Adventure games deal with themes involving exploration ...

Settlers Of Catan

You control a group of settlers trying to tame the wilds on the remote but rich island of Catan. This game requires, strategy, trade, and growth. Versions include "Seafarers of Catan", "Starfarers of Catan", and numerous expansion packs.

Each player is the director of an expedition intent on exploring Tikal, the most important and largest of all Mayan sites, in search of the secret paths that lead to the temples and precious treasures left hidden for over a thousand years. A player receives points during four scoring rounds for each recovered treasure and for each temple that he controls. But both temples and treasures can change hands. The expedition that earns the most points exploring Tikal wins the game.

A two person game of adventure, where each player starts expeditions and invests in them to reap the rewards of their own daring. For the daring and adventurous, there are too many lost cities to seek and explore. The search can take you to the Himalayas, the Brazilian rain forest, the ever-shifting sands of the desert, ancient volcanoes and to Neptune’s Realm. Of course, one cannot go everywhere with limited resources so the players must choose which expeditions to begin and which to leave to others. Those with high confidence may have the opportunity to up the stakes: increasing the rewards for success, but risking more should the expedition fail. The player who finds the right balance will have successful expeditions. Too many expeditions will put a strain on limited resources and yield failure. Too few may guarantee success, but not victory!

Daring explorers travel deeper and deeper into darkest Africa searching to discover isolated tribes and interesting animals. Of course, they also hope for rich trade goods, gold and gems. At each turn, the explorers must decide whether to go deeper into the unknown or to search known areas more carefully. The right combination of lust for adventure and tactical play will bring an explorer victory in Africa! Includes 10 explorers, 20 base camps, 96 exploring tokens, 5 summary cards, 5 scoring tokens, 1 bonus token, 1 overview sheet, and a rule booklet.

When you see people walking about with eyes fixed downward, it usually signifies some form of collector. When a prime location becomes known, it often creates an atmosphere of gold fever, with everyone trying to search the finest ground. Fossil is a captivating racing and gathering game. All players have an overall view of all the possible moves and of the other players' desires, since all pieces lie openly on the board and all scoring is done on public display. You must continually make judgements whether to take a valuable piece for yourself, snatch one away from under a rival's nose, or move a stone to a square so that your neighbor cannot score. In a similar vein, a player collecting the last piece could create a problem for another player when he exchanges that player's most valuable fragment for a piece of "trash." Fossil often takes surprising turns, even into the final scoring round. The leading player can never feel completely secure from unwanted and potentially damaging acts. The theme is splendidly set with artwork by Franz Vohwinkel.

The year is 1519. The explorer Hernan Cortez is in search of fame and fortune. He has found way to Tenochtitlan, capital of the Aztecs. Ruled by Montezuma, the Aztecs are at the height of their power; but soon envy, distrust and--above all--the greed for gold destroy the old empire as the new visitors pursue their own plans. Each player represents an Aztec or Spanish army leader. The aim of the game is to get as many of your own troops into Tenochtitlan as you can.

The adventure scenarios are the actual journeys of such explorers as Marco Polo, Nansen, Scott, Drake, Cook, etc. Players pick a journey, make preparations, assemble crews & venture forth. They make the trip together, each handling different aspects of the expedition. Lots of adventure & an educational eye-opener about the life of explorers. A good family & classroom game.