Carcassonne: The Castle vs Carcassonne: The City; Which is Better?

[djdahmer]

I've been thinking about getting either The Castle or The City to play with my wife (we already have Carcassonne & a number of expansions) but can't decide which one would be the best to get. I've found a few reviews & one comparison on BGG but it didn't help much.
Is there anyone here who has an opinion on which would be best to get, and why it is better than the other? Any opinions/thoughts/explanations would be greatly appreciated.

[Whaleyland]

I received both at my wedding and just played the City last night for the first time. We played the Castle twice on our honeymoon. My impression is that the City lacks a certain motivation. I don't know why that is, but perhaps because the game keeps having to stop to build the walls and towers. In the end, it was really dragging. I thought the wall would improve the game some, but it was definitely dragging at the end and there was a lack of motivation from many of the players to claim features.

The Castle was much more straightforward, the graphics were better, and it has fewer tiles. As a bonus, it also has the Falcons expansion coming out soon which may make the game even more interesting (or worse). If you are looking for just a two-player game, get the Castle. City actually requires special rules to even make 2-player mode work.

[djdahmer]

Thanks for that Whaleyland. I was kind of leaning towards the City for its flexibility, but it sounds like the Castle would suit 2 players better - especially if you have to use special rules to make it work.

[CKorfmann]

The Castle is actually one for two players.

[djdahmer]

Thanks for your input guys - and apologies for not getting back earlier. I've been so busy with other things I haven't really been on here much in the last few months.
My wife gave me The Castle for my birthday & we've managed to play a few games. It took a little time to get to grips with the different rules and strategies (especially after playing CC with expansions for so long), so our first couple of games probably weren't the best but I think we're getting the hang of it now. My wife especially enjoys it as the games are nice and short, and you can get a lot of quick wins (especially compared to CC when using a number of expansions).

[Wishmaster]

I actually think that The castle is a better game than Carcassonne itself. Obviously it has the limitation of being only two player. I just think it plays a neater more compact game with a lot of forward thinking required.

So, anyone know anymore about this Falcon expansion? I keep seeng it mentioned but absolutely no details anywhere.