Matthew BaileyGame 5 of the “Bailey Family Summer 2023 Board game Bonanza” is “Subway Squeeze”, played by myself, Jack (_8) and Toby (5).
So Subway Squeeze is a Tetronimo tile laying game that has had a bit of attention recently largely because it has been ultra-reduced in lots of places. OFC I bought my copy at £15 a month or so ago but now it’s down to the price of 2 coffees.
If you like “Isle of Cats” then there is a lot to like here and it’s actually got some good ideas that make it worth it even if you do own some other Tetronimo games.
So as we settled in to play it today I had a few worries that it was going to be a bargain bucket stinker… luckily I was wrong and actually, it’s really good… like 100% worth it considering how cheap it is good.
Ok, so every player takes a subway train that they need to fill up with passengers. The subway board is then separated into the same amount of columns as players and each column is filled with 9 pieces.
So before you even started it is worth noting that every piece that’s available to use is now on the table.
Each turn players take turns being the “conductor.” The conductor chooses a piece from each column to be available for that round. The next person then gets to choose first meaning the person who chose the available pieces gets to choose last.
This is such a fantastic concept as it throws up loads of excellent decision-making. As the conductor do I choose 3 that would work for me? or do I choose the one I want and then 2 randoms and hope I get the right ones? Do I try and hide which one I really want? Equally as the other players, you are trying to gauge why have they chosen those specific pieces. It’s such a simple idea but it makes this game engaging before you have even started.
As you choose you lay the tiles on your subway knowing you are going to score in the end for the following:
Families (turquoise) – the more that are touching the more point you get up to a max of 6 tiles.
Dogs (also turquoise) – These count as part of families but also score an extra 2 points if positioned next to a family member (as opposed to another dog or luggage.
Tourist (orange)- 4 points if 3 or more are touching
Commuter (grey) – always worth 1 but worth 2 if the group they are in is next to a door.
Busker (blue) – 1 per passenger they are next to (not a dog, conductor or luggage).
Pregnant woman (pink) – Worth 3 points if on a seat.
Conductor (dark blue) – not worth points but allows you to take a single tile passenger of your choice when played.
Finally, there are 2-piece luggage tiles which you take if you ever take a piece you cannot physically fit on your train.
This continues for 9 rounds until all the pieces have been taken. There is a train marker that moves with each round but it’s totally not needed as you just play until the pieces are gone.
In the end, you score up but also lose points for the number of every space not covered (they vary from 1 to 3).
It even has an advanced version with a second side of the board where you use the “Nightside”. This has broken seats that do not score pregnant women, Broken doors that do not count for commuters, spillages that do not count as gaps but cause -4 if they are filled and luggage racks that give +2 if filled by luggage and – 2 if filled by a person!
Production values are high. The cardboard and pieces are thick, the boards are nice, the wooden tokens for the conductor and the train a decent and there is a nice little internal box to hold the pieces well.
The boys adores this game and so did I. For a game, I had never heard of that I only bought because it was super cheap and is now even cheaper this game is brilliant.
There are multiple layers of thought in both piece selection as the conductor and as the other players, placement is important and thought-provoking and the whole package is of high quality.
I need to play it a few more but genuinely this could overtake “Isle of Cats” as my favourite Tetronimo game.
Absolute sleeper hit I have no idea why it is being sold off for next to nothing… can’t recommend it enough.
