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Chrono Corsairs Review

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Review of: Chrono Corsairs
Board Game Review by: :
Samir Samma
Price:
$40

Reviewed by:
Rating:
2.5
On Jul 2, 2020
Last modified:Jul 2, 2020

Summary:

We review Chrono Corsairs, an action programming and area control board game published by Tasty Minstrel Games. In Chrono Corsairs, players are trying to earn the most victory points by moving their pirates around the board in a time loop.

Chrono Corsairs Review

Chrono CorsairsPirate themed games can be lots of fun. Stealing from friends, grabbing loot from a nearby isle, and charting your way to victory is usually something that people love in games, especially games like Pirate’s Cove and Merchants & Marauders.

What’s even better is that pirate games are implemented in different ways, but usually all share similar mechanics for things like scoring. However, when you combine strategy, programming, and area control all into one loot-plundering game, you’ll find yourself with Chrono Corsairs. It’s a game for 2 – 4 players that focuses on several pirates on a lost island. However, a deadly storm is present and will cause different effects based on the severity of the storm at the current time.

Gameplay Overview:

Players begin with two Officers and several crewmen. Officers can move on their own, but Crewmen can only move when accompanied by an Officer. Your goal is to control the Officers who will then drop Crewmen to gain control of the individual spaces and receive rewards.

A round in Chrono Corsairs is made up of 6 different phases.

To start a round, players advance the Storm Marker by 1 step. The storm marker has several zones, which will be reached at certain points in the game. The storm marker is also an end-of-game trigger, since when the marker reaches the final zone, the game ends.

Chrono Corsairs Cards
Plan Cards help players run their loops.

Then players draw cards from the two Plan Decks (Unstable Deck & Stable Deck). Plan cards are used to form a player’s Time Loop (Groundhog Day style). A player’s Loop is planned on their player board with 4 Plan Cards. These cards have actions, and the actions are resolved from left to right on a player’s board.

Stable plan cards usually are more simple and based on moving to certain types of terrain on the island. Unstable plan cards are more complex with abilities such as moving multiple Officers and even killing other pirates. At the start of the game, players start with 4 plan cards that are the same for all players.

After this, players run their loops, and perform all the possible actions on their Plan Cards.

Then players earn treasure based on who controls what area on the map. Treasure consists of coins or crystals, which are used as points at the end of the game. Players then reset the board and redetermine turn order based on the amount of treasure they received.

Finally, players get a chance to upgrade their ships. Players can upgrade the amount of Crew, increase the number of cards they draw at the start of the round, and can also move a Plan Card within their loop.

If the final space on the Storm has been reached at this point, all players stop to score points and the game ends. The player with the most points wins.

Chrono Corsairs Game Experience
The game board is separated into rings.

Game Experience:

Chrono Corsairs is a good game, but it has many flaws that make it less unique. Many things within Chrono Corsairs are different from other games I’ve played, and sometimes this leads to a varied experience.

Chrono Corsairs Player Board
A players board shows things for purchase and the player’s loop.

First, if you don’t plan perfectly your whole turn might get completely messed up. Because of the way that your loop works, messing up at the start of your turn can completely impact the rest of your plans. This also happens with Officers. Because they are the only unit that can move Crew Members, messing up the placement of an Officer could be vital to controlling the needed areas of the island.

Second, Chrono Corsairs don’t feature any tactics or actions that you can take after you’ve run your loop. This makes the game feel full of strategy, which might not be right for you.

Third, the game can sometimes be very random. For example, the small number of cards you get at the start of the round can sometimes not help you get to the point that you need, which can put you far behind other players, and give you less room for making decisions.

Chrono Corsairs Components
The game board is where players move around the map.

Fourth, the default setup for loop cards at the start of the game is extremely dependent on the map being set up in a certain way. If the map is not set up right, players might even waste an entire round not doing anything because the loop cards didn’t align with the random setup. For example, to get a standard score in the first round, you might need to go from Forest > Beach > Rocks. However, the starting loop cards only let you go from Beach > Forest > Rocks.

However, Chrono Corsairs does have a few things going for it. If your planning goes well, running your loop can feel satisfying. Also, if the map setup is working for you, it can be an enjoyable game, that combines unique aspects of programming and area control that engage players.

Final Thoughts:

My experience with Chrono Corsairs wasn’t a pleasant one, as I’m not fond of large, random elements that can heavily change gameplay. However, if this is something that seems like it’s for you, and you like area control, go ahead and try it out. If not, I’d stay away from it.

Final Score: 2.5 stars – If Chrono Corsairs was less random, it would be much more fun than it is now.

2.5 StarsHits:
• Lots of strategy, but few tactics
• Satisfying when a plan comes together
• Cute Art

Misses
• Frustrating randomness
• Poor setup can lead to a bad gameplay experience

Get Your Copy

He may only be 11 years old, but having been genetically spliced from a puzzle fanatic and a diehard gamer, Samir has gaming in his code. He was spoon-fed Ameritrash, RPGs, and Euro games from the time he could talk, and he's developed into a very discriminating aficionado of PC games, open world survival, engine-building Euros, and cooperative games with asymmetric powers.

11 COMMENTS

  1. What now, kids are gonna rate games? Did he started playing in his mother womb to get experience about worker placement games to actually know what’s he talking about here? Give me a brake. I’ll note this as a joke review from your part BGQ. Do better next time, please.

    • Thank you for your input. Can you let me know at which age, specifically, you feel that someone is allowed to have an opinion on a game? Also, I’m curious as to which parts of Samir’s review you disagree with that made you feel like his commentary wasn’t worthwhile.

      • Apparently some of our readers need some education on what it takes to be a reviewer at Board Game Quest. For Borivoje’s enlightenment and to head off any other ignorant assumptions, I offer you the following list of games Samir has played without assistance.

        Lords of Waterdeep
        Eclipse
        Kemet
        Great Western Trail
        Gugong
        Barrage
        Russian Railroads
        Crown of Emara
        Luna
        Lorenzo il Magnifico
        Istanbul
        On Mars
        The Gallerist
        Tyrants of the Underdark
        Clank!
        Endeavor Age of Sail
        Court of the Dead
        Power Grid
        Concordia
        The Ancient World
        Samurai
        Mercado
        Everdell
        Imhotep
        Abomination: The Heir of Frankenstein
        Modern Art
        Nefertiti
        CO2
        Isle of Skye
        Bushido
        The Duke
        Onitama
        New Frontiers: The Race for the Galaxy Board Game
        Tikal
        Mexica
        Cuzco
        Tzolkin
        Fresco
        Thebes
        Raptor
        Cornwall
        Last Will
        The Prodigals Club
        Sagrada
        Bosk
        The Voyages of Marco Polo
        Coal Baron
        Coal Baron: The Great Card Game
        Maracaibo
        Tiny Towns
        Ra
        The Godfather: A New Don
        Master of Orion: The Board Game
        Machi Koro
        Caverna
        Stone Age
        First Class
        The Castles of Burgundy
        The Quest for El Dorado
        Castles of Mad King Ludwig
        Colt Express
        7 Wonders
        Eschaton
        Civilization: A New Dawn
        Libertalia
        Near and Far
        Above and Below
        Walled City: Londonderry and Borderlands
        New York Slice
        Eldritch Horror
        Wiz-War
        Tokaido
        Sushi Roll
        Sushi Go
        Zooloretto
        Potion Explosion
        Marrakech
        The Mind
        Loot
        Rolling America
        Archaeology
        Guillotine
        Three Cheers for the Master
        Mag-Blast
        Mystic Market
        Battle of the Bards
        Blueprints
        Cartographers
        Longhorn
        The Great Heartland Hauling Company
        Bullfrogs
        Biblios
        Honshu
        Lucidity: Six Sided Nightmares
        Point Salad
        Beyond Baker St
        Iron Curtain
        Patchwork
        Air, Land, Sea
        High Society
        Age of War
        Dungeon Mayhem
        Arboretum
        Medici The Card Game
        Four Tribes
        Jaipur
        Valley of the Kings
        Guilds of Cadwallon
        Targi
        13 Days
        Dual Powers
        Watergate
        7 Wonders Duel
        Agricola All Creatures Big and Small
        Welcome To…

        If that is not enough games played to be able to form an opinion as a reviewer, you know where you can stick your own opinion.

  2. The game sounds like RoboRally meets up with Jamaica and even less choice than both. I appreciate the review and the insight, and I’m glad to realize this is probably a game I can give a miss. I love the programming aspect of RoboRally, which this seems to have, but the extremely limited card pool is likely to make dealing with that a misery. It seems like if I want to play a lighter weight pirate race/control game, I’d be better off sticking with Jamaica. Overall, I’m impressed with the review, but not the game. 🙂 Glad this is one I didn’t have to play on a game day!

    • Brilliantly put together the thoughts which lets the viewers know and understand eachband every aspect of the game..oh yes and that too at just 11 yrs of age

  3. I like Samir Shamma review it seam to me he is much much older than his age smart ! Thank you Samir for your review !

  4. Thanks for the review, Samir! I will try and give this one a go the next time I get the gang together again.

  5. Thanks for the awesome review, Samir! It sounds like an interesting programming game that may suffer from a few bugs.

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