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Tiki Topple Review by Courtney Larson

Gamewright
70 Bridge Street
Newton, MA 02458
617-924-6006
http://www.gamewright.com/

Tiki Topple is a strategy game for 2-4 players. It is marketed for ages 10 and up, but I think many children younger than 10 would enjoy the game as well. A game lasts only about 20 minutes, so it is quick to play when you don't have a lot of time. The box includes a game board, 9 brightly colored tiki pieces, 4 playing pawns, 28 action cards, and 27 Secret Tiki cards. All of these items are colorful and high quality.

To play a game, each player chooses a playing pawn and the corresponding color set of action cards. These action cards allow the players to move the tiki pieces on the game board. The cards include directions like "tiki up one" (move any tiki piece up one), "tiki toast" (completely remove a tiki piece from the board), and "tiki topple" (drop the top tiki piece to the bottom). The goal of the game is to score points by maneuvering the tiki pieces on the game board so that the top three tiki pieces match the order of the pieces on your Secret Tiki card. At the beginning of the game, the tiki pieces are placed on the game board and each player draws one Secret Tiki card. Players then play their action cards and move the tiki pieces around in an attempt to match the order on their Secret Tiki card. The round ends once all the action cards are played, and the scores are tallied. Players move their pawns on the game board to keep track of the points they've earned, and another round is begun. After 3-4 rounds, the player with the most points wins.

This game appears simple to play, but it is hard to win. When I asked my 9-year-old son what he thought of the game, he said, "It's a lot of fun because it makes you think and you have to use a lot of strategy." I thought that was a pretty good summary. I enjoy playing the game, and I love that it takes only a short amount of time. I also appreciate the fact that players are forced to think through their moves and constantly reevaluate strategy as other players move the tiki pieces around. If you're on the hunt for a fun, quick family strategy game, Tiki Topple could be just the game you're looking for.

Product review by Courtney Larson, The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine, LLC, May 2010

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