Welcome To... Review

Intro

Welcome To... takes the familiar satisfaction of a roll-and-write game and gives it a clever twist: no dice required. This 2018 city-building gem from Blue Cocker Games drops you into the role of a 1950s suburban architect, tasked with designing the perfect American neighborhood. Instead of rolling dice, you're flipping cards to reveal house numbers and actions that everyone uses simultaneously. It's a brilliant setup that works equally well whether you're playing solo or with a massive group of 100 players.

With an average play time of just 25 minutes and a complexity that sits comfortably in beginner-friendly territory, Welcome To... has earned solid ratings around 7.5 out of 10 from the board game community. The game's accessibility doesn't mean it lacks depth though. There's genuine strategy hiding beneath that retro suburban facade, making it perfect for families while still engaging experienced gamers.

How It Plays

The core mechanism is elegantly simple. Three separate decks of cards sit in the middle of the table, each showing a house number paired with a specific action. Every turn, you flip one card from each deck, creating three different combinations of numbers and actions. Everyone looks at these same three options and picks one.

The number you choose gets written into one of the houses on your personal score sheet, but here's the catch: house numbers must be placed in ascending order from left to right on each street. This creates a delicious puzzle as you try to fit numbers into the right spots without painting yourself into a corner.

The action half of your chosen card is where the real strategy kicks in. You might hire landscapers to build parks, add pools to increase property values, or bring in surveyors to adjust house numbers. Some actions let you build estates by grouping houses together, while others help you complete city plans for bonus points. The simultaneous play keeps everyone engaged since there's no downtime waiting for turns.

Three city plan cards are always available, offering different scoring opportunities like "build three parks" or "create an estate of exactly six houses." The first player to complete each plan gets the higher point value, adding a nice race element to the proceedings.

Highlights

The simultaneous action selection is genuinely brilliant. Everyone's working with the same three options each turn, but the decisions feel completely personal based on your current neighborhood layout. There's something almost meditative about the shared rhythm of choosing, writing, and moving forward together, yet you're still competing.

The scalability is remarkable. Whether you're playing with two people or twenty, the game works exactly the same way. This makes it perfect for game nights, family gatherings, or even classroom settings. Finding games that truly work for large groups is challenging, and Welcome To... delivers without any awkward modifications or rule changes.

The decision space feels just right. You're not overwhelmed with options, but there's always something meaningful to consider. Do you take that perfect house number even though the action doesn't help much? Or grab a useful action with a tricky number? These micro-decisions add up to create genuinely different strategies and outcomes.

The flip-and-write mechanism eliminates the luck mitigation issues that plague many roll-and-write games. Since everyone's working with the same card flips, bad luck feels shared rather than punishing. You're all dealing with the same challenging numbers and making the best of the same situations.

Criticisms

The theme, while charming, is pretty thin. You're building a 1950s suburb in theory, but in practice you're mostly just writing numbers in boxes and checking off action benefits. The artwork sells the suburban dream well enough, but don't expect the mechanics to make you feel like you're actually designing neighborhoods. It's an abstract puzzle with a residential coat of paint.

Some players find the simultaneous play creates an odd social dynamic. Everyone's heads are down, focused on their own sheets, which can make the game feel a bit solitary even in larger groups. There's limited interaction beyond the shared card flips, so if you're looking for games that generate table talk and player interaction, this might feel too isolated.

The difficulty curve is quite gentle, which works great for accessibility but might leave strategy game enthusiasts wanting more complexity after several plays. While there are multiple paths to victory, the decision trees aren't particularly deep. Experienced gamers might find themselves craving more intricate planning and longer-term strategic considerations.

Conclusion

Welcome To... excels as a gateway game that doesn't talk down to its audience. Families will love how quickly everyone can learn and play together, while the simultaneous turns keep kids engaged throughout. It's also fantastic for game groups that regularly have wildly different attendance numbers, since it handles player count variations better than almost anything else in your collection.

Solo players and couples will find plenty to enjoy in the tight puzzle of number placement and action optimization. The game provides just enough crunch to feel satisfying without becoming stressful or overwhelming. If you're looking for something that bridges the gap between party games and strategy games, or if you need a reliable option for large groups, Welcome To... delivers exactly what it promises: accessible, engaging fun that works for almost everyone.