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Between Two Castles: Essential Edition

Between Two Castles: Essential Edition

2025·Matthew O'Malley, Ben Rosset

Videos
11
Creators
7

Mainly reviews and how-to-play. Between Two Castles: Essential Edition is covered on BoardGameVideo.com by 3 reviews, 3 how-to-play guides, 2 recorded sessions, and 3 unboxings.

1 - 8 players
45 - 60 min
Medium weight: Teach it in one sitting

From BoardGameGeek

Between Two Castles Essential Edition is a competitive drafting, tile-placement game for 1-8 players designed by Ben Rosset and Matthew O'Malley. It plays in about 45-60 minutes. The Essential Edition combines the original game and the Secrets & Soirees expansion into one box. The king demands a castle! You are a world-renowned master builder who has been asked by the king to help design his castles. Projects of such significance require the expertise of more than one person, so for each assignment you are paired with another master builder to execute your grandiose plans. Will your planning and partnership skills be enough to design the most impressive castles in the world? Between Two Castles is a competitive tile-drafting game in which each tile is a room in a castle. You work together with the player on your left to design one castle, and with the player on your right on another castle. On each turn you select two tiles from your hand, reveal them, then work with your partners to place them. At the end of the game, each castle is scored. Your personal final score is the lower of the scores of the two castles you helped design, and the player with the highest final score wins the game. To win, you have to share your attention between two castles. -description from the publisher Includes the following in the box: Between Two Castles of Mad King Ludwig: Saxophone Room Promo Tile Between Two Castles of Mad King Ludwig: Dice Tower Room Promo Tile Between Two Castles of Mad King Ludwig: Bonus Card Promo Pack #1

Between Two Castles: Essential Edition

Watch first

Learn to play

Between Two Castles: Essential Edition - 2 Player How to Play16:26

Between Two Castles: Essential Edition - 2 Player How to Play

Merry Married Meeples

Merry Married Meeples

Review

Between Two Castles Essential Edition - Introvert Solo Mode - My Learning Game | DaniCha40:53

Between Two Castles Essential Edition - Introvert Solo Mode - My Learning Game | DaniCha

DaniCha

DaniCha

Watch it played

Between Two Castles: Essential Edition - First Time Solo Game Playthrough - Introvert Variant40:37

Between Two Castles: Essential Edition - First Time Solo Game Playthrough - Introvert Variant

The Brosey Game Company

The Brosey Game Company

Which Between Two Castles: Essential Edition video should I watch?

Between Two Castles: Essential Edition has 11 videos from 7 creators: 3 reviews, 3 how-to-play guides, 2 playthroughs and 3 unboxings. They date from 2025 to March 2026.

To learn the rules, start with "Between Two Castles: Essential Edition - 2 Player How to Play" by Merry Married Meeples, which runs 16 min.

For an opinion before you buy, start with "Between Two Castles Essential Edition - Introvert Solo Mode - My Learning Game | DaniCha" by DaniCha. To see it played, watch "Between Two Castles: Essential Edition - First Time Solo Game Playthrough - Introvert Variant" by The Brosey Game Company, one of 2 playthroughs.

If you like it, try Fromage, The Search for Planet X, The Game Makers and Excursions, also by Ben Rosset.

All videos

Between Two Castles: Essential Edition - 2 Player How to PlayHow to play16:26

Between Two Castles: Essential Edition - 2 Player How to Play

Merry Married Meeples

Merry Married Meeples

Just One Between Two - Between Two Castles: Essential Edition Solo PlayPlaythrough20:52

Just One Between Two - Between Two Castles: Essential Edition Solo Play

Merry Married Meeples

Merry Married Meeples

Between Two Castles: Essential Edition - #unboxingUnboxing2:01

Between Two Castles: Essential Edition - #unboxing

Merry Married Meeples

Merry Married Meeples

Between Two Castles Essential Edition - Introvert Solo Mode Gameplay | DaniChaReview21:46

Between Two Castles Essential Edition - Introvert Solo Mode Gameplay | DaniCha

DaniCha

DaniCha

Between Two Castles Essential Edition: Learn How to PlayHow to play14:56

Between Two Castles Essential Edition: Learn How to Play

Games Made Easy

Games Made Easy

Between Two Castles Essential Edition - Introvert Solo Mode - My Learning Game | DaniChaReview40:53

Between Two Castles Essential Edition - Introvert Solo Mode - My Learning Game | DaniCha

DaniCha

DaniCha

Between Two Castles Essential Edition Board Game ReviewReview24:15

Between Two Castles Essential Edition Board Game Review

Tabletop Gaming Guild

Tabletop Gaming Guild

Between Two Castles Essential Edition - Stonemaier Games - UnboxingUnboxing1:29

Between Two Castles Essential Edition - Stonemaier Games - Unboxing

Spot Het Spel

Spot Het Spel

How to Play Between Two Castles: Essential EditionHow to play19:35

How to Play Between Two Castles: Essential Edition

Cardboard Crash Course

Cardboard Crash Course

Between Two Castle Essential Edition Board Game UnboxingUnboxing7:56

Between Two Castle Essential Edition Board Game Unboxing

Tabletop Gaming Guild

Tabletop Gaming Guild

Between Two Castles: Essential Edition - First Time Solo Game Playthrough - Introvert VariantPlaythrough40:37

Between Two Castles: Essential Edition - First Time Solo Game Playthrough - Introvert Variant

The Brosey Game Company

The Brosey Game Company

Between Two Castles: Essential Edition - 2 Player How to Play16:26

Between Two Castles: Essential Edition - 2 Player How to Play

Merry Married Meeples

Merry Married Meeples

Between Two Castles Essential Edition: Learn How to Play14:56

Between Two Castles Essential Edition: Learn How to Play

Games Made Easy

Games Made Easy

How to Play Between Two Castles: Essential Edition19:35

How to Play Between Two Castles: Essential Edition

Cardboard Crash Course

Cardboard Crash Course

Between Two Castles Essential Edition - Introvert Solo Mode - My Learning Game | DaniCha40:53

Between Two Castles Essential Edition - Introvert Solo Mode - My Learning Game | DaniCha

DaniCha

DaniCha

Between Two Castles Essential Edition - Introvert Solo Mode Gameplay | DaniCha21:46

Between Two Castles Essential Edition - Introvert Solo Mode Gameplay | DaniCha

DaniCha

DaniCha

Between Two Castles Essential Edition Board Game Review24:15

Between Two Castles Essential Edition Board Game Review

Tabletop Gaming Guild

Tabletop Gaming Guild

Between Two Castles: Essential Edition - First Time Solo Game Playthrough - Introvert Variant40:37

Between Two Castles: Essential Edition - First Time Solo Game Playthrough - Introvert Variant

The Brosey Game Company

The Brosey Game Company

Just One Between Two - Between Two Castles: Essential Edition Solo Play20:52

Just One Between Two - Between Two Castles: Essential Edition Solo Play

Merry Married Meeples

Merry Married Meeples

Between Two Castle Essential Edition Board Game Unboxing7:56

Between Two Castle Essential Edition Board Game Unboxing

Tabletop Gaming Guild

Tabletop Gaming Guild

Between Two Castles Essential Edition - Stonemaier Games - Unboxing1:29

Between Two Castles Essential Edition - Stonemaier Games - Unboxing

Spot Het Spel

Spot Het Spel

Between Two Castles: Essential Edition - #unboxing2:01

Between Two Castles: Essential Edition - #unboxing

Merry Married Meeples

Merry Married Meeples

Creators who cover this

All channels
Merry Married Meeples
Merry Married Meeples
3 videos of this game
DaniCha
DaniCha
2 videos of this game
Tabletop Gaming Guild
Tabletop Gaming Guild
2 videos of this game
Cardboard Crash Course
Cardboard Crash Course
1 video of this game
Games Made Easy
Games Made Easy
1 video of this game
Spot Het Spel
Spot Het Spel
1 video of this game
The Brosey Game Company
The Brosey Game Company
1 video of this game

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Fromage

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The Search for Planet X

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Mainly reviews

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The Game Makers

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Excursions

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About Between Two Castles: Essential Edition

From BoardGameGeek:

Between Two Castles Essential Edition is a competitive drafting, tile-placement game for 1-8 players designed by Ben Rosset and Matthew O'Malley. It plays in about 45-60 minutes. The Essential Edition combines the original game and the Secrets & Soirees expansion into one box. The king demands a castle! You are a world-renowned master builder who has been asked by the king to help design his castles. Projects of such significance require the expertise of more than one person, so for each assignment you are paired with another master builder to execute your grandiose plans. Will your planning and partnership skills be enough to design the most impressive castles in the world? Between Two Castles is a competitive tile-drafting game in which each tile is a room in a castle. You work together with the player on your left to design one castle, and with the player on your right on another castle. On each turn you select two tiles from your hand, reveal them, then work with your partners to place them. At the end of the game, each castle is scored. Your personal final score is the lower of the scores of the two castles you helped design, and the player with the highest final score wins the game. To win, you have to share your attention between two castles. -description from the publisher Includes the following in the box: Between Two Castles of Mad King Ludwig: Saxophone Room Promo Tile Between Two Castles of Mad King Ludwig: Dice Tower Room Promo Tile Between Two Castles of Mad King Ludwig: Bonus Card Promo Pack #1

Designers

Matthew O'Malley, Ben Rosset

Artists

Laura Bevon, Agnieszka Dabrowiecka, Bartłomiej Kordowski

Publisher

Stonemaier Games

Mechanics

DraftingCatch the LeaderSet CollectionSimultaneous Action Selection
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