Matagot MTGISLE001 Treasure Island, Mixed Colours

Product Information

This is a rare chance to obtain this classic board game in great condition and with all of the original treasure and playing pieces. I always play: if it’s close enough, it’s good enough. But anyone with a competitive streak could easily turn Treasure Island from a fun activity to the dinner scene from Donnie Darko.

You'll grow more powerful with time, which makes it easier to deal with their growing encroachments. Ultimately, you want to strike so much fear into their hearts that they decide to abandon the island altogether. I mentioned that it leaves me wanting more, and I think that’s a takeaway that plenty of games could learn from. I don’t know that Treasure Island is the best deductive game, or one-vs-many game, or best pirate game. It won’t be for some, despite the merits I listed above. Treasure Island initially looks quite opulent, and in many ways it is. However, the map itself is very dense with various elements that could be important. This is fine in and of itself, but becomes a bit of an issue when it’s hard to see everything or make sense of it all, especially when the elements often apply to clues. As each turn progresses, Long John gains bonuses, additional clue cards and wax seals which he places beneath the clue cards. The seal hides the truth about Long John's clues; did he lie, speak truth or was it a half-truth?As each turn passes by, more of the board is covered with drawings and markings of failed searches, each one adding to the ever-increasing tension of the hunt. Long John Silver serves up hints and clues that could help his crew strike gold or could leave them struggling to decipher which direction was true and which was actually a bluff. One player takes on the role of Long John silver who has hidden his treasure somewhere on the island before being imprisoned. Through a series of clues which may be true, somewhat true or downright pirate lies, Long John directs the other players around the island in search of his treasure.

The fun, laughter and banter is aplenty in Treasure Island and we all look forward to replaying this again and again, taking on different roles and characters all who have special unique abilities and actions. However, if you’re not a robot – like me – and enjoy adding a bit of creativity and flair to your games, then there’s absolutely room for Treasure Island to sit alongside other deduction games in your collection. Escalating the problem is that some of the marker colors it comes with are miserably hard to see on the board, either the public board or your player map. If you have the green marker, for example…I’m sorry. The game board depicts the sea, broken into squares. Around the edges are ports, some owned by players, others being "free ports". At the centre is Treasure Island, upon which are The other point is that both of those instances are rare. The game seems well-balanced to create a rising sense of tension, with the final few turns either glorious in the triumph, or agonizing in how close the seekers came to finding it.Speaking of, Treasure Island is more than just a straight deduction game, it allows for cleverness and has a novelty rarely matched by other titles in the deduction genre. Treasure Island by Matagot Games is a one vs many bluffing and misdirection game of hidden treasure and pirate hide and seek. Interaction is strong throughout the game and down time between your go is almost non-existent, with everyone studying each other's moves for the revealing of clues and possible hints of where to search next. Interaction is strong throughout the game and down time between your go is almost non-existent, with everyone studying each other’s moves for the revealing of clues and possible hints of where to search next. Tactility– You’ll literally have a map that looks like it belongs to a deranged conspiracy theorist by the end, and will have physically traversed it with marker lines, your character token, compass lines and more. It’s a wonderful application of the tactile thrill that board games are so good at creating. Production Values & Components

Treasure Island has so much going on, and pretty much all of it is great. Let’s go through some of them: However, when I started to think about how to sum this game up, “my favorite game under an hour” flashed through my head, and that seems like a respectable title for a game to have. For clarity, I don’t actually know if it holds that personal title for me. There are at least a few others in the running. But it’s definitely in the conversation. The more interesting problem is the X mark on your small map, and how you translate it to the larger map. It kind of creates a grey area for Long John Silver. Where they have to decide how lenient they’re going to be with their X. The game itself is in excellent condition with only minor signs of use. The box is generally in very good condition. It has only minor age/storage wear. There is some pen marking on the lid but most of this has been removed and is only noticeable on close inspection – see photos. Invaders are colonizing the island and spreading Blight across the lands. You must work with the native islanders to fend off the invaders. Of course, it's not that easy—even as you kill them off, they just keep coming round after round like an incessant plague.The game has been revised over the years. A major revision in 1958 saw the playing area change to a folding board with a square cut out for a plastic tray insert as Treasure Island. The island shrank to 4 x 4 squares and the playing area to 24 x 24 squares. However, the 1958 continued to be a 6 player game. The US version of the game was called Trade Winds and used slightly different rules and board additions. The winning condition was not changed, gathering treasure worth 20 points at the players home port. This 45-minute game (expect to play longer but don’t worry, it’s worth it) starts out with a one player choosing to be the incarceratedLong John Silver, with everyone else taking on the role of one of his mutinous pirate crew.