Blue Orange Games Kingdomino Award Winning Family Strategy Board Game, 2-4 players

TL;DR - Easy to learn, layers of strategy, excellent components, short play time, excellent replay value, perfect filler game between epic sessions for the heavy complexity gamers. Grab two! Kingdomino is a really entertaining light filler game that deservingly won the 2017 Spiel des Jahres award given to the best game of the year for casual players (dedicated hobby gamers look to the Kennerspiele des Jahres for the heavier games that appear to the more addicted). It is a great entryway to tabletop gaming in a small, teachable format. The components are of high quality - Blue Orange has done a marvelous job producing this game in a manner befitting such a high-caliber experience. The play is simple - you are building your kingdom by selecting one of three or four (depending on player count) available tiles representing one or two land types,and possibly a number of crowns. You draft the piece in turn order, but the piece you select also determines your draft order the following turn. The pieces are numbered on the back and laid out lowest to highest each turn before the draft - the player who selects the lowest numbered tile will select first the following round. When the tiles are all selected, you add them to your kingdom, keeping in mind that the maximum size for your kingdom is 5x5 and each tile is 2x1. How you place the tile is fairly simple as well - at least one of the two land types must be placed against an existing land of the same type or against your castle (effectively making your castle a wild tile). If you cannot place a specific tile, either because no matching land types exist, or it extends beyond the required 5x5 dimension, you discard the tile. When the draft pile has been exhausted, the players total their points by calculating the number of ordinal contiguous tiles of the same type and multiplying it by the number of crowns in that contiguous land mass. As you can see, crowns are critical to scoring, because even a 10 space forest has no points unless a crown exists on one of them! Adding further strategy is the land types vary significantly with the distribution of tiles and the crowns on those tiles - there are only 6 caverns, and five of them average 2 crowns - a well placed cave system can be a viable route to victory, whereas there are 26 fields but only 6 of them have crowns, and a single one at that. Looking at the attached completed game board picture: 1. Note that there's a castle piece located in the 4th row 4th column - there is no requirement that your castle end up in the center of your kingdom. 2. Scoring the completed board starting from the top right: A. A two square Lake scores zero points (no crowns) B. The Swamp that begins in row 3 covers 8 squares and there are 3 crowns total, scores 24 points. C. The Mountain range at the bottom left is two squares with four crowns for 8 points. D. The Wheat fields starting at row 1 column 2 has 4 squares with one crown for 4 points. E. The Pasture located on the bottom row scores zero points for two squares with no crowns. F. The single Mountain in row 1 scores 2 points for 2 crowns in a 1x1 plot. G. The Forest next door has zero value, as does the 2 square Lake below it, no crowns anywhere. H. Finally the Forest at the bottom right has two squares and two crowns for 4 points The final score for this board is: 42 points (a pretty strong score) on the power of a huge swamp with three crowns. Diagram of the completed picture for reference: L W W M F L S W W L S S S S L M S S X F M S P P F (L=Lake, P=Pasture, W=Wheat, M=Mountain, S=Swamp, G=Grassland, X=Castle) Final thoughts: I can cite nothing that I dislike about this game. It has definite replayability, and is asked for with some regularity at my home and on game day. GET A SECOND COPY and play 7x7 kingdoms, for even more challenge and a deeper level of strategy!

We have a wide range of ages in our family, so finding a game everyone likes to play is difficult. This one fits the bill! It has beautiful, well-crafted pieces. It has a good combination of strategy and luck, so that our fifteen-year-old gets to flex his strategic skills, but our nine-year-old doesn't feel like losing is a foregone conclusion. It was easy to learn and should give us game-play fun for years to come. Great price for a game that is compact and super fun. It comes in a small box, so it can go with us on family trips, too!

My FAVORITE game!! Great for 2 players but best with 4! 3 players not preferred but still easy play. The instructions are clear and it’s one of those games that you learn as you play. It is very quick to learn and I have had success teaching all ages!

Our family LOVES this game. We have even turned others on to it. It's a cross between 'Carcassonne' and 'Dominoes'. I like this better than 'Carcassonne' because it can be as challenging, but you have your own board/area and it's WAY quicker (15-20 minutes). Order of play changes each round depending on the prior round play choice(s). Goal is to score as many points that you can by "connecting" matches, especially those with crowns in the corners. As you connect matches with crowns, you accumulate points. If there are no crowns, you get no points. So it's a great counting and strategic game. (Note: each tile has 2 images on them--sometimes the same image twice; you only need to match 1 of the images to another like image. The "castle" tile acts like a wild tile; any tile can connect to any of the 4 sides). The castle tile can go anywhere, but you score a bonus if it's centrally located. You also score a bonus if you "complete" the grid--sometimes you mess up a move and are unable to play because your tile piece will not be within the grid area. You then forfeit your tile piece. Each game box will play a 4-person '5x5' grid game or a 2-person '7x7' grid game. We actually have 2 of these games, so we can combine them to play up to a 8-person '5x5' grid game or a 4-person "7x7" grid game; we just use Legos for the other 4 meeples. Fun for adults and great for children! Our kiddos (ages: 6, 8, & 10) like this game and have no problem playing it. A new game play each time. *For the 6-year old, I did make them a 'cheat sheet' that helps them stay with-in the '5x5' or '7x7' grid area, making it easier for them to visualize and complete their grid. Image 1: showing a completed '5x5' grid game. (The "castle" piece is not shown in either grid, but a space for it is in the middle). Image 2: showing a completed '7x7' grid game. Image 3: showing the 'cheat sheet' helper.

KingDomino is a favorite game at our house. I bought this for a friend who has played it with us and wanted his own version for when his family visits. It's easy to learn and seems that anyone can win (not like some games that are geared toward certain mentalities or knowledge base). The game is in a small box, making for easy storage. It has a cute design, visually pleasing.

My 6 y/o daughter enjoys playing Carcassone with me (w/out the farms), so I thought this would be a nice simpler change of pace. I was not disappointed. Kingdomino is a game of placing tiles, to form matching areas (farms, forests, deserts, etc.), to earn points IF you have crowns on the areas. The scoring is a bit intense for a 6 y/o still (you multiply matching connected squares by number of crowns in the connected area), but if you keep it simple ("make big areas and watch for crowns!") you can still have fun and inspire some match skills in the process. My 8 y/o was able to handle the scoring just fine. Three things make KD unique from Carcassone and others. First, you make your own kingdom, and that kingdom needs to be contained in a 5x5 grid. You do not add to a communal kingdom, or to other players' kingdoms. You will run into situations where points conflict with space, forcing you to plan ahead. It does, however, decrease the interactiveness on the tile placement. That decrease is in turn mitigated by the second distinct feature: tile selection. Each round, you place four randomly drawn new tiles and arrange them numerically based on the numbers on the back of the tiles (so you will line them up, as an example, 4 23 28 45). Higher numbers typically are harder to place but potentially earn more points. After placing their tile for the turn, a player selects which tile they want to play next round from the line of four tiles. Your selection then determines the play order for the next round, meaning the players who go first have the first pick of the high point tiles... or they can force a player into picking difficult tiles! This is a really unique way of taking turns that I absolutely love, as it allows players to police themselves and prevent one player from running away with all the points. Lastly, the standard 2-player game of KD adds a substantial amount of luck compared to other tile-matching games I have played. In 3- and 4-player KD and in Carcassone, you will play with all the tiles. This in turn means that you know you have a shot for all the tiles. In contrast, in 2-player KD you randomly remove half the tiles. This adds lots of replayability and forces you to play the game as thrown at you rather than game the system by knowing all the pieces. And it you would prefer to play it with all the tiles (turning the game into more of a chess match), there is a 7x7 variant that allows for just that! Finally, the art of KD needs special mention. The "big art" - the plains, forests, etc. - are well done but standard. Included in most tiles, however, are "little art" - dragon shadows, wizards brewing, travelers, ogres, etc. All are such a small (but still detailed) scale that they really give some dimension to the environments in a way not typically seen in games. Excellent job! I enjoy Kingdomino a lot. I had fun playing it with my kids, am happy with the skills it is teaching them, and had a great time playing the 2-player version with my wife. It's an awesome medium-light family game all around. Recommended for families especially, and for groups or couples interested in light games that still require some thinking.

I was looking for a new game for my kids as a non-digital Xmas present and was set on buying the new Minecraft Builders and Biomes, but that one went out-of-stock, then there was another game, a twist on checkers, that looked good, and also sold out really quickly. Kingdomino was my third choice and I am so happy I was "forced" to buy it! In short, the purpose of the game is to get as many points as possible. You build a 5 by 5 grid kingdom out of domino-like tiles. Each tile has two squares with 5 possible field colors. The color field may feature a building worth one to three crowns - representing the point multiplier. Each player should build the largest possible color-field with as many crowns within a 5x5 zone and using domino matching mechanics (you can only add tiles color to color). We love the game because: It is quick! I used to like Monopoly but 3 hours in with a nine and an eight-year-old, the bickering about rent and drama over who landed on whos property... Kingdomino takes us up to 10 minutes per round (maybe 15 in the 2-player, big kingdom mode). My kids will try to talk me into doing something to fend off the bedtime every day - a 7 minute round of the game will keep them content and they feel like they got away with something (lil dudes, you just did a math exercise). It teaches planning ahead and strategical thinking! There are 5 colors to match and each color will earn points differently - yellow fields are plentiful but they rarely have buildings AND those buildings are only worth 1 crown each. Black tiles are rare, but they may have 2-3 crowns. Who goes first changes in every round as you lay the next set of dominoes out. The backs of the tiles are numbered 1 to 48 and are randomly drawn each round. You lay them up in order, flip them over, and the person who picked the lowest number last round goes first next round, and so on. So if you really need a tile from next set, you may have to pick the worse tile in current round to secure your future pick. You also have to decide if you want to go with a lot of same color tiles with low multiplier value (like 8 yellow tiles with one one-crown building = 8 tiles x1 crown = 8 points, or 3 black tiles with 2, 3, and 3 crowns = 3 tiles x (2+3+3 crowns) = 24 points. It teaches simple math! My kids are in elementary school and counting the points up involves a bunch of simple multiplications and additions. In optional two-player more with 7x7 kingdom, there are sometimes 15 multiplications (each color field times sum of all the crowns in those fields) and then a 15 step addition that comes up to 130-150 points. And they love it! I mean - they need to know who won... It is fun! It is REALLY fun. Combining our little strategies, distracting other players, a little bit of bluffing so someone does not snatch the tile you need... it all makes for a competitive play and, at least for us, the final scores are close enough that no one gets their feelings hurt too much. Other than my feelings that is, because I have to admit I get outsmarted by an 8-year-old... The only issue I had with the game was the instructions. They take a while to digest as there are quite a few steps between laying the dominoes, taking your tiles and so on. On game 3 you will be a pro, but the first one was painful for us. There is however a really cool short video made by a bearded dude on Games Explained YouTube channel - search it up and you will be off to a good start.

Kingdomino is a fast and fabulous game! Setup and play are super simple. Each player begins with a starter tile, then adds dominoes to build outward into a 5x5 square. Kingdominoes are played similarly to regular dominoes: dominoes can only be played if one side matches an existing domino in the kingdom. But instead of numbers, kingdominoes contain a variety of landscapes (fields, water, swamps, pasture). And rather than creating a line or a chicken foot, players are attempting to cluster the same types of land together to gain points. Here's where the trick comes in: it's a gamble to get the right dominoes! Four dominoes are laid out at a time. During the first round, players are drawn in random order, then claim dominoes in that order. The player who claims the first domino in line plays first, the second plays second, and so on. The last person in line isn't left with much choice--but this is where strategy comes in! A second row of four dominoes is revealed once the first four are claimed. After the first player plays, they can claim a new domino from the second line--but their best choice may be third or fourth in line, which affects turn order. So--do you claim land you don't really want, just to keep others from choosing first? Do you select the best piece of land, knowing it puts you at risk for always being the last to play? For the cutthroat player, this opens up another level of variety! Less competitive players may not be making choices to spite their opponents, yet the variety of dominoes will force gameplay to stay interesting. When all 5x5 squares are finished, players count up their points. The one with the most points wins! This game is fabulous for a variety of reasons: It's easy to explain. It's easy to prepare. It's colorful and inviting. It takes 5-10 minutes per game. And it's flexible enough to appeal to those who like simple games and those who like more strategy. If you're looking for something fresh to bring to game night, or something to play with kids, or something to play between heavier games, or something that's as affordable as it is wonderful, Kingdomino is a winner!

Followed stories about this game (and bought before Queendomino was released). I wanted a game that was: 1. Quick 2. Easy to understand (that my children could play) 3. A visual delight This game delivered on all of these. Don't be fooled into thinking this game is too simplistic to have any depth of play, there is still elements of strategy and forward planning involved. The artwork is incredible when you look closely (spot the wide-eyed frightened sheep on the dragon shadowed grass tile). Recommended for those who would like a quick and simple game to play with family or friends.

+-------------------------------------------+ | CONFEZIONE E CONTENUTO | +-------------------------------------------+ Il gioco si presenta con una scatola quadrata con all'interno tutto il necessario per giocare. Vi sono i 4 castelli da costruire, 8 pedine (2 per colore), 4 caselle base su cui posizionare i castelli, 48 tessere territorio e il libretto delle istruzioni multilingua. Il tutto è di buona fattura: le tessere territorio sono ben disegnate e molto simpatiche oltre ad essere plastificate in modo tale da renderle impermeabili. L'unico difetto potrebbe essere il loro spessore, difficile scozzarle, ma sinceramente lo preferisco così in modo tale da renderle perfettamente rigide. +--------------+ | IL GIOCO | +--------------+ Disponibile per 2 fino a 4 giocatori, il tutto si svolge molto velocemente. L'unica accortezza è quella di usare 12 tessere territorio per ogni giocatore con la possibilità, per i giocatori più esperti, di usarle tutte anche in 2 giocatori (ogni giocatore avrà 2 pedine). Ogni tessera territorio è composta da due caselle che possono avere la stessa tipologia di territorio oppure diverse: inoltre ogni tessera può avere o meno 1 o più corone che saranno essenziali per fare punteggio. Lo scopo principale è quello di costruire un proprio dominio di massimo 5x5 caselle (ogni tessera territorio è grande 2 caselle) andando a comporlo con le tessere territorio disponibili in gioco. L'ordine di gioco è stabilito, solo nel primo turno, per mezzo di una estrazione casuale delle pedine: in seguito il tutto è scandito dalle scelte di ogni giocatore poichè le tessere territorio hanno un valore e il turno inizierà sempre dal giocatore che ha scelto la tessera con il valore più basso. Questa piccola trovata è la chiave vincente del gioco: le strategie dovranno tenere di conto sia della tipologia del territorio, sia del suo valore per poter avere prima la scelta nel turno successivo. Finite le tessere territorio, si dovrà andare a calcolare il proprio punteggio in base al numero di caselle adiacenti + con la stesa tipologia di territorio, moltiplicato per il numero di corone della stessa tipologia. +----------------------+ | CONCLUSIONE | +----------------------+ Come scritto nel titolo, il gioco si apprende molto velocemente (basta una partita) e anche una partita finisce in massimo 15-20 minuti (dipende dal tempo di scelta di ogni singolo giocatore). Il vantaggio di poter essere giocato sia da 2 giocatori sia da 3 o 4, è un plus da non trascurare poichè non esistono tanti giochi con le stesse caratterische. Personalmente non posso far altro che consigliarlo a tutti.

Zum Spiel selber möchte ich nichts schreiben, es existieren ja genug Rezensionen. Hier nur ein Warnhinweis zu diesem Artikel: Hier scheinen alle möglichen internationalen Anbieter ihre Exemplare zu verkaufen, sodass die Angaben nicht immer stimmen, da die Ausgaben leicht variieren. Obwohl hier auf Amazon (Stand: 12.9.17) angegeben wurde, dass die Regeln mehrsprachig sind, bekam ich eine rein französische Ausgabe mit französischen Regeln zugesendet. Die Regeln sind natürlich einfach und auch online zu finden, trotzdem sollte ein Kunde wissen, was er bekommt.

i host a games night every couple weeks where we play easy to learn, fun to play games in a more social setting. i picked this up after hearing about it from a friend, seeing it won awards and finally of course there was a great deal on amazon. the first thing i noticed is the game box has an insert with spaces to properly organize the game pieces which i really like and wish more games would do. the game itself is pretty basic, easy to pick up and quick to finish. the strategy here is overall pretty mild, and someone who has played before will gain an advantage because they are familiar with the tiles and know roughly how common some kinds are and how many points they may yield at the end. to sum it up, players build their own separate kingdoms using tiles. players select tiles in order with the player who chose the lowest point value tile last round going first, then continuing through to the player that took the largest value tile last round. so taking lower value tile means you get earlier pick of tiles next round. tiles are used to build a kingdom by adjoining tiles showing similar terrains, different terrains yield varying point values. at the end, points are awarded based on connected tiles of similar terrain, and added up. this game is fun and enjoyable, but the strategy is fairly limited and simple. in fact it led me to recognize something about the award they won, "best family strategy game". family means its for little kids, and that sums this game up pretty much. the level of strategy in this game is good for a beginner player of strategy games and children, and even then they will likely outgrow this level of strategy fairly soon. on the plus side, i have received QueenDomino as a gift and that can be combined with this game to have more players, as well as also adding much more strategy. i have not played, but reading the rules, QueenDomino seems to add more strategy and ways to score, though i noticed overall it seems to be very similar to Carcassonne, but each player builds their own map, rather than collaborate.

We love this game, it's been a great edition to our family board game collection. We play with our 7yr old, once we got through the instructions, it was pretty easy to play, a game takes about 10-15 minutes which is perfect.