Just the Basics: A Visit Back in Time to Tenpenny Parks
Build a theme park with bright, colorful attractions that lean into the realms of thrilling, awesome, and joyful in Tenpenny Parks.
Summer is in full swing here, and a few new expansions recently arrived for a game that feels like it fits the season very well: Tenpenny Parks! This has regrettably sat around unplayed for a very long time, yet its focus on crafting rides for the ultimate theme park experience called to me. Back to the base game to get familiar with this beautiful solo game again!
Game Overview
Game Name: Tenpenny Parks
Publication Year: 2022
Designer: Nate Linhart
Artist: Vincent Dutrait
Publisher: Thunderworks Games
Solo Mode: Included in the Base Game
Over 5 rounds, attractions and concessions are added to a map. A delightful central carousel alters the prices and can be a very strategic element to moving up on the emotion tracks! Polyominoes help fill in the map while managing money is important for expanding and advertising rides.
First Play
September 24, 2022
Complexity
3
Latest Play
July 15, 2026
Expansions
3
Setup Time
10 Minutes
Lifetime Plays
10
Play Time
50 Minutes
High Score
85
Game Area
36" x 32"
Low Score
35
Beautiful & Colorful
The artwork is absolutely stunning, with a unique card for every attraction. On the flip side is an advertising poster, which looks even more amazing! Just so bright and exciting.
It helps if you align the carousel spaces exactly with the card stacks… I was close enough here. Ha! Choosing attractions is often tricky, as it’s about balancing the rewards and tiles.
But the solo opponent is a difficult one, named Becky. She can be a nightmare, although her moves are predictable.
Stick with me on this ride… This post is about the base game, but a followup will go into the expansions in depth.
Heading Out to Work
I picked up some upgraded components, and these workers were absolutely fancy! They were poised and ready to fill up this little map with all sorts of fun. Let the crowds enter!
Gameplay runs smoothly, yet I was at a loss as to how to proceed with the solo mode. It was difficult… Like, close to impossible to win and rather monotonous against Becky.
There was a balancing act around limiting her victory points and advertising abilities. Yet that felt mechanical.
Certain attractions felt like I had to give them up to even have a chance at winning. It was the opposite of exciting.
A Late Summer’s Day
Sometimes, the natural light near my game table perfectly matches the theme! Late summer sun streamed in to cast long shadows on my map in a most fitting sort of sense.
I remember those childhood days of being at a theme park at this time. Everything felt magical, and there was usually time for just one more ride. But which one?! Lovely times.
This had a beautiful table presence, yet my continued plays only seemed to remove all the fun from the experience.
Again, keep in mind that I have another post incoming! Yet the base game solo mode left me disappointed and sad.
Attraction Posters
Very neat use of the artwork! Aside from attractions that provide boosts to income, the others can be advertised to trade in money for victory points. More late sun fun!
I enjoyed the smooth sequence of play and the way it all worked in general. But the attraction variety was limited and I always felt like I needed to ignore one specific type.
This was an unfortunate session. Despite my desire to keep playing, I never came close to winning. It was less than fun.
But, like an attraction advertising poster, come back soon! I have lots to write about the expansions for use in solo.
When the Base Game Just Isn’t Working Out
I was on the verge of packing this one up after this session, without any chance of trying out the expansions. It’s not that it was the worst experience, yet I was very hesitant about whether the solo mode could be improved. Other games in the past taught me that if the base game wasn’t working out, spending time on expansions wasn’t going to help me out. But…
Part of me really wanted to like this one. I blame the fancy sunlight and nostalgia. Ha ha! I also recognize the hurdle in reading that a base game doesn’t work, but it gets better with expansions. That’s a bit of a risk, and also a bigger investment. So I’ll conclude by saying that I was ready to call it and understand why others might not like the solo mode.
Although that also put a lot of pressure on the expansions. I needed them to work! My expectations were very high. I know this post is very focused on me highlighting my next writeup, but I think it’s important to capture this experience with the base game. If nothing else, I need to make sure I remember that this is absolutely never the way I’ll play again. Ha!
Session Overview
Play Number: 3-6
Accessory: Tenpenny Parks: Deluxe Upgrade Pack
Solo Mode: Included in the Base Game
Play Details: Standard Difficulty Level
Outcome: 42-51, 35-59, 41-66, 44-54 (4 Losses)
Just when I thought I had the right thing working out, it didn’t. This felt like I was learning a very particular strategy to keep certain things away from the solo opponent… And that left me with few options, or even a chance to enjoy my theme park. Luckily, I decided not to give up on it with the arrival of the expansions. That post will be coming up soon!
%
1 Play
Affordability
Price & Value
8
Functionality
Challenges & Mechanics
7
Originality
Design & Theme
10
Quality
Components & Rules
10
Reusability
Achievement & Enjoyment
3
Variability
Distinctness & Randomness
6
+ Pros (Positives)
- The sequence of play is very clear, including the solo opponent’s actions, which take up very little time.
- All of the artwork is amazing, capturing beautiful and fun scenes from a theme park’s attractions in a unique style.
- Although the deluxe upgrades are great, the base game cardboard quality is some of the best and thickest around.
- Maintaining the first player advantage to control the rotation of the carousel is quite interesting and often tricky.
- Advancing along the emotion tracks takes some planning and a bit of forethought each round to find the best options.
- Stepping back to admire the finished map with the attraction posters at the end is a rather fun moment after scoring.
– Cons (Negatives)
- It is very difficult to beat the solo opponent in a way that feels more like work than cleverly figuring out a strategy.
- With the way the solo opponent prioritizes attractions, it often means that one stack of cards is chosen each round.
- Polyominoes may never touch sides, which can be a strange concept when tiles like these are often arranged tightly.
- Despite the number of attractions, gameplay can be quite repetitive without much chance of the theme shining.
Victory Conditions
Score the Most Points
- Overall Goal Progress 100%
Goals and Milestones
Win at least 1 game at the standard difficulty level.
Win at least 1 game at the hard difficulty level.
Continue the Conversation
What do you enjoy the most about Tenpenny Parks? Have you managed to win against the solo opponent? I’m already a little ahead of myself with a mention of the expansions. Without them, this would already be headed out of my collection. I only enjoyed the base game solo mode for a couple of plays. Fortunately, I have a much sunnier writeup coming right up!
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