Watergate - Finishing the trifecta.

Ok, so I have done a podcast about Watergate

I have done a YouTube video about Watergate

So it is now time to finish the trifecta by writing about Watergate.

Watergate by Capstone Games and Matthias Cramer

“In the two-player game Watergate, one player represents the Nixon administration and tries not to resign before the end of the game while the other player represents The Washington Post and tries to show the connections between Nixon and some of his informers.”

That’s the Board Game Geek summary of the game. Now in a previous blog post, I have said how I enjoyed Twilight Struggle but the length of the game killed the enjoyment as it was just too long for us to see any regular play. We replaced Twilight Struggle with Fort Sumter and that is a Very Good Game, but the theme and the board just don’t quite bring it to life for us so we have been on the lookout for a card-driven game that does light the fire in our bellies. Watergate could be the game.

For the first few plays, it was an easy win for the Editor, as I was making sure Mrs B understood the rules and nuances of the game. It’s our learning style, there’s only the two of us and open or shared info isn’t going to hurt. There’s a blog post on this site about the way we learn games and why we do it that way.

Play three was different. The nuances and rules understood we switched to playing for keeps and then every card play mattered. Do we use the event now, and lose the card for later? Do we use this Journalist or this Conspirator for its value and the risk of not having that response later? Do I move the markers or the evidence? Is Nixon going to push the momentum, does the Editor have any weakness on the evidence board? is Nixon at risk?

The last game - our fifth play - went down to the wire. The last card of the Editor won them the game. Had they played that card with a four value yellow earlier or used the event they would have lost.

Boom. Such tension, all in a 30-minute game. My view? Do you like card-driven games, you play with two players? Go get a copy, I wish I had done so sooner.

Oh and this card? Oh boy!