7 Wonders: Duel Reviews

4.9 Rating 84 Reviews

In many ways 7 Wonders Duel resembles its parent game 7 Wonders as over three ages players acquire cards that provide resources or advance their military or scientific development in order to develop a civilization and complete wonders. What's different about 7 Wonders Duel is that, as the title suggests, the game is solely for two players, with the players not drafting cards simultaneously from hands of cards, but from a display of face-down and face-up cards arranged at the start of a round. A player can win 7 Wonders Duel in one of three ways: each time you acquire a military card, you advance the military marker toward your opponent's capital, giving you a bonus at certain positions; if you reach the opponent's capital, you win the game immediately; similarly, if you acquire any six of seven different scientific symbols, you achieve scientific dominance and win immediately; if none of these situations occurs, then the player with the most points at the end of the game wins.

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“Fantastic 2 player game. Easy to pick up and plays different every time.”

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

“Order #233552 7 Wonders Duel Ages 10+ Players: 2 Time: 30 mins Designer/ Publisher: Antoine Bauza, Bruno Cathala / Repos Production Mechanisms: Drafting / Set collection Positives: • Multiple paths to victory • Slick gameplay • Great value for money Negatives: • Small, fiddly cards • Theming is a little generic There is a natural temptation to consider 7 Wonders Duel in relation to 7 Wonders, and point out the changes. However, that would be less helpful than telling you what 7 Wonders Duel is like as a game in its own right. The beauty of the game lies in the multiple paths to victory, which keeps the game interesting through until the later stages. The game takes place over 3 ages, with a separate deck of cards for each age being laid out in a predetermined pattern which reveals some cards and hides others, to be released gradually as the drafting proceeds. Players are trying to collect cards with buildings which provide resources or effects such as victory points, money, science points or military points. Resources can be used to “construct” other cards (buildings), which provide gradually more rewards. In addition to this they can construct up to 4 of the wonders they have selected before the game starts – these act in a similar way to the other cards, but provide greater rewards. The game ends with either a points victory after all the cards have been drafted, or a science or military victory, if enough cards have been collected and the tracker in the centre of the board reaches the required threshold. The truth is that, were it not for the opportunity or danger of a military or science victory, 7 Wonders duel would be quite one-dimensional. The gameplay does not really change from the first round to the last – you are always drawing cards, looking at your available resources and working out what to build next. However, the multiple paths to victory mean that you cannot simply follow your own path and trust the luck of the draw that you will be able to build more than your opponent and gain an inevitable points victory. Both players have to keep a watchful eye on what the other is trying to do, and this brings about a greater amount of strategy to the drafting. The pre-ordained card pattern which reveals itself gradually cleverly assists the strategic elements of the gameplay by offering partial information and opportunities for blocking manoeuvres. “I may really want that card which offers 3 victory points, but drafting it will uncover 2 other cards, one of which could be the science that my opponent requires for victory…”. These are the kinds of dilemmas which make the gameplay entertaining. However, with there being only 2 players, there is only so much of the drafting you can control. You will eventually have to draft the card you do not want to. The artwork is nice enough, and the components are of decent quality. The playing cards are pretty small which can make them fiddly. However, this does mean that the game can be played on smaller surfaces, and the game fits in a nice small box, so it depends on what your priorities are as to whether this is an advantage or disadvantage. I did find myself wishing that the cards were larger though. The rules are well-written and clear. The theming of the game is a well-established trope in games and works well here, though the civilizations you build are “generic ancient times”. Assuming the roles of different civilizations with different abilities and priorities would have added to the gameplay immeasurably. 7 Wonders Duel offers a slick gameplay experience, and enough strategic possibility to maintain interest and keep players coming back. The possibility of other paths to victory offer one or both players the option to adapt and switch strategies during the course of gameplay, which adds tension. The game serves as a very good introduction to its mechanisms for those interested in getting into more complex games, particularly at such an attractive price point. It should be mentioned that the expansion, Pantheon, does much to add depth to the gameplay and offers players a way to break the drafting sequence, which can give that “on the rails” feeling in the base game. If you find yourself enjoying the base game, Pantheon can be considered to be an essential expansion. Final verdict: A buy.”

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

“This is a good game, I like it. It has a good degree of replayability, set up is average or even shorter than games of this length and complexity. What keeps this game away from being awesome is the fact that the military and scientific victories are not really sensible strategies. If they happen they will be either accidental or due to the lack of the draw. This means that moderately smart players will skip these strategies altogether and go for points; you really don't want to take the "military" strategy and change it later when you realise it's very unlikely to work: you're probably only going to hurt your end game score. So, yep, good game, extremely overrated on BGG in my personal opinion, but for the great price I got it at I would certainly recommend it. Beware! I like the wonders that give me extra turns, and I've managed to build all of them consecutively in one turn. My partner got extremely upset about this. So, although the word DUEL is right on the name, keep in mind that this game can have a lot of the "take that" element.”

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

“Great 2 player game with several different ways to play to win”

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

“Great game for 2 players. Simple to learn, quick to play.”

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

“Simple to learn but with enough strategy to keep it varied and interesting. Only takes about 20 minutes to play. One of the best 2 player games.”

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

“Quickly becoming one of my favourite two player games.”

Helpful Report

Posted 6 years ago

Christopher M

Verified Reviewer

“So, Me and my girlfriend love a good in-depth board game. Sometimes, however, there just isn't anyone about to meet the required player count in the majority of awesome games. They do exist (Castles of Burgundy, Istanbul, Five tribes, bla bla) but you could get the feeling that you, the players are not getting the full experience that perhaps you should, or could be...? Enter 7 wonders: Duel. Its just what it says on the tin. Box. Its a duel! So with that title in mind, that's how me and my girlfriend play it. It can be mean at times sure, but in equal measure it can be as satisfying. Like any good duel, it will be back and forth, and that's where this game shines. Its designed for only two players and it gives that big board game feeling in a half hour (twenty mins at a push) game. Very well made and excellent value. 4/5”

2 Helpful Report

Posted 6 years ago