Tabletop Spotlight: Saint Malo

Reader side-note: Yes, I missed last week. It was super busy with work and other things IRL, as they say. I hope none of you missed Tabletop Spotlight too much.

Welcome to yet another edition of Tabletop Spotlight, where I review board games (and games of all kinds) for your internet reading pleasure! Tonight’s spotlight shines on a recent addition to my personal gaming library, Saint Malo by Ravensburger. We first played it with my old boss after he came back from Essen-fest last year and it was an instant hit in my book.

Saint Malo is a strategic dice game for 2-5 players that uses a combination of area control on dry erase boards and pure luck of the dice roll. Now, I got a chance to try this game out a week or two ago with some of our WCR contributors… In fact, I got to play a game with Toonsem (and very nearly beat him!), and he seemed to enjoy it.

While Ravensburger is not known for having super deep strategy games in their repertoire (and Saint Malo definitely is NOT as hard as other dice based board games out there), I think this game has a nice balance of luck and player choice that really makes this game shine. Players take turns rolling the dice until they are satisfied with their roll (think Yahtzee), gaining vital resources for their own little province of Saint Malo. Lumber to build new houses, building walls for defense, and populating their tiny island towns all comes from the dice rolls.

One of my favorite parts of Saint Malo is that you actually get to draw on the board! The game comes with a set of fine tip dry erase markers, and players use these to mark new structures and citizens on their boards. It really adds a fun element to the game, and you can make your houses and churches look like whatever you want (which can get very cool).

Every once in a while, the players will have to defend themselves as a group against pirate raids. The dice have a side that force progress on a track board along towards a pirate attack. This interesting little mechanic creates somewhat of a third party influence in the game, and really can be a deal-breaker. If you haven’t created sufficient defenses against the pirate attacks, you lose five victory points for each time you fail the check… This means players can stack the odds in their favor by getting ready early and allowing the pirates to attack! (Note: you will lose friends doing this)

Honestly, this little dice roller has really impressed me. It moves well, there is just enough player interaction to be exciting, and it really makes you want to play again and again. I think this would also be a great game to play with younger kids. The box says 9+ but you could probably swing it with kids as young as six or seven. Gameplay is accessible, but not to a point where it gets boring. The makings of a great game. Fans of dice games and light-hearted strategy, check this one out for sure!