Azul: Queen's Garden

Played a few nights so far, always at 2p. I've been enjoying Azul queens garden! I haven't played the other installments (yet!), but I do really enjoy how puzzly it feels. There isn't THAT much player interaction, but picking tiles from a common pool does add a layer of strategy that I apreciate. Trying to get the tiles you want before your opponent, trying to avoid refreshing the stack or flipping a hexagon over so your opponent has less selection, I've even taken some less than desirable tiles that my opponent wanted.
The tiles placement/discarding is where the game really shines though! I really enjoy the feel of creating patterns and managing my storage to get as many points as possible. There are JUST enough colors and patterns to make it difficult to get a set, but not so many as to make set collecting impossible.
So far the game definitely plays more aroung the 60mins+ mark than the 45mins.
All around a realy good thinky puzzly game with great production value!

Although it contains the title azul, it plays nothing like the original. I love how much more complex it is.

Azul: Queen's Garden is vastly different than the other 3 games: Azul, Stained Glass, and Summer Pavilion. The drawing mechanism which stayed the same across the first 3 games has had some tweaks, where you only start with 4 tiles drawn, and you draw more as the round progresses. There are a max of 4 rounds, and each round you alternate turns between you and your competitors. On a turn you can either pick up Piece(s), or place Piece(s), and you can end your participation in a round at any time by passing. The first person to pass gets the -1 marker, and goes first in Round 2. I may have the new tinted glasses on but I think this version of Azul is superior to the other 3 Azul's. I've played about 10 games since I've bought it to the point in time of posting this review, and Azul: Queen's Garden is going to remain in our board game rotation for games night for quite some time.