Since the days when Tokyo was known as Edo, or even earlier, the Japanese have always pursued an ideal of aesthetics. The so-called Iki. I can’t claim to fully grasp the concept, but, roughly speaking, it’s about showing off refinement and wealth. Quite an easy feat, perhaps. Yet, the swagger must be done without crossing into outright bourgeois arrogance. From what I’ve read, it’s… a pretty nuanced philosophy.
This philosophy was originally introduced and practiced by the merchant class. The latter one was forced. Although impoverished due to social class, these merchants were often wealthy and influential. Thanks to an edict, however, that threatened to confiscate their assets, they could not flaunt their status above their social class.
While becoming the innards of the game, I did not feel the tension radiating from Iki. Instead, I can genuinely feel the vibrant colours and elegance of the traders throughout the gameplay.
COMING TO THE JAPANESE MARKET
Iki manifests a powerful table presence from its main board. Featuring various artistic visuals, it depicts a piece of traditional Japanese market. This ancient emporium is then partitioned into four main sectors called Nagaya, which also hosts two Shops per sector. Each Nagaya is further subdivided into four discrete Stalls. In total, we have 16 of these spots.
The main board in Iki functions as a rondel track. This cyclical pathway is the orbit track for our Oyakata, one of two types of tokens used in this game. It is to denote the progression along this pathway, which circulates as the main street in the market. The Oyakata will stop in one of the Nagaya to trigger the Shop standing directly beside the main street where he currently stands by. This is the primary effect we prompt from the worker placement. What makes Iki more interesting is, the trigger from the worker placement does not, however, stop there.
We are then afforded the agency to pick and populate Stalls with our hired Characters of merchants and craftspeople. As long as the Stall still vacant when doing so. With this aspect, we possess the prerogative to determine strategically where the secondary effects may take place on the board. A decision executed prior to moving Oyakata. At the point where all spaces are filled, we have then a more enriched aesthetic as well, thanks to the artisan Character cards that are now on the main board.
Two Stalls means two Character cards are standing behind one Shop. These are readily available as secondary rewards or effects besides the effect from the Shop itself. In the end, we trigger two effects when placing the worker. This implementation confers significant extended agency upon us.
Consequently, a placement of newly hired craftsman within a Stall situated in a Nagaya a few steps ahead of the Oyakata, when possible, becomes advantageous. It is indeed an apparent reasonable choice. It enables us to move the Oyakata to subsequently occupy that particular Nagaya on the following turn. The rest of triggered chain of events is self-explanatory. We can do the Shop effect, and then pick one of the Stalls.
Personally speaking, this extended freedom in Iki is a highly valued element within the game design. Subsequent gameplays reveal how tightly the mechanic is integrated with the thematic underpinnings. Thus, enhancing how immersive Iki can be. This thematic resonance is more pronounced when considering the finite tenure of the artisans within the Stalls.
The craftspeople need retirement plans, too
Iki establishes such limitation not through the conventional model of hiring and rental in fixed terms. This standard is personally deemed underwhelming for a game of this caliber. Instead, the game introduces the Experience track. A secondary, smaller token than Oyakata indicates how experienced your craftsman has become. This token is called the Kobun.
The information, presented on the Character cards, indicates the Salary each craftsman accrues during the Payday phase. And it is contingent upon the artisan’s experience level. Excelling in this level means enhanced rewards when the Kobun is deployed to activate the Character card. So where’s the time constraint, then?
Just like in real-life scenario, experience accrues over time. Thus, upon a Character’s surpassing a temporal threshold and traversing the last spot on the Experience track, the retirement becomes imminent for the artisan. Indeed, Iki exhibits considerable realistic touch in this regard.
Despite sounding superficially disadvantageous, facilitating an early retirement for our Characters proves to be a good idea. The retired artisan cards are then placed on our player board. It introduces a set-collection mechanic, a tool that pushes us at accumulating diverse categories of artisans. Subsequently, this mechanic yields points at the game’s conclusion. The aforementioned experience for our Characters is typically acquired through two means.
First, by having the Oyakata completing a round trip in the Market. Initially, it appears to be the easiest method to gain experience. Yet, Iki, as a game that comprises four seasons of 12 rounds — plus a supplementary 13th round — makes it not a viable primary option. What I mean is… the game structure renders a strategic focus solely on maximising Oyakata’s round trips pointless. Or questionable, at best.
Given the multitude of strategic considerations present on the game board, directing undue attention to this single aspect would prove suboptimal. This plan provides an extra push for experience accrual, indeed. But saying that it’s the primary means to do so would be an overstatement.
Secondly, when our own craftspeople are utilised by other players during their business transactions. This, my friend, is my personal favourite. With this aspect in mind, it is often advantageous to employ artisans whose skills offer immediate functionality to other players. Giving profitable rewards when activated to as many players as possible.
Increased activation frequency during the worker placement phase accelerates the Character’s progression towards retirement. At which point, the Kobun is returned along with the Character cards — the latter will then contribute to end-game scoring. The available Kobun permits the subsequent recruitment of a new Character in the next hiring window.
A higher rate of Character turnover thus increases the chance of acquiring artisans across a broader spectrum of types. It thereby translates into a greater point accumulation.
Fire and firefighting
Another mechanic that regulates the lifecycle of Characters in Iki is the Fire mechanic. This element presents a recurring challenge that, while thematic, is relatively easy to bypass. Fire erupts thrice during the game. It occurs at predetermined intervals. Yet, we still have a surprise factor where the Fire ignites in random Nagaya.
The next fire increases in intensity compared to the last. Thus, Iki demands an increase in Firefighting power. Insufficient preparedness exposes Characters to the risk of being incinerated. It results in the permanent removal without yielding any benefits or rewards.
Well, the repercussions are brutal. Losing a Character to the fire can be detrimental. This pushes a proactive augmentation of Firefighting power. The attribute not only safeguards our craftspeople but also determines turn order. With that being in mind, the Firefighting power confers additional strategic value. Nevertheless, I still feel something slightly lacking here.
Extinguishing the fire simply terminates the Fire phase. I do think it does not have enough impact. Indeed, Firefighting power and the act of firefighting in Iki are still crucial. However, the latter simply terminates the Fire phase. It offers no direct compensation or incentive for the player performing this heroic deed. Perhaps, introducing a reward for this element could elevate the importance of this mechanic.
Besides Fire and the retirement plants, Iki incorporates one last soft control that influences the lifecycle of the Character cards. We have the Rice to think about. Consider it as a form of salary paid to the artisans we have hired for the turn. Failure to provide this remuneration results in their departure.
Set collection in Iki
This is the prominent mechanic within Iki. The set collection extends beyond the acquisition of various Characters to several commodities. Notably, we have Fish and Tobacco pouches. The latter is paired with Pipes. Each offers distinct scoring pathway. Such thing is a familiar mechanic that can be found in any other game in the market.
Despite incorporation of multiple avenues for this set collection, I don’t think Iki has provided enough variability to sufficiently promote diversification in strategic play. The commodity available each Season is too constrained. In the end, our primary point generation still comes from gathering diverse Characters until the end of the game. This is, however, not necessarily negative. Personally, I do not identify Iki as a point-salad game. And I am grateful to do so.
Overall, iki presents a suggestive appearance of a medium euro game. Or perhaps even a heavy one. With how busy the main board can look after the all Nagaya get populated, I can understand this prejudice. Iki’s complexity is, however, not aligning with this initial impression. While the game presents many things to consider, it remains manageable.
Iki is a decent game. It leans more towards a medium weight euro game. We can argue that it even goes on the lighter side of that spectrum as well. While the gameplay demands us attention, Iki does not delve into profound depth. In the end, I only see the mechanics revolve around a singular primary type: the set collection.
As much as I love Iki and its feudal Japanese setting, I feel that this game’s impression won’t last that long for me. I will occasionally revisit this game. Yet, Iki as a frequent fixture on my table… I don’t think I can promise that. The market regrettably offers numerous other titles which personally exhibit mix of mechanics that are too close or similar. Some of them even offer superior gameplay experience.
I am a full-time food technologist during weekdays. However, when the calendar hits weekends, I transform into an avid board gamer. I am a hardcore Legend of the Five Rings (L5R) LCG player from Fantasy Flight Games (FFG). Current hobby: buying board games. My shelf of shame’s list is getting longer, thanks to you, Kickstarter.
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