Primordial soup (game)
| Primordial soup | |
|---|---|
|
|
| Game data | |
| author | Doris Matthäus , Frank Nestel |
| graphic | Doris Matthew |
| publishing company |
Games by Doris & Frank , Z-Man Games |
| Publishing year | 1997 |
| Art | Board game |
| Teammates | 3 to 4 |
| Duration | 90-120 minutes |
| Age | from 12 years
|
| Awards | |
|
German Games Prize 1998: 2nd place |
|
Primordial Soup by Doris Matthäus and Frank Nestel is a board game that simulates the development of primeval life. In 1998, Ursuppe was placed second in the German Game Prize .
Each player represents a strain 1-7 amoebae , the aimless in Urmeer called Ursuppe , around bob, food absorb and feces eliminated. Each round consists of several phases that are played one after the other.
| phase | action |
|---|---|
| 1 (move and eat) | The players let their amoebas either drift in the direction of flow or move under their own steam. Moving on your own costs one bio point (“currency” in the primordial soup). Then they have to eat one nutrient from each foreign color or two nutrients from three players of one color. At the same time, they secrete two nutrients of their own color. If the necessary nutrients are not available, the amoeba starves, which in the event of repetition leads to death (see phase 5). |
| 2 (environment and genetic defects) | The new environmental card is revealed. If the sum of the sensitivities of a player's gene cards is greater than the current thickness of the ozone layer , the player concerned must pay off the difference with bio-points or gene cards. |
| 3 (new genes) | The players can buy gene cards with their remaining bio points. |
| 4 ( cell division ) | Each player receives 10 bio points. For every 6 bio-points, a new amoeba can be placed on a field adjacent to your own amoeba. |
| 5 (deaths) | Amoebas with 2 or more damage points (caused by hunger) are replaced by 2 nutrients of each color. |
| 6 (rating) | Depending on the number of amoebas in the primordial soup and the number of gene cards a player has, the player's stone moves on the track. |
As in real life, amoebas only eat what other amoeba species give off, and not their own waste. So that they can survive, they have to keep moving, this is done by drifting, which depends on the current flow, or fidgeting, which depends on the luck of the dice . Through evolution , an amoeba strain can acquire additional, more or less useful properties. There is speed, frugality, longevity, special types of reproduction or intelligence. Only through sensible combinations can the player succeed in allowing his amoeba to survive and even to become the most developed amoeba strain. After about two hours of play, the first player in the finish area on the development scale wins.
For the game, the expansion "Primordial Soup - Freshly Seasoned" appeared in 1998, which contains a set of gene cards. This expansion also makes it possible to play the game with up to six instead of a maximum of four players.
Since 2004 there has been an implementation of the game in English under the title “Primordial Soup”.
Web links
- Primeval soup at Doris & Frank
- Original soup in the Luding games database
- Primordial Soup in the board game database BoardGameGeek (English)