Havana by Rio Grande Games

In Havana, players construct buildings to acquire victory points, with the available buildings displayed on the table as tiles. To take a building, players must pay its requirements, which may include a combination of money, workers, and building materials. More difficult combinations yield more victory points. However, not all of the available buildings on the table are accessible, as only the ones on the right and left-hand borders of the two rows of buildings can be selected.

The game's core mechanic revolves around identical decks of 13 cards for each player, with only 2 cards played per round. The numerical combination of the cards played is important, as the player with the lowest combined number acts first. This means that the start player constantly changes, and it's possible that a planned action cannot be taken if another player has already used the same role.

Not all roles are exclusive, so the turn order also determines the value of certain actions. For example, if a player before you played the same card, your "half of all pesos in the middle" may be half of eight or half of four, depending on the order of play.

Some roles allow players to tax or steal from others, and some cards defend against these actions, so the game is not just about collecting pieces in a solitary manner. Some combinations require the presence of an architect, so players must choose whether to use one of their two card spots for this role. Other cards add different twists to the gameplay.

The main decisions in the game involve what and when to choose, who to hurt, and what the player is aiming for. The game is designed for 2-4 players and takes 30-45 minutes to play, making it a great strategy game.

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