I am always on the look out for a tabletop game with a fresh theme. There are a million eurogames themed around trading in the Mediterranean Sea and just as many miniature games where players have to kill zombies or orcs. So when something with a new theme pops up on my radar, I’m immediately intrigued. And when it has the game play to back it up? I’m hooked!

World’s Fair 1893

Our Game of the Week is World’s Fair 1893, published by Renegade Games and Foxtrot Games. A 2-4 player area control game that takes about 30-45 minutes to play.

What is the Game?

World’s Fair 1893 is set during the Chicago Worlds Fair of 1893 (obvisouly). Players take on the role of organizers of the fair, trying to to increase their influence and put on the best display possible. The game play in World’s Fair 1893 is delightfully simple. Each round, a player sends a supporter to the central board and collect all the cards in that area. New cards are then added to that area and the next two.

The goal in World’s Fair 1893 is to control as many of the game’s five areas as possible during scoring rounds (three in the game). This allows a player to not only collect victory points, but also cash in cards for exhibit tokens. There is much more to the game than that, including influential people cards that give a player a special power, midway tickets for additional points, and the Ferris Wheel game timer.

Why Should You Play it?

Players have no shortage of eurogames to satisfy their desires, so what sets World’s Fair 1893 apart from the others? For me, it’s the incredibly smooth game play and streamlined ruleset. Teaching World’s Fair 1893 is a breeze, the rules are all of 2-3 pages long and everything just makes sense. Place supporters, collect cards, try and have the majority.

World’s Fair 1893 is a game that can be enjoyed with your gaming group when you want something lighter, and also with your non-gamer friends. This isn’t designer J. Alex Kevern’s first game, but it’s easily my favorite of his. And as a nice bonus, all the cards in World’s Fair 1893 include interesting facts and tidbits from the actual fair!

2-4 PLAYERS • AGES 8+ • 30-45 MINUTES • $33