Nineteen sixty-four was quite a dynamic year. It was when President Lyndon B. Johnson enacted the Civil Rights Act, The Beatles made their debut in New York City, and the Tokyo Olympics captivated the world. But perhaps slightly less heralded, yet no less interesting, was the release of the board game Acquire. Fast forward more than 60 years and numerous iterations later, Renegade Games has stepped in to revive this timeless classic. They’re celebrating Acquire’s legacy with a premium 60th Anniversary Edition set for 2024, preceded by the retail version in 2023. Although these editions come dressed in shiny new packaging, the gameplay that has charmed generations endures, firmly securing its spot on our list of top classic board games.
Acquire is played with two to six participants who strategically place tiles, create hotel chains, and purchase stocks, all with the dream of maximizing their investment returns. While the subject matter might not dazzle at first glance, there’s a profound reason why Acquire has remained popular for over six decades. It’s straightforward to learn, yet brimming with strategy, so much so that it earned a feature at last year’s World Series of Board Gaming tournament.
During a turn, a player selects a tile marked with grid coordinates and places it in its designated spot on the board. When two connected tiles make up a hotel, its creator receives a share of stock. As a hotel chain expands, its shares rise in value, enhancing the payout potential when a hotel is acquired by a larger one. The essence of Acquire revolves around savvy buying and selling.
Renegade Games’ new editions introduce an intriguing variant called Tycoon Mode, aiming to provide trailing players with a fair chance to make a comeback. In the Classic Mode, only the top two shareholders of a hotel chain benefit from a payout upon acquisition. Tycoon Mode extends this to the third-largest shareholder. While I favor the classic setup, I find this variant a thoughtful addition to guide novices into the game.
The 60th Anniversary Edition also comes with exclusive power cards that alter the dynamics significantly, offering advantages like laying down multiple tiles at once or acquiring stocks free of charge. These cards drastically shift gameplay, but personally, I found their impact too disruptive to the original experience. They’re optional, of course, and can be sampled to see if they’re your cup of tea.
Now, onto the distinctions between the two recent versions. The $50 price gap is justified by notable upgrades in the Anniversary Edition. While the core elements—the tiles, board, and cards—stay the same apart from the power cards, the premium version distinguishes itself with enhancements.
Three standout upgrades make the premium package appealing: a tile selection bag, a practical insert for organizing shares and hotel miniatures, and the replacement of paper money with poker chips.
These upgrades might seem trivial at first glance, but the improved organization and ease of using a drawstring bag notably enrich the gaming experience. Grabbing tiles becomes a breeze, smoothing out the gameplay. For those with the standard edition, I’d suggest sourcing a bag to replicate this ease.
Exclusively found in the Anniversary Edition, the refined organizer efficiently holds share cards, keeping them separate in a container with a plastic lid. This design neatly positions the cards alongside their hotel representations, unlike the base edition’s organizer, which spans the entire box footprint, cluttering table space. Most gamers would appreciate laying out the cards separately for an easier time.
Lastly, the transition from paper money to poker chips is purely about aesthetics and touch. Personally, I’ve always thought paper money in board games belongs to the 1960s, and this chip upgrade, though a big contributor to the higher price of the Anniversary Edition, is impressive. The chips have a satisfying heft, come tidily stored, and elevate the structure and enjoyment of the game. There’s a tactile pleasure and auditory satisfaction—the clink of the chips—that paper money simply can’t replicate.
### Where to Buy
Acquire: 60th Anniversary Edition (MSRP $99.99)
Standard Edition (MSRP $49.99)
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