Survive Escape from Atlantis: first thoughts

We've played this game a handful of times, and so far it's left a pretty good impression.  The first time I played it was a bit grumpy at first.  I was playing with people who had all played before, so I was the only newbie.  And when it came to the part where you decide where to place your men, this seemed extremely unfair as I had no idea of what the strategy was, and didn't know where to place them.  So I was grumpy for a few turns, certain that I would lose.  Well, needless to say there is definitely some luck in this game, and I'm not a terrible game player - I ended up winning, but aside from that I had a great time playing.

I like the fact that there is a good amount of luck and strategy involved.  It seems to be well balanced in that regard.  There are also a number of variations to the game which will probably keep it fresh (we've only played the most basic version).  I kind of hate to admit this, but I think this type of game favors me.  That's because it's easy for other players to go after who they think is going to win and sabotage each other, leaving me on my own for too long - long enough to get ahead and win.  I'm often underestimated and I find it works in my favor, at least with the people we play with (you'd think they would learn by now!).

I'm eager to play this one a bunch more times, but we were a little disappointed to see it wasn't widely available for sale online.  However, a new version is being released this month, so we'll probably be placing an order soon!