Madeira
- Players
- 2-4
- Best withThe player count this game plays best at.
- 4 players
- Play timeHow long a full game runs once everyone knows the rules.
- 150 min
- AgeThe minimum age printed by the publisher.
- 12+
- ComplexityHow demanding the rules are, from 1 (very light) to 5 (very heavy).
- 4.3 / 5
- Year
- 2013
About the game
Madeira sends players to the 15th-century Portuguese island of Madeira to develop its farms, forests, and trade routes, transitioning from wheat to sugar to the island's famous wine as the economy evolves. Its unique turn-order dice mechanism dictates the timing and strength of worker-placement actions, forcing careful sequencing decisions each round. Players race to fulfill the Portuguese Crown's shifting requests while building ships for lucrative expeditions abroad. It's a dense, historically themed economic engine-builder for serious euro gamers.
Hobbli's Notes
Madeira's clever fusion of dice-driven turn order with worker placement creates constant tension about when to act versus when to wait. The historical narrative of Madeira's economic evolution is unusually well realized for a euro game. This is a heavy, rewarding game for groups who enjoy tight optimization puzzles.
What we like
- Unique dice-driven turn order adds constant timing tension.
- Rich historical theme of Madeira's economic evolution.
- Multiple paths to prestige reward flexible strategy.
- Deep worker-placement puzzle for experienced gamers.
Keep in mind
- High complexity and long playtime demand a dedicated session.
- Steep learning curve for the turn-order dice system.
- Can suffer from significant downtime between turns.
Who it's for
Best for experienced gamers, ages 14+, in groups of 2-4 who enjoy heavy economic strategy and worker placement.
