Perpetual-Motion Machine (2010)

About this game

They said it couldn't be done. They were right. Nonetheless, you've been enlisted to help inventor extraordinaire Ted Alspach put the finishing touches on his Perpetual-Motion Machine. Your job is to make the machine as efficient as possible, so that you might fool the unsuspecting public long enough to make Mr. Alspach incredibly rich before he's chased out of town by a crazed mob of very cranky investors. You're pitted against one to three other players who are also looking to get as famous as possible by riding Mr. Alspach's coattails. You'll need cunning, foresight and a bit of luck in order to beat your opponents. Perpetual-Motion Machine is a game of set collection, skill-tree building, and long and short term strategy. Race against other players to build the most efficient machine possible using limited resources. As you build, you'll choose which areas to focus on to ensure victory. Reimplemented by Kniffel: Das Kartenspiel

Does it fit your group?

• Group size. Works with 2 to 4.
• Rules load. At 1.6/5 this is a light game — explain it in a few minutes, good for a table that has not played much.
• Age. The publisher suggests 8 and up. That rates the rules rather than the artwork, so judge the box yourself for younger players.