October 24, 2020 – As part of a 2021 lineup showcase by publisher Grail Games, one point of interest was the Fjords Board Game Announcement. This is a remake and refreshing of the original game that came out in 2004. There is a cover to show but not much else. The game is expected to release in 2021.
The first round is very much like Carcassonne but with different tiles. In the second round, once all the tiles are out, that is when you start spreading your discs. It is not like For Sale, but it has that same two phase approach where the beginning of the game feels very different to the end.
The name will stay the same because of the rich history but they are redoing the artwork. The big news and the major changes from the original Fjords, however, is not that it is just getting reprinted but now it can accommodate more players and famous designer Phil Walker-Harding (Sushi Go, Imhotep, Gizmos) created five mini-expansions so it feels like a new thing. Some, for example, think the original is really cutthroat, so there is something to address that. They are all interchangeable so play with all, some or none.
See The Other Titles Mentioned During This Announcement
- Hibachi / Hibachi: Hot & Spicy (by Marco Teubner)
- Whale Riders (by Reiner Knizia)
- Yellow & Yangtze: The Royal Palace / Card Game (Reiner Knizia)
- Medici: Reformation (Reiner Knizia)
- Silicon Valley (Scott Almes)
- Botanic Gardens (Matthew Dunstan & Brett J Gilbert)
- ChuHan (Tom Lehmann)
- Elevenses: The Guilty Party (David Harding)
Official Game Description:
Explore a landscape so stunning that even a Viking would hold their breath in awe…
Fjords is a tile-laying game that takes place in two phases. First, the players explore the fjords around them by laying hexagonal landscape tiles. Second, beginning from the encampments placed during phase one, players will walk the landscape, claiming as much of the plains and cliffs as possible.
The winner of the game will be the player who has claimed the most land. Savvy placements and the ability to plan ahead yet act tactically will be your most important tools.
This new edition of Fjords differs from the original release in the following ways:
- The game now plays up to 4 players.
- The game contains 5 new variants/modules designed by Phil Walker-Harding. These add optional variety and flavor to the game.
Title discussed in announcement video [15:05 – 18:19]:
