It's been rated by just over 1,700 gamers, and has an overall, average rating of 7.58 on the 1-10 sc...

1. Automobile: Martin Wallace offers a lesson in Economics -
National Board Game
It's been rated by just over 1,700 gamers, and has an overall, average rating of 7.58 on the 1-10
scale. The money-making engine is simple enough in theory, though somewhat more complex in
practice. There's a 'characters' area, a car sales area, a 'round' area, a phase track area, a salesman
area, a car manufacturing table, a turn order area, and bonus sales area. He was spouting the
principles behind game decisions with the confidence of an economics major by the second round of
play, while I was still trying to figure out what I was doing. For me, at least. You need to test the
waters of some of its intricacies to see what they will and/or won't do for you before you can figure
out which option to choose at any given moment. That said, though, my earlier encounter with the
game had prompted a desire to try it again (for a variety of reasons, it had not made many trips back
to the gaming tables of our local group here in Wilmington, NC). According to the box, playing time
can range between 90 and 120 minutes, which is about right; perhaps a little more your first time
out. You start with $2,000. There is a kind of planned obsolescence built into the car track, which
dictates that the farther back on that track you are, the less likely you are going to be, to be able to
sell cars in that price range (making it more likely that you'll manufacture cars you can't sell,
because the demand accrues to the latest models). Facing them without a clear idea about each of
the multiple options is a recipe for disaster.. It should be noted that I could not quite grasp what was
going on by reading the rules manual, in spite of the fact that I had actually played it already, albeit,
about two years ago. This decision is founded on an assumption of demand for three types of
automobiles (cheap, mid-range and luxury) in a given round. Game components are sturdy; the
cardboard employed for automobiles, salesmen, and factories is thick and durable; the wooden
cubes and disks of the turn/phase markers, 'poverty' cubes and bonus disks are just as durable. It is
a rather daunting, though visually attractive display. It forces you into a battle between conservative
thinking and dramatic risk-taking that accurately mirrors the industry it's about.
The object of the game is to make money. Being more of a hands-on learner, rules manuals
(especially when it comes to games by Martin Wallace), can befuddle me in ways that have more to
do with me than the manual.
Your basic decision, upon which all of your actions are going to be based, is the number of
automobiles you want to produce in each of the game's four rounds. Buy factories that produce
automobiles, produce those automobiles, and then sell them at a profit. The paper money is executed
in excruciating, double-sided detail, which, from the standpoint of the banker (me, in the most
recent game) was a little confusing; insignificant, in terms of game play, but the level of
concentration necessary to make change (which happens a lot) seemed a little excessive, as eyes
strained to identify dollar amounts ranging from $2,000 down to $10 (grain of salt; my eyes ain't
what they used to be).
FYI: It's currently (Mar. What you don't know is the numbers on the tiles drawn by your opponents,
which is going to affect the level of production you're going to engage in.
I number myself among those who enjoy the exercise, although it'll be a while before I get to the
point where I'm familiar enough with the options to make intelligent decisions. Fair warning.
Automobile, published by Mayfair Games, is designed by Martin Wallace, with artwork by Frank
Czarne. Like I said, I've never been good at economics, and though mentally agile enough to grasp
the concepts, eventually, I need a few 'classes' to catch up. As a variety of comments at the lower

2. end of the BoardGameGeek rating scale will indicate, there are quite a few gamers who'd prefer to
watch paint dry than engage in such an exercise; too much math, not enough player interaction, too
random, you'll hear. Handily. It's one ranking step ahead of Hive, and one below Reiner Knizia's
Ingenious (strange bedfellows).
Each of the 26 slots on the outer rim of the board (for 11 mid-range, 8 luxury and 7 cheap cars) is a
space capable of being occupied (with a factory) by one, and one only, player. My first few attempts
at this game have been like throwing a dart blindfolded; try this, try that, see if this, that or the
other thing works, poking around looking for ways to (literally) game the system so that it worked in
my favor. It will cost you a varied amount of money - from $200 for the first space on the board to
$750 (the last, almost never reached) - to build a single factory on a given space; each factory
allowing you to manufacture a stated and ranged (i.e., 2-4) number of cars.
Without further regurgitation of the rules, suffice it to say that what you try to do is anticipate
demand for each type of car, build factories to manufacture those cars, actually manufacture them,
and then sell them, hopefully at a profit. So, when the folks at Mayfair were gracious enough to send
me a review copy of their re-release, I brought it to gaming night and enlisted the services of a
fellow gamer to re-introduce the rules and regs of game play. I am in awe of the opponent in my
latest attempt at this game (Jeremiah, by name) who jumped from ignorance to understanding to
competitiveness to victory in one fell swoop. In effect, the presence of factories on the 26 spaces
tends toward the front of the line, with closed factories accumulating at the rear of the track.
http://www.examiner.com/review/automobile-martin-wallace-offers-a-lesson-economics
All of which makes for a game that for some (many?), can be hard to grasp the first time out. His
grasp of the process and options was immediate. One of the four with whom I played recently had
never encountered it before, and he won. Thus, it becomes important to at some point, close
factories you've built to invest in newer models. This demand is random in each of the rounds, and
based on a blind draw of tiles, numbered 2 through 5. Each player will draw such a tile (sometimes,
two), giving every one at least a piece of the 'demand' puzzle. There's an outer track, consisting of
26 automobile designs (terrific art work), dating as far back as the 1893 Duryea (first), through a
1925 Flint E55 (14th), to a 1930s Cord 610. It is recommended for ages 13+ for between 3 and 5
players. Plan poorly and you might find yourself holding on to cars you're unable to sell, which will
cost you 'poverty' points you'll have to pay for at the end of a given round.
I was never very good at economics, although I've always been fascinated by the so-called 'models'
that fuel debate about how one goes about making money; not actually making it, mind you, via
printing press, but how you take advantage of economic opportunities to move in the direction of
riches and wealth. Martin Wallace's Automobile is, first and foremost, an economics lesson on how
to maximize investments in a somewhat unpredictable industry. It can be purchased for around $40,
with, as usual, lower prices available at various locations (Geek Marketplace, E-Bay, etc.)
The demand for any of the three types of cars is going to be spread out over multiple factories, some
of which you might not own, so you're in competition. All true, though definitions of "too much" and
"not enough" differ from one gamer to the next.
I'd played the game when it was first released about two years ago, and remembered, as I sat down
to figure it out with the latest Mayfair release, that it was not something grasped easily. '11) resting
at # 100 on the BoardGameGeek list of ranked games (# 57 in the singled-out 'Strategy Game'
category). With three actions per round, for a total of 12 in the game, you need to know the
parameters of each choice intimately to make an informed (profitable) decision. Which character

3. should I select at the beginning, bearing in mind that the selection not only offers bonuses, but
determines turn order? Should I opt to utilize salesman, bypassing the demand route for
http://loutishdirectiv20.hazblog.com sales? Should I build a new factory or close an old one?
Narrowed down to the three actions you're allotted per turn, which will determine how much money
you make in that turn, the decisions are critical. You might, as well. Player with the most after four
rounds of play is the winner. There are 10 phases to each round, including three action phases,
executed in turn order.
Okay, so what do we have here? A sturdy board decked out in autumn colors (browns, grays,
yellows, silvers and blacks) with nine basic areas of concern. You'll be able to build up to three
factories on one space (increasing the production capability of that factory) and a parts factory
(reducing the cost of manufacturing). If you draw a 5 tile, slated to define demand in mid-range car
sales, you know, for certain, that at least 5 cars are going to be capable of being sold.
With me so far?
There are some other noteworthy mechanics, including the selection of a 'character' (one of six
historic car manufacturing individuals from Ford to Chrysler), who offer different kinds of bonuses,
Research and Development cubes (necessary to build factories), and a 'salesman' function, which
sort of bypasses the whole demand issue, in favor of selling (through the use of salesman) direct to
consumers.
The question you should ask yourself before you come to any conclusions about whether you'll enjoy
it is whether you're in the mood for an economics lesson