works
    « Reply #8 on: June 30, 2017, 06:01:50 AM »
    This looks fun!  Thanks dirk2112 we may have to check it out, as it will allow us a quick game to unwind with on a busy day:)


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    Offline danisthirty

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    Re: Mint Works
    « Reply #9 on: June 30, 2017, 06:08:29 AM »
    Thanks for the heads up Decar! If this is even half as good as the original it will be very well received by me! :(y)


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