Road to SPIEL 2026: Nakasendo - The Long Road Through Japan

Nakasendo, from Italian publisher Little Rocket Games, is a strategic tile-laying game inspired by the historic mountain road that once connected Edo (modern Tokyo) with Kyoto. Designed and illustrated by Jorge Tabanera Redondo, the game challenges 2-4 players to construct their own journey between the preserved ppst towns of Tsumago and Magome.

It takes around 30-45 minutes to play, making it on the lighter end of games we’ve encountered so far on our own Road to SPIEL.

What is it?

The real Nakasendo was one of the five great highways of Japan’s Edo period.

Stretching for roughly 540 kilometres between Edo and Kyotot, it crossed the mountainous interior of Japana and incorporated 69 post towns, where merchants, samurai, officials and other travellers could find food, accomodation and rest. Sections of the old route survive today, particularly around the Kiso Valley and the remarkably well-preserved towns of Tsumago and Magome… which coinicidently is the section of the journey this game recreates.

Each player constructs their own route across a 4×4 grid, laying path tiles depicting mountains, cedar forests and post towns while adding Discovery tokens representing interesting placesd and experiences encountered along the way.

The objective isn’t to simply build the longest road, but to create the most rewarding journey.

How does it play?

Nakasendo combines open drafting, tile placement, route building, pattern building and set collection.

Players choose Path tiles and Discoveries from shared supplies, then use them to extend the route across their individual 4×4 landscape. Because everything available is visible, you’re not only looking for the piece that improves your own journey, you can also see exactly what everyone else is hoping to take.

Discoveries can be added along the trail for additional benefits and scoring opportunities, while changing intermediate scoring conditions mean there isn’t necessarily one ideal way to constrict the route.

Then the weather turns, and with it Seasonal Event cards are introduced, brining with them snow and bears, placing obstacles onto players’ paths and potentially reducing the value of areas that previously had looked extremely useful. A carefully planned route can quickly become considerably less attractive between one scoring phase and the next.

This makes adaptation important. You can plan ahead, but Nakasendo doesn’t appear interested in allowing you to calculate an entire game on turn one and then execute it uninteruppted.

At the end of the journey, players total the value of their routes, Discoveries, patterns and any other scoring bonuses, with the most rewarding path crowned the winner.

Why we’re watching it

One of the joys of Essen is discovering something interesting that others aren’t scrambling for in a mad dash as soon as the Halls open, in fear of the ‘hotness’ selling out before they get a copy stashed away in their bag. Nakasendo could be one of this years hidden gems. With only around 95 BoardGameGeek users currently having it on their wishlists, Nakasendo is currenly one of the ‘under-the-radar’ games in our series.

The game looks like a compact family-weight strategy game with a particulary attractive setting and a strong mechanical idea. The shifting scoring criteria, and open drafting, should also add a little competition.

The Game at SPIEL Essen 2026

Little Rocket Games is confirmed among the publishers exhibiting at SPIEL Essen 2026, with Nakasendo appearing on Essen preview lists as one of its forthcoming releases.

Nakasendo is currently listed for a November retail release, with a price of €29.90, so Essen should provide an opportunity to encounter it ahead of its wider release. The box includes rules in both Italian and English.

Unfortunately I can’t let you know whereLittle Rocker Games 2026 stand is, as I haven’t been able to track that down as yet. So it’ll be an extra little treasure hunt for everyone at the show!

SPIEL Essen runs from 22nd-25th October 2026.

Nakasendo at a glance

Publisher: Little Rocket Games

Designers: Jorge Tabanera Redondo

Artists: Jorge Tabanera Redondo

Players: 2-4

Ages: 10+

Playing Time: 30-45+ minutes

Type: Tile placement / open drafting / route builing / pattern building / set collection

Languages: Italian and Engish

Expected retail release: November 2026

SPIEL: Little Rocket Games - stand number TBC

More information: Little Rocket Games - Nakasendo

Tomorrow on Road to SPIEL 2026: Wildscape - Keyflower designer Sebastian Bleasdale turns his attention to restoring African ecosystems and rebuilding landscapes for the wildlife that once inhabited them.