For those who don't know, Andreas Seyfarth is the one responsible for creating Puerto Rico - the number one game on BGG for years. He also created Thurn and Taxis which I reviewed here. He is further responsible for the card game San Juan.
What caught my eye was his comparison of his own Puerto Rico vs. Agricola. In discussing the difference between the long time favorite and the newer darling, Seyfarth says,
"The main differences in Puerto Rico and Agricola....well for me it's the variation you get in Agricola through the cards you have to deal with - or not if you don't like. I always want to deal with them and look, what's happening in the game. In this regard, PR is a little bit more static (ok, there are different ways to expand in PR, but not as many as in Agricola). When you are a good player in PR, you know how to act and react."
Very true. I think Puerto Rico gives you quite a few options, but there are only five jobs (plus prospector). So there is often a 'best' job to take in any given round. With Agricola, there a many, many actions and there is tension between what you take now and what you leave and hope no one takes so you can grab it later. Plus, in Agricola the game ends before you feel complete.
That said, Puerto Rico is still awesome sauce.
