This week on Current Plays, Jordan and Thomas touch down on the red planet with On Mars by Vital Lacerda—a monumental design where every system, resource, and decision is shared, intertwined, and fiercely consequential. From the moment boots hit Martian soil, the game demands careful timing, long-term vision, and a deep awareness of what everyone else at the table is building toward.

The hosts dive into how On Mars weaves its many systems into a single, living ecosystem: incentives shift, priorities evolve, and no action exists in isolation. Progress on Mars is communal, but success is personal, creating a competitive landscape that feels both collaborative and relentlessly strategic. It’s a game of planning, adaptation, and precision, and one that rewards patience, foresight, and mastery.

For Jordan and Thomas, this wasn’t just a great play, it was a discovery of why On Mars stands among the very best in modern board game design.

This week on Current Plays, Jordan and Thomas step into the opening mission of War Story: Occupied France, a story-driven experience set in a world of uncertainty, difficult choices, and scarce resources. From the very first decisions, the game asks players to act with incomplete information, weighing risk and consequence in ways that feel both tense and meaningful.

They discuss how the branching decision system drives the narrative forward, why every resource feels precious, and how even the combat leans into that same choice-driven design. Encounters unfold through smart decision trees that keep the action engaging and surprisingly exciting. It’s a thoughtful, immersive take on storytelling games—one that left a strong first impression after just a single mission.

This week on Current Plays, Jordan and Thomas revisit Architects of the West Kingdom, returning to one of Garphill Games’ most approachable takes on worker placement. With a mitt-full of workers in hand right from the start, the game flips the usual scarcity on its head, encouraging bold plays, clever timing, and plenty of interaction at the table.

Revisiting it several years later, the hosts reflect on how the game now feels lighter than they remember—still strategic and satisfying, but firmly in the realm of classic worker placement. That said, the familiar Garphill charm shines through, delivering a design that’s clean, engaging, and consistently fun. Sometimes it’s nice to return to the foundations and appreciate just how well they were built.