Who would have thought that board games could have so much terminology and different gameplay? Gateway Island provides one of the best board games for beginners because it incorporates 21 different games and different game styles to help you learn what type of board game style you might like.
In this board games for beginners box, Gateway Island will take you on a cruise to various islands teaching you different types of game play and different levels of play for easy to harder games.
Gateway Island is also a great board game. if you are an experienced board gamer and want to introduce your friends to tabletop games.
What is a Gateway Board Game?
A gateway game is a board game that serves as an introduction to board games for beginners. Designed to be accessible and engaging, and introducing new tabletop game mechanics for new players while still offering enough depth to appeal to more experienced gamers. These tabletop games typically feature simpler rules, quick learning curves, and a balanced mix of strategy and fun. Gateway board games are often used to help beginner board game players discover their preferences in game types, such as strategy, co-op, or party games, and to ease them into more complex board games in the future.
About Gateway Island
Gateway Island offers 21 island games, each with a different level of complexity.
Each tabletop game also highlights the strategy level. Level 1 is lighter, not so complex, and has fewer strategic avenues, and Level 3 is more strategic, with more avenues for smarter play.
For the higher levels, I recommend you play these board games a couple of times. The reason being that you get to understand the different strategies that can be played, and it builds on your knowledge of the different avenues you can take to win.
Overview of Gateway Island – Board Games For Beginners
As mentioned, there are 21 Island games in this one box, and I won’t go into the details of how to play each board game; however, I will give you the objective and an overview of a few of the different tabletop game styles.
However, if you prefer, you can watch a complete set of the rules for each game here.
How to Play Race on the River
Type: Race, auctions, simultaneous action selection
Players: 2-6
Objective: Is to be the first fish (jockey) that maintains stamina efficiently via 3 phases of gameplay to cross the line first.
Gameplay involves 3 phrases:
Phase 1: First, Roll the Die
1) If you roll a 1, all players get to collect 1 previously discarded Stamina cube (see Phase 3) and the round ends.
2) If you roll between 2 and 6, this is the amount of spaces you can move.
Phase 2: Secretly, you decide how much of your fish’s stamina cubes you want to bid. This bid amount is the number of spaces you want to move.
Phase 3: Move your jockeys.
Each player reveals their bid, and the player who bid the most stamina advances first. After the highest bidder moves, all other players move one space regardless of how much they bid. If you didn’t bid, then you don’t move.
End of the Game
The game ends when someone crosses the finish line.
How to Play Eagle Eye
Players: 2-6
Type: Party Game, Quick Answers
Objective: Collect all 5 cubes of your colour to win the game.
In Eagle Eye, there are no turns; each player plays at the same time, so there are no rounds.
This tabletop game also has 2 sides to the board game; side B is more subjective and could make for more discussion.
The game is based around 5 categories:
- Object in the Room,
- Animals,
- Games (side A)
- Food and Recipes,
- Characters, and
- Media (like movies, books, and TV shows).
You roll the dice, look at the corresponding icon, and be the first to call out an answer based on the icon. Each time you answer correctly and first, you take a colored die. This answer now is the new subject for the next roll of the dice.
A great board game for beginners, as it covers all categories and also has a lot of replayability, with each answer starting the next topic for answers.
How to Play Harvest Day
Type: Area control, majority, simultaneous action selection
How to Win
Score the most points by having more workers in more different territories than your opponent.
This tabletop game is played in rounds but not turns. All players pick a number from one to five, and on the count of three, each player places that number of fingers in front of them.
First up, you place one worker in the territory, which corresponds with the number you showed. Then you add the sum of all the fingers shown from each player. Depending on the outcome, either evens (add another worker) or odds move a worker. You continue with these rounds until one player has 0 or 1 worker left.
You then score points based on territories your workers are in.
How to Play Resources Rich
Type: Drafting, Set Collection
How to Win
Collect the most resources. Points are scored based on the different types of resources, such as Volcanic, Gems, Pearl, and Shell, collected at the end of the game. Each resource is assigned a colour.
Resources Rich is played in rounds until one of 6 endgame conditions has been met.
Play is determined by a roll of the dice. You complete an action based on the number of die. Outcomes will be, either keeping one or two cubes from your hand and placing them under your cover card (so no one else can see), and then passing the remaining cubes to the next person.
The strategic part of this tabletop game is involved in the number of the same resources collected. If you collect or end up with too many of one resource, you may not get any points or you may lose points.
How to Play The Great Battle
One of the hardest board games, with the highest rating in both complexity and strategy categories.
Type: Combat, wargame, action drafting, hexagon grid
Number of players: 2
How to Win
Strategically outsmart your opponent; you are the first to take over their base. This is achieved by moving one of your units into their base.
Overview: On your turn, you complete one action. This is done by placing one disc on an open action space.
There are six action options:
- Move three units—move up to three of your different units
- Move one unit twice
- Spawn 2 units; place 2 units into play
- Upgrade a unit: place one unit of the same color on top of another unit
- Sabotage: permanently remove a unit
- Attack: attack your opponents unit
Continue with your turns until you move your unit into one of the base hexes of your opponent, or one player loses all of their units; the other player wins.
Gateway Island, I believe, is one of the best board games for beginners. It’s very economical to have 21 board games in 1 box, and it can be played by not just beginner board gamers but also experienced gamers. Once you have decided on your game type and are keen to venture into new board games, check out these numerous articles and ideas for different age groups.
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