Power Grid is played on a map of Germany¹. Players attempt to build power plants in various cities across the map and earn money by powering them with resources purchased on an open market. The first player to reach a threshold number of powered cities is the winner.

Every round, turn order is rearranged based on who is in the lead. While this may feel like communism, it's actually genius.

Rounds are comprised of several actions: players begin by bidding on power plants in a market. Second, they purchase resources from a finite resource pool where prices rise as resources are bought up. Finally, players have to pay to build power connections between cities with limited capacity for infrastructure. Who plays first for each of these actions is massively important when it comes to achieving victory.

So what's the big deal: the game just works against the people in the lead, so what? Players who are familiar with the game can use turn order against each other to devastating effect. A well-calculated multi-turn losing streak can result in perfect positioning for ultimate victory.

I've never played a game that is quite so well-balanced. I've been playing it for more than a decade, and it never gets old.