Colt Express: Bandits: Tuco

Players: 1-6

Age: 10+

Teaching Time: 15 mins

Playing Time: 40 mins

Setup Time: 5 mins

Value For Money: High

Luck: Mid

Complexity: Mid

Strategy: High

Price: £5

Recommended: Yes

Website: www.coltexpress.fr

Solo Play Review

A new set of mini-expansions for Colt Express provide cards, rules and counters for controlling one of the game's characters with an AI system. The intention of this expansion is to make the game semi-co-op by allowing the AI player to win the game. It also therefore allows the game to be played solo, which I have done here.

In the Tuco version Tuco is wanted by the Marshal so whenever he and the Marshal encounter each other the player who caused the meeting gains a $500 wanted token. Additionally when Tuco shoots he hits everybody that he could hit and at the end of the game scores $250 for each bullet fired.

Playing solo against Tuco works fine but the difficulty is not high, since Tuco scores by firing with his gun he benefits from having multiple targets. Also he does not compete for the $1000 gun fighter title so when playing solo this reward is best removed from the game. In setting up it seems a little better to count Tuco as not a player, making the train just locomotive and caboose. My feeling is that whilst it would be complicated if playing solo with these expansions you should want to use at least two or three of them at once.

As a solo experience it does work, its not the most challenging solo game or the best version of Colt Express but it functions. The Bandits sets are a very low price and offer an expanded experience when playing multi-player. For the price the occasional solo play option, while flawed, is entirely welcome.