Carcassonne is one of those few 'proper' board games that's managed to break out into the wider public consciousness. It's up there with the likes of Catan and Pandemic; a game that you could theoretically see in both an avid board gamer's collection, and also on a shelf in your mum's living room. Easy enough that anyone could play it, but with enough complexity to satisfy the hobbyist.
Labyrinth is something of a cult classic. Originally released in the 80s, and still being sold as pretty much an unchanged product today. It's the kind of breakthrough game that you can pick up in ASDA. Like mad scientists, designers Max J. Kobbert and Klaus-Jürgen Wrede have combined their games, splicing these two distinct products into one supergame. But, does this mashup of the two titles make for a satisfying tabletop experience, or is it a disastrous union like that time I mixing raw eggs into a pint of Newcastle Brown?
Sweet Tile ‘o Mine
Carcassonne Labyrinth is a family game. The listed age is 8+, but gameplay is simple enough that I think you could play it with ages 6 and up. The game is quick and breezy; start to finish takes about half an hour to 45 minutes with 4 players, lower playercounts generally result in quicker games.
Turns are simple, you draw a tile, place it in the Labyrinth, sliding the other tiles down until one falls out. You then move your meeple along any joined up paths with an aim of reaching the treasure shown on your current treasure tile. You then take the tile that you pushed out of the Labyrinth, along with your treasure tile (if you managed to get your meeple to the treasure) and add them to your personal landscape.
In your landscape you're trying to close off roads and cities. This lets you take tokens that you place over designated icons on the tiles you’ve placed. At the end of the game, you simply take every tile and token you've earned throughout the game and make a tower from them, popping your meeple on top. Whoever has the tallest tower wins.
It's a simplified approach to both Labyrinth and Carcassonne that may leave veteran players of either game wanting for more, but taken as its own quick little game it's a decent way to spend half an hour. There's just enough tactical decision making to give you a few options on your turns, but nothing so overwhelming that you'd need to think for more than a few seconds. Usually I found my main decisions were between furthering my own landscape, or choosing to try and sabotage another player by taking a tile they need, or trapping their meeple so they're unable to get to the treasure. It's hardly cutthroat, but every game I played ended up pretty close, and games are quick enough that losses don't feel devastating.
Which Way to Carcassone? Don’t Ask Me, I’m Just A Worm
There's a good element of replayability; set-up is randomised to a degree, so the tiles you'll see in your Labyrinth will be different every game, and there's an array of different scoring cards you can use for experienced games - bonus conditions you can put into play such as 'most completed roads' or 'end your turn on the centre tile.'
Component quality is decent, the tokens are quite thin (likely on purpose to differentiate their thickness from the tiles for scoring purposes) but I imagine it's a game that will wear quite well over time. The artwork is serviceable, everything's easy enough to read and understand but it's not going to blow you away. There are some nice hidden details on the tiles if you're looking out for them.
I think if you're a group of experienced adult gamers, this will probably be a bit lacking in depth beyond an initial couple of plays. But if you're looking for a gateway game outside of the established classics, something quick to start or finish a game night with, or something to play with the family, you could do much worse.
