Azul is a wonderful abstract with tokens that look good enough to eat! – Review

azul factories Feature

Whether it’s farming or trading in the Mediterranean, most board games are an abstraction of something. However, there’s also a genre of board games called abstract games. Azul is a prime example, where the focus is its elegant and deep gameplay and not so much emphasis on the theme.

Azul starts with everyone getting a player board. On the left side of this board, are five steps (or pattern lines) borrowed from the end of a Super Mario level. While on the right, is a 5×5 grid called the wall.

Throughout the game, you collect tiles and try to fill your pattern lines. This then lets you move one tile from it onto your wall, discarding the rest. The placement of this wall tile determines the points you score at the end of the round. When you get bonus points for groupings of wall tiles.

There are several restrictions you must follow when filling pattern lines, they are:

  • A pattern line can only hold tiles of one colour.
  • Once a tile is in a pattern line, you cannot remove it.
  • Any tiles that don’t fit within your pattern line will earn you negative points.

Otherwise, around the table are several tile factories, holding a random assortment of tiles. On your turn, you’re able to grab all tiles of one colour (or pattern) from any of these factories. Move any leftover tiles into a central pool, creating a new factory of discarded tiles. Players can then draw from this new factory on future turns.

Play continues until someone completes a horizontal row on their wall. At that point, count up your points, and end game scoring objectives to determine the winner.

A player board mid game, on the left shows what tiles have been picked this round, on the right it shows completed tiles from previous rounds.
Not doing too well in this game 🙁

Azul is a strategic royalty

Let’s get the easy stuff out of the way, Azul is a beautiful-looking game. The resin tiles make some stunning patterns and the way they clack against each other sounds as satisfying as any of the best ASMR out there.

Now onto something exceptionally more interesting: the strategy. This is where Azul stands out. The incredibly simple choice of looking at groups of tiles, and picking one colour from one pile, has deep-reaching consequences. Consequences that are both fun and fascinating to mull over.

To begin with, the end game triggers only when someone completes a horizontal row. Therefore, there’s a minimum of five turns, but you can never be sure when the game will end.

To win, you need a laser focus on what you need to do in this coming round. It’s easy to get distracted and make a selection just to get a tile on your wall. But unless this tile sits next to another tile, or moves you closer to completing a row, column, or diagonal, it might not be worth it.

Of course, you’re never guaranteed the tiles you need. So instead of perfectly picking tiles, and completing pattern lines, you enter a zone of compromise. Where you ask yourself: if I can’t complete my goal, what’s the next best thing?

A question, with no easy answers.

Increasing the difficulty surrounding this question is the economy of tiles. If you’re just grabbing a bunch of single tiles – that match the colour you’re going for – you’re going to have a lot of empty space on your wall by the game’s end. That’s also not a good position to be in.

Tired corgi laying down next to the Azul box
After playing his 5th game of Azul in a row, Chester is DRAINED!

The fewer players the better

The only thing worse than getting a tile on your wall you don’t care about is not getting a tile at all. Because any pattern lines that are not completed by the round’s end, keep their tiles for the next round. This is devastating, as not only does delay you from completing your pattern line, but it also reduces the number of tiles you can safely pick up going forward.

This is a tough puzzle to figure out, and that’s before you introduce other players into the mix. Reading your opponent and blocking them is a core mechanic within Azul. Although, sometimes this occurs out of survival instincts rather than vindictiveness.

Especially in higher player count games, when the centre pile grows faster than it does in lower player counts. It gets so out of control that the game devolves into a game of chicken. As picking up a large, unwanted group of tiles from the centre is an automatic loss.

Additionally, at these higher player counts, the market becomes more chaotic and unpredictable. This can be fun in its own right, but it loses the strategic goodness that comes when playing with less.

Otherwise, Azul is one of the best strategy board games released. It puts you under a spell where you find yourself getting lost in its world of compromises. It’s wholly engaging, and an impressive feat considering your only choice is picking a type of tile from a factory.

Designer: Michael Kiesling

Publisher: Plan B Games

See how Azul compares to all of the other board games I’ve reviewed.

Azul Cover
  • Wonderfully simple, and clever gameplay
  • Easy to play over and over, as the game changes so much depending on the tiles drawn
  • Such tactility in the starburst sized tiles, feel great in the hand

4 thoughts on “Azul is a wonderful abstract with tokens that look good enough to eat! – Review

  1. I’ve wondered why they didn’t make ALL the tiles pretty. Strange to say, the plain tiles are what puts me off buying the game! It could have been prettier. 🙂

    1. Yes! Exactly this.

      I will say, regardless of the boring tiles, this game is ace. However, I will never pull myself away from going after the light blue tiles with the snowflake pattern. My preciouses. :p

  2. “On the left side, it has five steps borrowed from the end of a Super Mario level”

    LOL That’s awesome.

    Nice review! You did great even without the inspiration.

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