Great review and summary of Horizons of Spirit Island. Your description of the somewhat experienced gamer that this game would appeal to was very much how I came to this game. I have mixed feelings about some Co-op games, but I had heard good things about this one. I'd seen it at Target and was intrigued by the price point. Through a combination of local promotion (15%), Veteran's Day promotion (10%), Target Red Card (works through our bank debit card - 5%), all of which Target allows to "stack", with a $5 gift card for separate unrelated purchases, I was able to pick this up for under $20 and it's turned out to be quite the bargain. Between some UA-cam strategy videos and solo experimentation, this has rapidly become one of my favorite games. Since picking this up, I've gotten the base game along with the Branch and Claw and Jagged Earth expansions (passed on the recent Kickstarter of pending new content). What a great experience for both solo gamers, independently, and Co-op gamers who may be put off by the "Alpha Gamer" taking over everyone else's fun. The complexities of the asymmetrical spirits really put a damper on that and allow everyone to participate more fully.
Great review and summary of Horizons of Spirit Island. Your description of the somewhat experienced gamer that this game would appeal to was very much how I came to this game. I have mixed feelings about some Co-op games, but I had heard good things about this one. I'd seen it at Target and was intrigued by the price point. Through a combination of local promotion (15%), Veteran's Day promotion (10%), Target Red Card (works through our bank debit card - 5%), all of which Target allows to "stack", with a $5 gift card for separate unrelated purchases, I was able to pick this up for under $20 and it's turned out to be quite the bargain. Between some UA-cam strategy videos and solo experimentation, this has rapidly become one of my favorite games. Since picking this up, I've gotten the base game along with the Branch and Claw and Jagged Earth expansions (passed on the recent Kickstarter of pending new content). What a great experience for both solo gamers, independently, and Co-op gamers who may be put off by the "Alpha Gamer" taking over everyone else's fun. The complexities of the asymmetrical spirits really put a damper on that and allow everyone to participate more fully.
Thanks for sharing! $20 is an absolute steal for this game!