IKI (2015)

PLAYERS	TIME	DESIGNER	PUBLISHER
2-4	60-90 mins	Koota Yamada	Sorry We Are French

In this Rondel set collection game players hire vendors to run shops in the bustling Tokyo shopping district.

The game is beautiful. The vendors on the cards all have their own personality and I love the very simple screen printing on the meeples.

🎲

As the game progresses, you’ll have vendors out among the four sections of the shopping district. The locations have their own permanent action space and the Vendors add more. The difference here is that the action is ‘owned’ by a player, and if it’s not yours, then that worker will move one step closer to retiring when used.

Retiring means getting that card back and is set collection for end game scoring.

But the cards also add end of season income like food, money, and points. This leads to Vendor placement being important as you want to encourage other players to use your shops.

🎲

Unlike most games where either turn order rotates through the players or a first player marker is fought over, IKI has an interesting chain of choices to decide who eventually goes first.

Better position on the Fire track gives you first choice on the movement track. That in turn gives actual turn order for that round.

You might be first to choose, but if you want to go 4 action spots then you’ll be going last in the round. And if a shop you planned to visit is retired before you get there, you can’t use it.

It makes the beginning of each round quite important.

The downside to this selection method is that if you’re behind on moving up the fire track, and sat to the right of a consistent first player, you’ll have a game with very little choice.

Overall IKI is a fantastic Rondel game with lots of decision making and great table presence. The only flaw is the Fire track which can hinder players and adds an odd, unnecessary ‘random’ incident.