Fromage is a game about crafting exquisite cheeses and managing your creamery’s workforce, but don’t let the pastoral charm fool you—this is a thinky, timing-driven strategy game with a deliciously clever twist. Designed around a rotating board and simultaneous play, Fromage puts players in the shoes of rival cheesemakers competing to impress customers across the French countryside.
At its heart, it’s a worker placement game, but not the kind you’re used to. Instead of placing workers one at a time in turn order, everyone selects their moves simultaneously—and placement is limited to just one quarter of the board at a time. As the board rotates each round, your options shift with it. But here’s where it gets interesting: how long it takes for you to retrieve your workers depends on where you place them. Want those sweet gold-quality actions? You might be waiting a few rounds to get that worker back.
It’s this layered dance of timing, commitment, and positioning that makes Fromage feel fresh. Add in set collection goals, area control over regions of France, evolving player boards, and even a light economic system with cows and fruit powering bonus actions—and you’ve got a game that’s rich with strategy and absolutely packed with flavor.
Table of Contents
Game Overview
Player Count & Playtime
Fromage plays with 1–4 players and clocks in at around 30–45 minutes, though your first couple of plays may run a little longer as you learn the unique flow of the rotating board and simultaneous turns.
Objective
Your goal is simple: score the most points by crafting and placing high-quality cheese across France, fulfilling cheese orders, constructing unique buildings, and using fruit and cows to enhance your cheese-making efficiency. You’ll earn points from several different areas of the board, each with its own mini-game, and from your player board’s upgrades and end-game bonuses.
Gameplay Loop
Each round, players simultaneously place up to two workers on the quadrant currently facing them—one on a central resource space, and one on a specific scoring mini-game. Once everyone has placed, the board rotates clockwise, and the process repeats. This rotation limits your options each round while encouraging forward planning.
Workers are not recovered immediately—each space they’re placed on is oriented in one of three directions:
- Left-facing (Gold cheese): Takes 3 rounds to return
- Up-facing (Silver cheese): Takes 2 rounds to return
- Right-facing (Bronze cheese): Returns next round
This clever timing mechanism adds tension and tempo management to every decision.
Key Mechanics
- Simultaneous worker placement
- Rotating quadrant-based board
- Worker delay based on space orientation (1–3 rounds)
- Mini-games in four quadrants: area control, set collection, grid filling, and group scoring
- Unique building upgrades for asymmetric player development
- Cheese order fulfillment system
- Resource economy using cows and fruit
Game End & Scoring
The game ends as soon as one player has placed all of their cheese tokens, which are tucked under their workers during placement. Players then total their points from:
- The four quadrant mini-games
- Player board buildings and bonuses
- Completed cheese orders
- Extra points from fruit and unused cows
Designer & Publisher
Fromage was designed by Matthew O’Malley and Ben Rosset, a duo known for clever, accessible strategy games. It was published by R2i Games, and stands out for its high production value and inventive core loop.
What Makes It Stand Out
Fromage brings something genuinely new to the table in the world of worker placement games. While many games in the genre rely on the usual tension of blocking and turn order, Fromage flips the formula—literally—with its rotating board and simultaneous turns.
The brilliance of the design lies in the worker delay system. Each action space not only determines what benefit you get, but how long it’ll take to get that worker back. You’re constantly weighing the value of a strong action now against being short-handed in the next few rounds. It’s a game about pacing as much as it is about placement.
And it’s not just one idea carrying the game. The four distinct mini-games in each quadrant give you multiple paths to pursue, whether you’re trying to dominate regions of France, complete cheese collections, fill out shelves, or build sprawling blocks of cheese. It feels strategic and sandboxy without being bloated.
The variable player powers from the starting building draft add replayability and give you a little nudge toward different strategies each game. The cows and fruit system adds just enough resource economy to let you pivot and combo when needed, and the cheese order fulfillment adds another layer of tension—especially when the perfect order shows up but the timing is just off.
It all adds up to a game that feels tight, dynamic, and full of clever decisions, all wrapped in a unique and charming theme.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- Innovative worker placement system with rotating board and delayed worker recovery
- Simultaneous turns keep the game moving at a quick pace
- Four mini-games offer diverse scoring options and layered strategy
- Tight timing and resource planning make every turn feel meaningful
- Variable player powers through building draft add replayability and asymmetry
- Great table presence with vibrant components and thematic artwork
- Quick playtime for how much depth it packs
Cons
- Randomness in cheese orders can occasionally swing points late-game
- Takes a game or two to internalize the timing mechanics
- Can feel punishing if you miscalculate worker return timing
- Board rotation might be physically awkward depending on player setup without the deluxe lazy susan mat
Final Thoughts
Fromage delivers a fresh spin—literally—on worker placement. The rotating board and delayed worker return system push you to think several turns ahead, and the simultaneous play keeps things snappy and engaging from start to finish. There’s a satisfying mix of planning, timing, and tactical flexibility that sets it apart from more traditional games in the genre.
If you’re looking for a game that feels familiar but still brings something genuinely new to the table, Fromage is absolutely worth a look. It’s quick, clever, and packed with crunchy decisions. Fans of games like Everdell, Architects of the West Kingdom, or Lords of Waterdeep will find something to love—but even seasoned gamers will appreciate the twist this one offers.
Where to Buy
If Fromage sounds like a game you’d enjoy, you can find it here:
- 🧀 Buy Fromage on Amazon (affiliate link)
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