The Games
Flower of the Lotus (aka China Moon/Lotusblume)
Designer: Bruno Faidutti
Type: Board
Status: Free/Commercial
BGG entry:
http://www.boardgamegeek.com/game/7204
Available at:
http://gamecabinet.com/rules/FlowerOfTheLotus.html
Once upon a time, in distant China, there was a mandarin duck, who was very sad. He did not know which gift to offer to his heart's desire and he floated sobbing on the pond. On the night of the full moon, the frogs saw him wandering and they were surprised by his sadness. 'Nice mandarin duck,' they asked him, 'why are you crying?' 'I am sad', he answered, 'because I am in love, but I do not know which gift to offer to my beloved to confess to her my love.' 'Why not offer her a nice bouquet of water lilies?', suggested the frogs. 'We are going to help you.' And the small frogs spent the rest of the night choosing the nicest water lilies in the pond, each frog trying to prepare the nicest bouquet for the friend of the mandarin duck.
What stories must be invented to justify the mechanisms of a game!
Originally published in 1996 at The Game Cabinet website, it was released commercially in 2003 at Essen under the titles China Moon and Lotusblume by Eurogames / Descartes Deutschland.