A Rapid Review of Bazaar

Submitted by Chris James on 03/20/2014 - 16:01. Category: Reviews

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by Chris James Editor-in-Chief and Award-Winning Game Designer

Bazaar is a reprint by Gryphon Games that is, at its core, all about currency exchange. Fortunately for those of us who choose not to engage in public displays of arithmetic, there are no numbers involved — just colors.

Cards represent the wares in a marketplace, with each one worth a specific combination of colored marbles. On a turn, a player may randomly collect a marble, purchase a ware card, or trade in one or more of his marbles for a different set. Arbitrary marble exchange rates are randomly selected at the beginning of the game from a set of 10 different exchange cards. When a ware card is purchased, points are immediately scored based on the number of marbles remaining in the player’s possession, with bonus points scored for cards marked with a star.

This game, while simple to pick up, requires careful planning to make your way from one set of marbles to another that will buy the best wares with as few left over as possible. But best of all, it’s fun!