New Lessons and Recipes from a Master Cook in Obsession
Find ways to expand a sprawling country estate and rise in Derbyshire society with one of the families in Obsession.
After discovering that Obsession was even better with the expansion, I wasn’t ready to pack it up! There were parties to plan, new building tiles to discover, and more nuanced strategies to try out with the new staff members. I updated my rating and it earned a perfect score… Can’t do better than that, which is why it remains my favorite solo game!
Disclaimer
To be fully transparent, the Meeple Source Characters shown below were provided by Kayenta Games for free. They certainly add personality, but the standard meeples are also awesome. Either option makes the game just as fun!
Game Overview
Game Name: Obsession
Publication Year: 2018
Designer: Dan Hallagan
Artist: Dan Hallagan
Publisher: Kayenta Games
Solo Mode: Included in the Base Game
Building tiles provide options for activities to host, which require certain staff members and guests. Over the course of the seasons, a family’s reputation grows as it rebuilds and expands. The different options provide plenty of variety and ways to attract the attention of the Fairchilds!
First Play
January 25, 2019
Complexity
3
Latest Play
October 15, 2025
Expansions
6
Setup Time
10 Minutes
Lifetime Plays
106
Play Time
50 Minutes
High Score
248
Game Area
24" x 28"
Low Score
82
Help from the Staff
With this expansion and the new staff, I definitely missed out on some of the nuances. It’s even possible to ignore them entirely… Yet why would that be an option?!
Actually, playing as the Howard family provided me with a cook from the start. She was a master of the kitchen!
New staff members provide supplemental service, yet that doesn’t mean they’re superfluous. They actually offer very important bonuses when planned carefully.
As I was learning, the interaction of the elements was a key component in figuring out which staff to hire.
Not Good Enough
A garden maze? A state room and cabinet of curiosities? At a glance, it might appear that this was a fantastic country estate that easily breezed past the Windsor family.
No. No, not at all. There is one weakness I sometimes have, and that’s in terms of increasing the family’s reputation early enough. I was just too slow again!
When the national holiday hit, the excitement was around a level 2 activity with a couple of casual guests.
Derbyshire looked down on the Howard family… As they should have! I failed miserably. Or, I was sabotaged. Ha!
Making the Day Count
But I learned from my mistakes. After resetting and keeping an eye on the family’s reputation, I made sure there was something fantastic planned for the holiday.
The Lionheart Suite is always worth it… But its bonus can range from helpful to amazing. Guess who I drew?
The Dowager Countess of Exeter made a surprise appearance! Drawing off the deck, she didn’t require service, and all of her favors were doubled. Wow!
She had a lovely repose at the Howards’ manor. And me? I was pretty excited to leave those Windsors in the dust!
Tasty Cooking Tips
My success came down to some strategic planning, yet the cook was a most integral component. She had a direct impact on a lot of activities. World-renowned cooking!
Naturally, I spotted a Calico Critter mouse in a costume. This one is supposed to be sporting tomatoes because… Sure. Why not? She was most intrigued by the sweets!
Actually, if you look very closely, she looks amazed by the cook. Like I said: World-renowned for being the best.
One other fun thing was the fact that I reached the maximum reputation level. I was in the groove, at last!
Is it Luck, Strategy, or a Combination?
From my 70+ plays of the game, I’ve seen a wide variety of situations come up during my plays. There are some instances when I’m at a disadvantage with the guests or building tiles. Try as I might, I couldn’t scrape together a win. But is it all down to luck? Could I ever win with a poor selection? Or was there something else at work here?
I’ll admit that luck does play a pretty big role. If the market only offers building tiles up to reputation levels 2 or 3, things aren’t going to go very well. Yet as I’ve played, I’ve seen how there are often other ways to earn victory points. With the new staff members, those options have further expanded to mitigate the worst of bad luck.
Another piece of the puzzle is the weight of luck. It’s often the source of variety and unpredictability, which I enjoy in a lot of my solo games! Those unlucky plays still have something to teach, and I haven’t tired of losing. Well… I do prefer to win, yet those defeats are either hilarious from a story perspective or something to move on from!
A Monumental Manor
Oh, yes. I did it! Money was actually the most prevalent early on, which helped build up the Howards’ wealth. Monuments weren’t too expensive, thankfully!
Also, note that I moved some tiles around to show all of them… So much prestige! I also used the new staff to help me out with hosting some fantastic activities.
The only tile I didn’t flip was the last one I purchased at the very end. Quite a successful outing this time!
I completed all of my objectives, too, which provided an added bonus. Elizabeth Fairchild was quite impressed!
Prestigious Dueling
Now, the Windsors were far from easy. The theme cards were some of the worst possible, for those were the areas where they absolutely thrived. Prestige! Estate!
But in a way, I think this is an excellent family to point out where the most valuable areas typically exist.
Sporting can be a hit or miss, after all, but the estate and prestige categories often have a lot to offer.
It’s not always easy going up against a solo opponent in the same categories, yet it can definitely work! This was an exciting matchup and one that went in my favor.
Session Overview
Play Number: 71 and 72
Expansion 1: Obsession: Upstairs, Downstairs
Expansion 2: Obsession: Wessex Expansion
Accessory: Meeple Source Characters
Solo Mode: Included in the Base Game
Play Details: Standard Play with Closed Courtship
Outcome: 161-227 and 217-211 (1 Win and 1 Loss)
My victory was still a very close call! Blame the American heiresses… They started showing up without any qualms, even when screening the guests. Goodness! It was another exciting session, and there are more families ahead!
%
100 Plays
Affordability
Price & Value
10
Functionality
Challenges & Mechanics
10
Originality
Design & Theme
10
Quality
Components & Rules
10
Reusability
Achievement & Enjoyment
10
Variability
Distinctness & Randomness
10
+ Pros (Positives)
- There are endless stories and important moments that add to the flavor and bring each play to vivid life.
- With all of the guests and building tiles in play, there is a great deal of variety and plenty of interesting choices.
- Decisions slowly ramp up throughout the course of play, so that every activity must be carefully planned.
- Managing guests, staff, activities, money, reputation, and more is a lot of fun without feeling overwhelming.
- Despite the lack of art on the building tiles, it’s enjoyable to picture what each activity would look like.
- Each family is a little different in a way that subsides over time, making for a nice take on temporary asymmetry.
– Cons (Negatives)
- Some situations are difficult to recover from, such as having limited money or reputation for many rounds.
- Luck with the theme cards is practically impossible to mitigate, and sometimes the card draw will lead to a loss.
- It can take some time to understand the different timing and strategies for the extended play solo opponents.
- Separating the tiles can be tedious, although it can be much easier to store them together and discard as needed.
Victory Conditions
Score the Most Points
- Overall Goal Progress 60%
Goals and Milestones
Score at least 200 points.
Score at least 240 points.
Win at least 1 game against each base game family.
Score at least 280 points.
Win at least 1 game against each Up, Downstairs family.
Continue the Conversation
How have you fared in Obsession recently? I enjoyed returning to my favorite game to see how Obsession: Upstairs, Downstairs changed the formula without taking away any of the fun. Are there any other expansions that gave you a smiliar feeling? There’s lots more to explore down the line, but for now, Derbyshire society shall rest up!
Glad to see that after 70 plays, this game stays fresh for you! Happy to read new adventures in your manors. I am considering reading a Virginia Woolfe book.. I don’t know which ones to reach for first…
And maybe, maybe, someday, the game will be translated into french (I would rather play that one in french because of the immersion factor). The designer said he was considering it, without referring to any timeline though.
Definitely remains a top game, and still hasn’t gotten old! Hopefully it will be translaed someday so you can enjoy it. Immersion is what makes the game so great for me, so I can understand you wanting to experience it in French. Thanks for stopping by to read about another Derbyshire adventure!