Overview
At a glance
Is this game right for my group?
ABG editorial scores on a 1–5 scale.
Harder to teach
High replayability
Highly interactive
Scales well
Deep strategy
How it plays
How does it play?
“Yoko… What lies ahead for us?” asked her friend Tomoyo. Yoko stared out into the sea, calm and serene.
Core mechanisms
Key systems that shape the decisions players make.
Area Majority
Compete to have the strongest presence in areas that award control or points.
Area Movement
Move pieces between connected regions rather than along individual spaces.
Hand Management
Time and sequence a limited hand of cards to preserve future options.
Force Commitment
Commit resources or units before all relevant information is known.
I Cut, You Choose
One player divides resources and another chooses which share to take.
Read the full game description
“Yoko… What lies ahead for us?” asked her friend Tomoyo. Yoko stared out into the sea, calm and serene. “Today we are just maiko. But one day, we will complete our training and become known as geisha.” “Yes, artists of the highest order. But then what?” “Okaasan said that one day, perhaps some of us may be lucky to inherit the teahouse... if fortune favors us and our hard work.” Welcome back to Hanamikoji! In Hanamikoji: Geisha's Road is a two-player based on “Hanamikoji” with a new Geisha movement and roundel system added to the game design to make the strategy more diversified. It’s competitive strategy game full of implicit intentions, veiled messages, and hidden actions, players represent rival but friendly patrons supporting Yoko, Tomoyo, and others along their journey from apprentice (maiko) to full geisha (artist) and perhaps even the owner (okaasan) of their own establishment. To do so, players help their favored geisha advance and build prestige through performing their art at different teahouses. Geisha start as apprentices (maiko) but become full geisha and score prestige points after accruing the necessary patronage to return to their original teahouse (ochaya) for the graduation ceremony (erikae). Some geisha may continue their path further and eventually inherit the teahouse (upon a second return) to become the new okaasan, recognized with more prestige points. At the end of the game, the player who provides the most support to each geisha is recognized. The player who has supported the most prestigious group of geisha wins the game.