Archaeology: The New Expedition Review

Welcome to JonGetsGames! Here is my Archaeology: The New Expedition board game review.

Look below to skip to each section of the video:

Positive Review Points 6:24
Neutral Review Points 7:43
Negative Review Points 8:48
Replayability 12:00
Player Count 12:28
Conclusion 13:31

[kotieerwee]

The format of your reviews is in my opinion currently the best of all the channels on the market. I find myself coming more and more to your channel for an informative review. Thanks for the contribution and keep up the good work.

[ferver-san]

Hands down best and most professional review format for boardgames.Good Job

[madifinley]

I'm glad I saw this review. I saw several positive reviews and I was disappointed that I missed it while it was in stock. I'm glad I didn't get it now. Best board game reviews on YouTube. Keep it up.

[rockthemic]

All the negatives seem a bit thematic. That is, I imagine much of archaeology is mundane (e.g. just finding pot shards). And the more impressive discoveries have an aspect of luck (e.g. finding a map).

I believe Zee Garcia recommends this game specifically for 2 people, which seems like it could mitigate both the negatives a bit. That is, the “boring” turns are at least happening quickly as players ping back and forth. And hopefully with 2 players both players will at least get some of the higher value cards.

[Avelice]

Your reviews are always the best. I love how organized and professional everything is.

[boardgameknight]

My copy of this game in 2018 has cards that are all the same size. Very good quality components.

[stefangestwicki]

Kudos on not being swayed by popular opinion. This is one that's definitely still on my radar, though you certainly make good points. As always, I enjoyed your well organized and passionate review.
P.S. I got my hands on Isle of Skye (partially based on your recommendation) and boy is that game good. No boring turns in that one.

[TheHorseradish]

Fantastic review, honest and objective. Keep it up!

[morroch]

I have also experienced the card size issue. As a complete coincidence, I've been learning some fancy shuffling so I've been paying attention to cards more than usual and there's a slight discrepancy with the cut. Having said that, I love the game. I understand completely the issues you mention, but it's been a hit with my family. I do wonder if we'll burn out on it pretty quickly however as it is extremely light. It has been interesting to play with different personalities - I'm extremely conservative with my hand limit whilst my wife and children have a more bullish approach. They lose big, yes, but have also won with some stunning strings of cards. We also had a hilarious game featuring a run of three thief cards chasing after a high value item only for a sandstorm to appear and make everything irrelevant. Funniest boardgaming moment I've had so far. Fortune and glory, I guess. Thanks for the video.

[richie]

Thanks so much for mentioning the dodgy cards! Thought it was just my copy... People should definitely be aware of it too.

Also, I don't usually like being negative but there has been such a positive buzz for this game recently, it was nice to see more grounded review of it that looked at some of its fairly significant issues. I do actually enjoy the game when I'm in the mood for it, but it's far from a perfect card game - great review!

[davidwayneflowers]

Love your reviews. I've been looking forward to playing this version of the game for a while, but coolstuff hasn't had it in stock in months. My wife and I play the older version of the game a lot. I think 2 players is actually the best player count (at least for the old version). We've played with more and the game really changes. Being able to quickly just go back and forth makes those dull, nothing turns burn quicker than with other player counts. 2 players also mitigates the maps luck issue quite a bit. With 5 players, someone is going to draw 2 maps and that is 1 more than everyone else. That often forces people to sell them to the market and whoever is to the left of that person that decides to sell gets to grab it and cash in (when 2 or 3 are required). If luck pans out for one person, they can collect 3 in the game. That means it is quite likely that some players will get 0 and other players will get 2. Quite a large differential. In a 2 player game, the stats are much more likely that you will be closer in spread, either 3-3 or 2-4. Sure, 6-0 is possible, but doesn't really happen. It also matters when the maps come up so being the 2 in a 2-4 isn't all that bad if you get your two before they get theirs.

Regarding the sand storms, in the original version it was actually much more of a threat. There were 8 of them and no tent. In that version of the game it feels that the person that didn't get wiped out by the sandstorm was more of a determining factor of who won than who got the map cards. In fact, the sandstorms in that version are so frequent and frustrating that I often go for the low value cards to cash them out quickly. My wife is the opposite. She likes the high value cards and likes to push her luck. So if the sand storms go her way, it is hard to keep up with the value she can create. If they go my way, I am laughing every time she has to dump a talisman or pharaohs mask to the market. If in this version the sand storms are no big deal, I'd suggest removing the tent option and see if that helps.

I'd also suggest giving 2 players a couple of plays. I think it is the best count. If you still don't like the game, let me know and I will be happy to purchase your copy.

[jellevancamp]

Spot on review, as always. I totally agree and i am amazed you could name two positive points of the game. :)

[landmarkforum]

If you like light, push your luck card games, check out Sea of Clouds. Delivers on its fun and whimsical premise.

[spongekathotpants]

I can't relate to your complaint about meaningless turns. The player turns are sooo short that even in a 4 or 5 player game after dumping your hand you'll again have enough cards in hand within a minute or two to trade with the market, thieve cards or interact with the Ruin card who's purpose is to mitigate the randomness you complained about. As a quick filler I've played this many times with family and gamer friends with not one complaint and always with requests for immediate subsequent plays. It's not our favorite overall filler but is in regular rotation as one of our preferred fillers. As a light filler there is plenty of room left for table talk and complaints "Pot Shards AGAIN!!" so we aren't overly dependent upon the game for a good time and if the expected randomness of a card game means a player was never in the running then that's okay because we can shuffl'em up for a third 20min game.

[raccoon]

Very well organized review with nice video editing. Insta-subscribing ! The only thing I'd like to mention is that you're moving your hands a bit too much and too fast.... the hands are kinda distracting me lol. Anyway, 'hands down' for the game! ;)

[Iskreemman]

I would say 2 is actually the best player count and luckily my copy didn't have and production issues. Too bad it fell flat for you but you can't like everything and there's too many great games out there to mess around with one that you're not crazy about.

[EfrainRiveraJunior]

People like UNO and Phase 10. Your negatives are positives depending on how you see it.

[BGBarbarian]

I disagree with your opinion on this one. I think you might have been expecting too much or had a bad day or something. This game isn't supposed to have amazing awesome interesting decisions every turn. It's a quick push your luck set collection card game.

[TheMrE]

Hi Jon
Perhaps you're taking this game way too seriously? The game is quick and interesting and the fun originates in no small part in the player interaction, not from the gameplay per se.