I dusted off my copy of Carcassonne and played it for the first time tonight, thanks to the weekly gaming group at my FLGS (Friendly Local Game Store). I’ve had this game for over a decade, but it’s never made it to the table. After I bought it my buddies and I got into poker, so that became our weekly and twice-weekly game night for years.

My recent gaming rebirth had me itching to play Carcassonne and three of us played the game tonight. I liked the mellow tile-laying experience; it’s a pleasant game from beginning to end with the only stress being trying to complete the cities, roads, and other structures to score points.

After playing Samurai, Taluva, and Lost Valley: Yukon Goldrush, Carcassonne was a nice and light change of pace. I’m not sure if I’m a fan yet, but I enjoyed seeing the tiles all laid out at the end; it was like we created a nice countryside with meeple citizens.