Customer Reviews

Dominion

5 star:		(221)
4 star:		(35)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Dominion is a deceptively simple appearing game which encompasses endless variation and fun. The basic game contains the following major components:

1. 25 groups of cards with additional money cards to supplement the game play (in total over 250 cards.)
2. Card storage and organizer designed specifically for organizing the components of the game.
3. The Rules.

Game Play:
A game starts with each player holding an identical small (10 cards) deck which contains the basic resources for starting play. As the game begins a group of 10 cards are selected from the 25 categories of cards in the box (the rules outline specific card selections for scenario play or people can design their own through customization. There is no banker or moderator; all players start entirely equal with the exact same cards.
During each player's turn they have the chance to take actions by playing cards from their hand and purchase new cards from the central decks (which are accessible to all players.) Each player has to balance the need to buy new cards and money, with the purchase of victory points (which remain in the player's deck but don't help them during the game itself until they are tallied up to determine the winner.)

I have to be honest, when I first heard about the game and had it described to me I didn't understand why my wife and several of our friends were so worked up over the thing. It sounded terribly dry and repetitive, particularly to a person like myself who has played collectable card games like magic the gathering for many years now

Nothing could have been farther from the truth.
Dominion has something for everyone, from the collectable card game nut, to the poker player, to the family looking for an alternative to trivial pursuit on Sunday nights. Since everyone starts out with access to the same selection of cards and the same resources for advancement, everyone has an equal chance of victory (which isn't the case in many games where the players construct their decks in advance of play.) Because there are 10 different categories of action cards (each category having at least 10 cards in its pile) to choose from there is plenty of room for strategy (particularly as the game progresses and certain resources are bought up to the point of extinction.)
The game is set up in such a way so that you can play cut throat games with lots of player-vs-player actions or less interactive games where the victory is determined who fields the most effective resource acquisition strategy. Those familiar with CCG drafting from sealed packs will feel right at home in this environment, while those with no card based gaming experience won't be at a disadvantage compared to those who have played card games extensively.

My only criticism of dominion (as has been said on several other forums) is that while the game is entirely self contained and doesn't require purchase of booster boxes and the like, I can easily see the cards (which are essential in exactly the numbers provided) wearing out or being lost. Because there are so many of them I recommend using card sleeves (available at most hobby stores from companies like rook and ultra pro.)

I started out one night thoroughly expecting to dislike this game and found myself 3 hours later having played several games and wondering where the evening had gone. This game is completely addictive and doesn't loose its fun factor after the player has played multiple scenarios in one sitting.

Simply put, this is the best interactive casual game I've played in 32 years.

Ok, I have to start this review off by saying I had my reservations about this game. I absolutely love Euro strategy games like Puerto Rico, Agricola, Power Grid, Caylus, etc, but I'm not into card games. In fact, I pretty much hate card games.

This game was getting a lot of publicity on BoardGameGeek and everyone was raving about it so I decided that I should buy it to give it a shot. I'm glad I did.

The whole point of the game is to build your deck of cards and build up a collection of victory points. The reason this game shines is because it is a quick game that only takes about 30-40 minutes to play. It is also very fun because as you are building your deck of cards you aren't usually getting rid of the cards. If you spend some gold to buy a card that gold goes back into your discard pile and will eventually be shuffled for you to use again in another turn.

There are over 500 cards in this game with around 25 different action cards available so you can vary the game a lot depending on what cards are currently on the table. The only downside is that someone that has played the game a lot and knows a base strategy can usually beat a new player easily.

Overall this game is very addicting and short, which is a good thing. You can play multiple rounds of this game in an evening as opposed to one game of another typical Euro.

In the days of technology and scheduled events we struggle to find times to connect with our children. Dominion has helped us renew that connection. My wife and I plus both our sons (age 17 & 11) LOVE playing this game together. Whether you go in with a fine tuned strategy or just "make it up as you go along" the opportunity to enjoy the game and win is presented. We love that the entire game play lasts about 30-40 minutes, we don't always have an entire day to devote to a game, but we have a half hour after dinner to enjoy the company of our kids. they will be moving out soon enough and beginning their own families. Dominion is a game that everyone wants to set aside what they are doing and play together. When was the last time your kids begged to play a game with Mom and Dad?

I picked up a copy of Dominion hot off the presses after I played it a few times at GenCon 2008 after it was introduced. I was amazed by the uniqueness of drafting cards into your hand by the way of getting money cards and increasing the size of your deck. The fact there were so many combos available to make the 10 types of cards to buy in the box seemed to offer limitless play. But I quickly began to see the cracks in the game.

While there are a lot of cards you can use to make up the ones you can buy to make your deck, they end up being pretty similar and there will be some you use all the time and some you'll never want to use for personal tastes. There will quickly emerge strategies that if you just work to build up your money cards and skip the majority of action cards you'll win >75% of the time. This cuts down on the fun since if everyone takes this route there isn't much to the game, and if you are the only one to do this, you'll find yourself bored as people try to chain actions after more actions to find they still don't have enough money in hand to buy the top victory point cards. This is the crux of why my love for the game has faded.

I time and again find myself bored as the other players take their turn. Since there only a handful of cards that cause you to interact with other players, you essentially all play 3 or 4 solitaire games at the same table. I don't find this interesting and would rather play strategy games, even light ones, that have some level of interaction, even if it just watching where the other player moves.

I have even tried to renew my interest by trying the expansions that have followed almost every 6 or so months after the release of Dominion in 2008. Some expansions offer more to the game (Seaside is probably one of the best, avoid Alchemy) it still comes down to being bored while everyone plays their own solitaire game until the end when you tally your points.

I rated this game a 3/5 and not lower because there will be some, even many, who will not hold the same boredom with this game and will love it. This game is a great light game that plays quickly, teaches quickly, and offers a lot to casual players. For people who play a lot of board games, particularly deeper strategy or Euro games, or even like the Axis & Allies or even Risk type of player interaction, this game may wear thin faster than for others.

Even though I rated it a 3, I would recommend this as a great game for families and casual gamers. I'd also recommend Ticket to Ride (any of them, but Marklin and Europe are probably the best, USA being the first and simplest), Carcassonne, and Settlers of Catan. These games are quick to learn, easy to play, and offer a good casual experience. For people looking for a little more depth and replayability, I'd recommend Pandemic (terrific cooperative game), Stone Age, Ra, Small World (one of my favorites), and Dixit (one of the best party games out there, the artwork is hands down the best). The rabbit hole of complexity and length goes as far as you are willing, but it is up to you to determine your needs of a game. Dominion is a great start, but if you've been playing other games it may be too thin to offer something for you.

Just got this game based on reviews at amazon and elsewhere. My wife and I have trouble playing game together (we both can handle losing, but it is tough when that means the winner is always your spouse !!!), but this one seems to appeal to both of us. Excellent game design with lots of variations based on which kingdom cards are in play. The first game took us about 1 1/2 hours including reading the rules and doing all the setup. Subsequent games take only about 1/2 hour, turns move quickly. The storage box is wonderfully designed making setup between games a cinch.

I disagree with one reviewer that says you should have a "house rule" to always have moat cards in play if you have attack cards in play; without moat cards the attack cards become more valuable, but can skew your strategy, you may focus too much on attack and forget to make progress toward your own win.

I am going to purchase the card protector sleeves, I can see this being a family favorite and I want to keep the cards in good shape.

Our other favorite games are:
** Acquire (a classic, still probably my favorite game of all time),
** Settlers of Catan (we have the extension to allow 6 to play)
** Ticket to Ride (get the 1910 expansion set, much more fun)
** Monopoly (still fun if played EXACTLY by the rules and is played quickly at the beginning to get the properties sold),
** Card games: Hand and Foot, Hearts, Oh Hell and Texas Holdem poker
** The Empire Builder series of "crayon" rail games (time consuming but fun - my extended family owns 7 different maps for this game. Hint: make a game board out of light plywood or foam board with rasied edges, get a piece of plexiglass cut to fit inside the edges, then put the map board under the plexiglass and use dry erase markers to play - makes a big difference - we also use this board for Catan so we don't accidentally move the numbers discs during play. When we have a "game weekend" we like to start one of these rail games each evening then play it on and off during the following day.
** Puerto Rico - we are still trying to get a handle on this game, lots of possible strategies and "resources", but very well designed turn play.

Dominion is a non-collectible card game published by the good people at Rio Grande Games. Players accumulate wealth, spend their wealth to make improvements to their town and then use those improvements to acquire more land. Land equals victory points for the most part. Whoever has the most victory points wins.

Dominion, like its evil cousins (collectible card games), is a game where players must manage their decks. If you can count cards, you will have a distinct advantage in Dominion. Counting cards is not necessary to be successful (or even to have fun with Dominion)--but serious, tournament gamers will be of the card counting variety. Because you must count your cards, you must manage which cards you put into your deck. You put cards into your deck through purchases.

Players start with 10 cards: 3 estates and 7 copper. Players draw an initial hand of 5 cards. At the end of your turn, you muck your hand (if you have a hand left) and then draw 5 more cards. Any cards you purchased go in your discard pile. Once your draw pile is empty, shuffle your discard pile and form a new draw pile.

You start the game with a complement of estates and copper. Estates score you 1 VP but otherwise clutter you hands. Copper is the least valuable coin. Using this starting complement you must purchase more valuable coins (silver and gold) and buildings.

Players will want more valuable coins because they only get 5 cards in their hands at one time. So if you happen to draw 5 copper coins, you only have $5 to spend. Each silver card is worth 2 copper and each gold is worth 3.

Players also will need to buy buildings. Buildings allow players to take extra actions (normally players only get 1). Some buildings allow players to make extra purchases (normally players only get 1). And some buildings give players special options like drawing extra cards, causing opponents to discard cards, etc. Deciding which buildings to buy is important. These buildings will be cluttering your hand. Will they give you the necessary economic engine to buy the more valuable land cards?

Acquiring land cards is a double edged sword. On the one hand, they are the primary way to get victory points. On the other hand, they clutter your hand without giving you an "in-game" bonus.

Dominion comes with a huge complement of cards. There are enough cards in the base game to satisfy all but the most diehard CCG fans. Since Dominion has two expansions, this should assuage Dominion's detractors.

I have two main gripes about Dominion.
1. Tedious amounts of shuffling. Players are constantly shuffling their decks. This is both tedious and it causes wear and tear on your cards.
2. There is virtually no player interaction. Dominion is a 4 player solitaire game. There are a few "attack cards". But there is no real interaction. Players can play "Militia" which forces their opponents to discard 2 cards. But that's not player interaction. There is no auction system, no vying for control of the center of the board, no driving up the cost of resources...just 4 player solitaire.

Dominion is a good, quick game. Because of the amount of cards in the base game, there's quite a bit of replayability. With the expansions, there should be replayability for years to come. If you don't mind the lack of player interaction and the excessive shuffling, then Dominion will probably scratch your gaming itch.

I'm a self-professed board game geek and had seen this "Dominion" thing floating around my Amazon recommendations for some time. A lot of the product reviews, combined with the game description, made this game sound like competitive solitaire, which had me worried, but I made the pruchase anyhow.

Turns out, competitive solitaire is extremely fun.

I managed to drag my roommates out from their caves... erm, rooms, to play a round of this once it arrived. The rules were simple enough (compared to some of the more complicated games we play), and we were ready to play within about 20 minutes of unboxing. We were originally just going to play one round and return to homework, but we didn't know just how absorbing this game is.

Dominion is a deck building game, kind of like a Magic drafting tournament except each card you take will affect how you take more cards. The object is to buy the fancy green cards worth points, but they're dead weight in your hand, so you can't caturate your deck with them. It's fascinating to watch how everyone approaches the game. Some just buy high value money cards, others buy attack cards to hinder everyone, and some buy sets of cards designed to create ridiculous combos in which they play 5 cards and buy three things instead of the normal 1 per turn.

When the game finally ended, we looked in the box and realized how much potential there was. You only use 10/25 card types each time, and so, when appropriately randomized, no two games are alike. Seemingly useless cards in some games are suddenly the hot coomodity everyone wants when the perfect card to go with it is on the table. The amount of depth in each hand is staggering, and, best of all, the game only takes about an half of an hour to play, and usually less.

We played six hands on our first night, and have already purchased two expansions. We play at least one hand a night, and with 75 card types there are something like 12 billion scenarios. I simply can't get enough of this game, and recommend a purchase for anyone who like games.

(My one complaint is that the cards do show wear somewhat sooner than I'd like, but it hasn't affected play thus far. If that's a concern for you, buy card sleeved, $2-3 for 100)

I will not waste time echoing the praise in other reviews. Trust me, the praise is well deserved. This is a great game that is easy to learn, yet very deep and fun. Honestly, it is as good as the reviews say.

What I do want to add, is that someone told me that this is one of the rare games that work just a well as a two-player game as a four-player game. If you do any gaming you know that many games will say something like 2-5 players, but playing with two people is a crippled version of the bigger experience. While we often game with friends, there are times where my wife and I want to play by ourselves at home. Usually as I said,you need to find games specifically designed for two-players (which are hard to find) and then of course they can not be enjoyed by larger groups.

This game lives up to the claim, it works just about as well with 2 as it does with more people. So if you are looking for an excellent, yet flexible game, give this a try.

I don't read board game news too much, but the little I do read has been buzzing about this game. I got it for my birthday and this past weekend provided me with time and people to play it with. It easily falls into my top games. Read on for more.

Summary:

Dominion is a strategy card game built around the idea of deck building. The box claims a 30 minute playtime but I have experienced more around 45 minutes, which is still fairly quick in the strategy game category. I am sure that the more we play it this will go down to about what the box suggests. It is medieval in theme.

Components:

This card based game comes on with cards, 250 of them to be exact. They are simple to understand and fun to look at. Since we are dealing with only cards, and there is much shuffling that will happen I would expect them to hold up as well as any cards would, not too well. Card sleeves would be recommended to protect the cards if you think it will get lots of play. Based on the games I have played, I think it will.

Rules:

The rules of Dominion are very simple and easy to learn and teach which make it one of Dominion's great strengths. After only playing two times I was able to teach an entirely new group the rules in about five minutes. Game set up is easy as well as each person begins with the same starting deck of ten cards.

Game play follows a quick three phase structure starting with the Action phase, where a player may play an action card that gives them bonuses during their turn and/or attacks the other players. Next is the Buy phase where players buy new cards from the supply of cards on the table to add to their decks. Last, players go through the Clean Up phase where they discard all the cards they used in their turn. Then play passes to the next person. This makes for short turns which help to keep everyone in the action.

Depth/Strategy:

From what I have seen, the strategy in Dominion is simple. Find a way to get as much money as you can in your hand so that you can buy huge quantities of victory points. How you get there, however, is extremely varied. The game comes with twenty five Kingdom decks (the different action card you use throughout the game) but you only use ten in a game. So the different combinations of these in different games will change the way you go about your strategy. Even though the strategy is fairly straight forward the depth is great.

Re-playability:

This is easily Dominion's greatest strength which is very important in a game. It also means that you might end up replacing cards from wear sooner than you w

Has to be one of the best games I've played. I put it up there with Settlers, Puerto Rico etc... The game is absolutely addictive, and it is great because there are so many variations for the setup of the game- constantly changing what strategies are feasible. The other qualities of this game that make it great is that you get to build a deck, and the turns go very fast once you have learned the game. Recommended to anyone who likes board or card games.

Also, regarding the durability- they are cards, so as long as you have adults using them it shouldn't be a problem.