Mayfair Games Isle of Skye- 2016 Kennerspiel des Jahres

Congratulations to Mayfair Games! Mayfair Isle of Skye has won the prestigious Kennerspiel des Jahres award for 2016! When the nominations were announced, I was intrigued, and I immediately bought the game. Our family has been playing it ever since. This tile laying game is similar to Carcassonne, in that you are building up a community… But there are some fun and interesting differences that make this game a MUST HAVE for your game shelf.

Mayfair Isle of Skye

Unlike other Tile Laying games where everyone works together to create one land, each player in Isle of Skye builds up their own Kingdom of tiles, trying to create the best and most profitable community. By buying, selling and strategizing, you end up with a little Island Community to call your own.

The auction component is what makes the Isle of Sky Tile laying game so interesting. Each round you pull three island tiles from the bag (and can I say THANK YOU to Mayfair for including the bag) Behind your special screen, you value the tiles… and this is where strategy comes in. Other players can buy the tiles at the rate you set. Thing is, you might want to keep the tile. Do you value it high, so they don’t buy? Or do you value it a bit lower, save your money to buy other tiles, and hope they don’t buy it… It’s a delicate balance.

The game has high replay value, because the score is tracked differently every time you play.

At the beginning of the game 4 scoring tiles are chosen at random (from a pile of 16). Each card rewards a different feature that you can buy and add to your island. Some scoring tiles give points for animals, others for boats, and yet others for completed land features. To make it more complex, not every feature is scored every round! Each round you look at a different tile or combination of tiles to score. What’s valuable in one round, is worthless in another….

While many reviewers consider this game a Gateway Game after playing for a while… I can totally understand how it ended up in the Kennerspiel (experienced gamer) category. You have to work out some strategy to set prices for pieces… and think ahead to what may be scored down the line. However, this game is not difficult to learn, and can be enjoyed by anyone from age 8 and up!

Ultimately, you want to create the best and most profitable kingdom in the Isle of Sky!!