Overview
At a glance
Is this game right for my group?
ABG editorial scores on a 1–5 scale.
Easier to teach
High replayability
Highly interactive
Scales well
Deep strategy
More strategic control
How it plays
How does it play?
Seed a mancala-style supply track, develop mining camps and settlements, and turn gold, silver, copper, timber, and stone into influence, contracts, and shipping points.
Core mechanisms
Key systems that shape the decisions players make.
Area Majority
Compete to have the strongest presence in areas that award control or points.
Network and Route Building
Create connected routes that improve reach, delivery, control, or scoring.
Set Collection
Gather related items that become more valuable when scored together.
Mancala
Move groups of pieces by distributing them one at a time across spaces.
Contracts
Complete specific requirements to earn rewards, income, or victory points.
Modular Board
Build the play area from interchangeable sections that vary between games.
Read the full game description
Gold West is a tight economic territory game about choosing when valuable resources should finally reach your hand. Each turn, you empty one bin of a personal mancala-style supply track, dropping one piece into every lower bin and using only what exits the track. Deeper storage scores more immediately but postpones access. Timber and stone establish camps and settlements across the modular frontier, while copper, silver, and gold fund investments, compete for Boomtown offices, and fill shipping contracts. Terrain majorities reward a coherent network, yet every tempting route competes with the timing puzzle on your player board. The current second edition refreshes the presentation and includes the Whitewater mini-expansion.
