Santorini has been a favorite 2-player board game in our family ever since we first played the reimplemented game by Roxley Games 4 years ago.

It’s an abstract strategy game with variable player powers where each player tries to get one of their pawns (workers) to the 3rd level of a building. The game components are absolutely fantastic and look just like the recognizable, blue-topped buildings on the Greek isle of Santorini.

So we were quite surprised when Roxley Games published Santorini: New York in 2020.

I mean, what do Santorini and New York have to do with each other?

It was a real head-scratcher.

Of course, that also didn’t stop us in the slightest from wanting to play it right away!

If you’re just as curious about how the awesome Santorini could morph into a new game set in New York City as we were, then you’ve come to the right place—read on!

 

How to play Santorini: New York

For starters, because “Santorini” is in the name, you’ll be correct in assuming the basic game play elements of the original Santorini board game will still be in Santorini: New York.

On their turn, a players still does 2 things: Move one of their workers and then Build on an adjacent space. Likewise, getting a worker on top of the 3rd floor of a building is also a way to win the game. 

But notice I said “a” way to win the game. Because that’s not the only way to win—and there’s a twist to winning that way anyway.

So let’s dive in to see what’s different in the new game…

(For those that need a refresher on the original game play, first check out our review of Santorini.)

 

Roles vs. Powers

In Santorini, players are granted 1 unique Power that they may use to tweak the rules on their turns during the game. In Santorini: New York, players aren’t granted a unique player to use on their turns.

Instead, in each game there are 4 different “powers” in play through the use of Roles. There are actually 14 different Roles available in Santorini: New York, but only 4 are in play in each game.

Each Role has 6 or 7 cards in their set with various numbers on them. The 4 chosen Role sets are shuffled together at the start of the game and 5 are dealt out to each player. Thus, players have a hand of 5 cards to choose from each round.

On a game turn, players simultaneously choose one of their cards to play. In making the choice, players must consider both the Role ability granted as well as the number on the card. That’s because the player with the lowest number on their card takes their turn first. Then the player with the next lowest number goes—until all players have taken a turn for the round.

Once played, the cards are discarded. And when all players are down to just 1 card in hand, they each draw back up to 5 cards and continue.

 

The Roles

The Role cards will alter the way players can move their workers and build on their turn.

In a game of Santorini, typically a Move consists of moving 1 worker to an unoccupied adjacent space. They can move at most 1 level higher onto an existing building and can move down from a building any number of levels. After moving, the player Builds a building segment (at any level) on an adjacent space to the moved worker.

However, the various Roles in Santorini: New York will have players moving their workers and building in new ways.

Here are a few examples:

• The NYPD Officer lets a player move into an adjacent opponent’s space and push that worker backward 1 space.
• The Subway Operator lets a player move north, south, east, or west to the next unoccupied space, passing through (under) anything in between.
• The Ironworker lets a player build in 2 different spaces.
• The Engineer is used in every game and has players placing a gold Skyscraper building at the start of their turn, then moving and building.

During each game, players will choose 1 Role from each of 3 different types; Specialists, Builders, & Movers plus the Engineer in play. So the possible combinations of which abilities are in play each game are many.

 

Statue of Liberty and Win Conditions

In Santorini, to win, a player must move one of their workers up to the 3rd level of a building. That same win condition is possible in Santorini: New York. However, in Santorini: New York, that player must also be in possession of the Statue of Liberty in order to win.

While players take turns from the lowest number card played to the highest in a game round, the player who played the highest number card takes the Statue of Liberty figure once all cards are revealed.

So a player will need to play a high card to get the Statue of Liberty. However, all the other players will get to go before them—and they may move and build in such a way to block the player currently in possession of the Statue of Liberty from being able to win on their turn.

There’s also a second possible way to win in Santorini: New York.

If a player played an Engineer card and builds a Rooftop while also possessing the Statue of Liberty, they win the game.

And there’s also a third way to win!

A player may win by being the only player with workers left on the board. If neither of a player’s workers are able to both move and build on a turn, they must remove a worker from the board. Also, if they’re unable to fulfill a requirement on their role card, they must remove a worker. This is how this 3rd win condition may come into play—by other players being forced to remove their workers along the way.

 

While it hearkens to the original, the many changes to the game play in Santorini: New York make it its own unique game.

 

Can the whole family enjoy Santorini: New York?

Like the original Santorini, Santorini: New York is a fantastic abstract board game that families can enjoy playing together.

However, due to the added complexity of having various Roles as well as having to pay attention to the numbers on the role cards for play order timing, it’s not as easy of a game for younger kids to pick up on.

That being said, if you like games that make you think strategically and consider round to round tactical choices, then Santorini: New York may be right up your alley.

We also mentioned that Santorini is best as a 2-player strategy game. It allows for more, but we really consider it a 2-player game. But with Santorini: New York, we actually prefer to have more players in the mix.

Santorini: New York is for 2 to 5 players and because of the simultaneous card choices that vary the play order each round, it’s a more compelling game with more players. Trying to guess which roles and numeric values other players may choose keeps us on our toes the whole game.

Of course, others may not like the randomness that comes into play because of those choices. You may have great plans for how you’re going to move, build, and win the game. And then someone else plays a lower card, goes before you, and blocks your plans.

If you’re choosing between getting either Santorini or Santorini: New York, you’ll have to decide what type of game you prefer.

Or you can be luck us and have a copy of each—with both at the ready depending on the mood you’re in or who you’re going to be playing with that day.

 

Components

Roxley Games knocks it out the park again with the components for Santorini: New York!

Everything is top notch.

The building pieces fit so nicely together. The gold Skyscrapers are pulled right from the real NYC skyline. The inset spaces on the board are perfect for keeping the buildings on a good foundation. The worker pawns and Statue of Liberty figure are terrific. And the cards are a durable quality.

Plus we love the artwork!

The components aren’t just icing on the cake—they’re like main ingredients mixed in perfectly with the stellar game play.

 

How does Santorini: New York score on our “Let’s Play Again” game meter?

Santorini: New York scores high on our “let’s play again” game meter. We love the familiar game play of moving and building with the added choices thrown in of the various roles.

However, it also turns out to be a longer game. That’s because there are simply more choices to make and thus more thinking each turn. Rather than just having one power to deal with during a game, now we have a hand of 5 cards to choose between. Plus, there’s more adjusting to make as players go before you in a different turn order each round.

As such, Santorini: New York isn’t a game we play back-to-back-to-back like we do with Santorini.

In the end, we foresee playing the original Santorini more in the future than we do Santorini: New York. But we’re still happy to have both games because they deliver different play experiences.

The Board Game Family would like to thank Roxley Games for a review copy of Santorini: New York.