Veterans of the franchise may look at the inclusions in the box with slight dismay. With the expansions there is more content to be had from owning all of the Third Edition content. With Fantasy Flight relaunching the base game logic says the extra stuff will come too, at least at some point. For a Twilight Imperium noob there is a huge wealth of content in the box. Each element adds a new layer, and these all build up to make each and every game feel different. There are 17 playable races and only 6 of these factions can ever appear in one game. 50 Agenda cards are included in the box and while two of these are used in every Agenda phase this doesn’t occur for the full game and often only around 14 are used: a number which reduces if the game ends before the end of the last round.
Then there’s the modular hexagon based board which even if you follow the manual is setup in different layouts depending on the player count. Once you have a greater understanding of the game’s balance you can throw those configurations out the window and make your own. As so many elements can change from one game to the next, to see all of the content you will have to sink countless hours into the game, something many will not have a problem with. What is incredible is that despite all of the possible change the core of the game keeps its identity from one game to the next, this is always Twilight Imperium no matter what comes up.
There is a significant difference between commodities and trade goods that is simple once thought about but can initially confuse some. Lore wise, commodities are a resource that is made in abundance by your race. Alas, this means they are useless to you until used when bartering with another player. When you receive a commodity from another player it becomes a trade good that can be spent as a resource. Once this has happened once or twice it becomes an obvious mechanic but can confuse some at the beginning whom look to spend commodities as a resource.
There is the potential for a slightly anticlimactic ending to Twilight Imperium. Some of the victory point awarding objectives are very passive. A victory by one of these might to some be a bit of a let-down but what is certain is that somewhere in any game some huge battles have occurred. This negates the glum feeling of any anticlimactic ending that would have otherwise put a dampener on the game. Thankfully, most players seem drawn to the aggressive side of the game so commonly the final victory point is as awarded after some victorious battle, it’s just a potential outcome that is worth noting.
As the game begins everyone is off in their own sections of the board. This allows everyone a round or two without the worry of any major conflict as players start to build and tech up. After around three rounds however, and if no combat has broken out, there is a real cold war vibe that only increases. As deals are made, and alliances are kind of formed, there becomes a limit to when players need to make an aggressive strike. As soon as the war drums are beaten by one player though conflict starts to spill out across the galaxy. The impact is almost exaggerated by the tension built by massing of units in adjacent systems. Who will make the first strike, potentially weakening themselves and an opponent at the same time for a counter-strike.
Do not confuse my enthusiasm for the game with it being easy to jump into. There’s a lot going on on the board to be aware of: from the movement of others to the true value of claiming planets. There is a tech tree which includes ample upgrades to ships and race. Everyone has the same types of ships but your cruisers stats may be different to most of your opponents, subtly but there will be a difference. Each race will have two race specific technologies they can research and race specific abilities. Once you have got a round or two under your belt things do start to click and make logical sense but this is far from a light game, players will be constantly thinking throughout the 6 – 8 hours of game time.
There are some things that help make things a little easier. Especially in my first game, not so much of an issue after that, I constantly forgot what ship was what. Thankfully the race player sheets, which have the ship stats, have ship schematic like images. With a quick glance, players can look at their sheet and the board and determine which ship is which. This really helps to keep the flow of the game and the rulebook, which undoubtedly will get checked at times, stay on the table more often than not.
The same care and attention to making things stand out and be as obvious as possible has been paid to the planets themselves. Again, using only a quick glance, via a use of coloured symbols and numbers, players can instantly tell what a planet offers resource/influence wise. These are only a couple of examples but there are several other ways the cards and board tiles have been designed to make rules or identifying things that bit easier. Something which is perfect for noobs and veterans alike.
Board games aren’t always cheap. A sentiment which certainly applies to Twilight Imperium Fourth Edition. This is a heavy box, a heavy game and a heavy hit on your gaming budget too! If you hadn’t guessed already, I am in awe of this game. Despite this is find it impossible to recommend multiple people within a gaming group owning a copy of the game. To counter this every serious gaming group that loves a weightier game should own or at least play Twilight Imperium Fourth Edition.
Splitting the cost between the group would be a great way to get the game into your life and doing the maths can show how it is possible to justify the price. The game is for 3 – 6 players. A standard 10 victory point game lasts at least 4 hours, at the lowest player count, but on average it’s around 6-7 hours. For this example, let’s go with a lower middle player count of 4 with the game lasting 6 hours, gives us in total 24 hours of time spent. Priced at $150, that gives a price of $6.25 per hour per player after only one game. If instead we look at after one full 6 player game for 8 hours it equates to only $3.13 per hour per player. Breaking it down like this shows it can be very good value you just have to make sure it gets played and doesn’t become that grand shelf ornament.
As someone whom is a huge fan of anything space it is hard to explain how epic Twilight Imperium Fourth Edition looks when it is set up, let alone when the game is in full flow. The production quality is staggering. From the beautiful artwork on the race sheets, the stunning modular board laid out in the middle of the table through to the 354 plastic miniatures that are included everything is a visual treat that goes some way to justify the price tag.
Coming into Twilight Imperium Fourth Edition I was new to the franchise. After only a few plays I feel I’m still very much a Twilight Imperium amateur. Despite the size of this behemoth of a game and the complexity of the rules I have certainly spent a lot of time with the game and got to grips with the core of it. There are intricacies I’m sure I have not experienced and will not experience for many games yet, there is just that amount of possible varieties.
Without a shadow of a doubt I’ve enjoyed every single minute of playtime so far, and there have been a lot of minutes! My only fear is that I won’t be able to get the game to the table with any regularity, it is a serious commitment for players to devote a good chunk of a day to play. Is this a pricy game? Yes, it isn’t cheap. Can it justify the price tag? Again, yes. Compare this to other mediums such as going to the cinema, or even buying enough other board games to efficiently fill the same length of time, and it can easily.
I went into TI4 hoping for, almost expecting, a brilliant grandiose space opera of a board game. Not only was I not let down I’m still blown away by the quality that oozes out of every pour of Twilight Imperium Fourth Edition. How a game can last 6 – 8 hours and still feel like the time has flown by, baffles me. Whether this feeling will cease I’m unsure, will Twilight Imperium Fourth Edition ever lose its space on my gaming shelf? I just cannot see it happening.
[Editor’s Note: Twilight Imperium Fourth Edition was provided to us for review purposes by Fantasy Flight Games.]
