A Trip Down Memory Lane with Ex Libris: Revised Edition
Arrange magical books and curate a collection that outshines the overflowing shelves of the public library in Ex Libris.
Today marks 4 years since I started my blog! Very exciting to be able to look back at my solo gaming adventures over the years. In a fitting tribute, I recently picked up Ex Libris: Revised Edition. This was a game I sold long ago, yet it was one I played during my first year of real solo gaming back in 2017. Time to revisit these dusty book shelves!
Game Overview
Game Name: Ex Libris: Revised Edition
Publication Year: 2023
Designer: Adam P. McIver
Artist: Jacqui Davis
Publisher: Renegade Game Studios
Solo Mode: Included in the Base Game
Over the course of 6 rounds, assistants head into town to add to a collection or find ways to locate better books. Categories determine which are the most desired titles, and building a collection is about stability and the most important action: Alphabetizing. Get those books in order!
First Play
December 27, 2017
Complexity
2
Latest Play
February 20, 2024
Expansions
1
Setup Time
5 Minutes
Lifetime Plays
40
Play Time
20 Minutes
High Score
150
Game Area
26" x 20"
Low Score
139
A Blast from the Past
There were many reasons why I parted with my original edition, yet one of them came down to the difficulty I had in reading all of the text on the action tiles and cards.
In the revised edition, it sounded like this was fixed. As soon as I set up the game, I was reminded of the issues. The text isn’t super small, yet this is hard for me to see.
The area in front of me is for my shelf, which needs 3 rows for cards. This is as close as I could get the action tiles!
I have some fond memories of looking through the books, and there is always nostalgia for being gifted the game.
Collecting Books
The titles are certainly the highlight of the experience, as there are all sorts of jokes and puns to be found! But I found that this text was hard to read at an angle, too.
I love the theme of creating an alphabetized collection of books. Unfortunately, I simply focused on the icons at the top of each card for the letter and book types.
Some interesting decisions popped up with my assistants, but nothing really stood out about gameplay.
Just when I thought it was over, the final scoring process took me a solid 5 minutes to add up icons and bonuses.
A Missed Opportunity
Due to the small print on the central tiles, this revised edition also promised a reference sheet. Ah, this sounded like it would solve my issue with the small text!
Alas, it was an oddly arranged sheet with so much dead space. I keep wondering why this space wasn’t used better to bump up the font size to a more legible choice.
I can see this being helpful in some regards for passing around in a multiplayer game, but I barely used it.
The only helpful instance was when cards were placed on the tiles themselves, covering up the vital action text.
The Nose Always Knows
Although I know the assistant spaces are meant to look like them with their hats, I once interpreted this graphic as a nose, and I continue to do so! Ha ha!
This is the first time I sold and then reacquired a game. Granted, the revised edition has some other changes, so I don’t consider it exactly the same thing… But close!
I think the lesson here is that if I part with a game, I had my reasons that aren’t likely to change at any point.
It was pleasant to take a stroll down memory lane, but it’s time to find a new home for this one… Again.
Returning to an Old Solo Variant
One of the other reasons why I wanted to revisit this game in a revised edition is another remnant of the past… I started working on my own solo variant! It was supposed to simulate actually managing a library with different kinds of visitors who were drawn to books for various reasons, with a bunch of different goals and rules.
In a nutshell, I tried it out, and it’s clearly iteration 0.1 in the development process! It was the only reason why I kept the first edition so long. There were some glimmers of hope, yet ultimately, I didn’t find the game engaging enough to continue working on it. Would it have been great? Doubtful, yet with more work, it might have been passable for me.
The nostalgia was pretty nice in many senses, and had the legibility issues been addressed here, I might be tempted to try to bring that solo variant to completion. As it is, it remains a remnant of the past and a reminder that simple is better when it comes to crafting my own house rules. Suffice to say I’ve definitely improved in my design philosophy!
Fantastic Meeples
I can’t fault the revised edition for improving the meeples! In the original, these came in custom shapes without any screen-printing. Now, they all come to life with art!
The special assistants are pretty awesome, too, but the basic assistants are the ones used the most. Very cool!
Yet when I looked at the price I paid for this revised edition and the new expansion, I couldn’t help but feel like a lot of that cost was for custom meeples I didn’t need.
This is an interesting game. I just wish this new edition would have had larger text for better accessibility and use.
Stacking Up the Books
Alphabetizing an entire collection is part of the fun in making decisions about which cards to pick up and shelve at different times. Plenty of choices throughout gameplay!
Yet the solo opponent collected all discarded cards, and drew a lot at the start of each round. This difficulty may be modified, but it all comes down to a lot of randomness.
I really struggled with final scoring. Every category had to be counted, both for the solo opponent and myself.
Nothing really stood out to me, save for a few laughs over a few book titles. Ah, but to savor years gone by!
Session Overview
Play Number: 37-40
Solo Mode: Included in the Base Game
Play Details: Challenging Difficulty Level and Solo Variant
Outcome: 131-158, 150-149, 24, 28 (3 Wins & 1 Loss)
My solo variant was reasonably entertaining, although all I saw were ways to change every rule. At least I liked the core idea. Ha ha! This was nice to remember some of the fun from around 6 or 7 years ago, but I confirmed my suspicions that I don’t need to reacquire any sold games. My collection is enough, and I’m confident in my likes to let go of games that don’t align. Farewell, magical books!
%
40 Plays
Affordability
Price & Value
4
Functionality
Challenges & Mechanics
7
Originality
Design & Theme
5
Quality
Components & Rules
7
Reusability
Achievement & Enjoyment
5
Variability
Distinctness & Randomness
4
+ Pros (Positives)
- All of the book titles are humorous with jokes and puns that make each card a little more interesting.
- The play area typically doesn’t spread out that much with the maximum shelf height of 3 card rows.
- Custom meeples add some personality to the assistants, especially in regards to the unique specialists.
- Letters and icons across the top of the book cards are relatively large and easy to read from far away.
- Alphabetizing books is a major part of gameplay that introduces some fun decisions and timing conundrums.
- Adjusting the difficulty level is easy and has to do with how many cards to give the solo opponent each round.
– Cons (Negatives)
- The text size and colors make legibility rather difficulty, especially with the action tiles and reference sheet.
- Final scoring is tedious and long, particularly with the need to count icons for the solo opponent and yourself.
- Although there are tons of book cards, gameplay proceeds in a similar manner and feels rather repetitive.
- Nothing jumps out to create a memorable experience, unfortunately, as only the theme feels somewhat unique.
Victory Conditions
Score the Most Points
- Overall Goal Progress 100%
Goals and Milestones
Score at least 150 points.
Win at least 1 game at the challenging difficulty level.
Continue the Conversation
Have you played Ex Libris: Revised Edition? What are some of your favorite book titles in the game? It was nice enough to return to this one, although I’m happy that it helped me understand I don’t need to reacquire any games I part with. Celebrating 4 years of writing about solo games by going back to one of my early games was a lot of fun, though!
Gosh, I did not realize it was already 4 years. So much has gone on in between. Congratulations on your 4th anniversary, this quite an impressive achievement, to say the least !
Thank you kindly, Brenoit! The time has flown by, and I’m looking forward to writing lots more. So many solo games still out there to discover and enjoy!
Oh, and I think I caught the glimpse of an elephant!
Nice job! This one found a funny hiding spot that seemed too great not to capture in a photo!
Congratulations on 4 years! I have only been ready for about a year, but I really enjoy your posts.
Thanks so much, Rob! I appreciate the kind words and that you’re enjoying my posts. Excited to share some more thoughts about all of my new games yet to reach my table!