Hanabi Is On Fire!

Hanabi

Designed by Antoine Bauza

Published by RandR Games

2 to 5 Players

25 Minutes

Cooperative Sequence Deduction and Memory Set Building Card Game

Oooo....Awwww...Ooooo...Awwww. Firework displays can be some of the most amazing and impressive shows to watch in the night sky. There is always a lot of excitement in the air, along with all the ash of course. Hanabi is also a pretty exciting experience and fun for the entire family.

Hanabi won the Spiel des Jahres (or Game of the Year award in Germany for 2013) and for good reason. Being a set collecting game where you are all holding cards away from you so that all the other players can see your cards and you can see everyone else's cards except your own - I have a hard time saying that the theme really thrives in this game. The game is a set building game where you have to play in order cards in each color 1 to 5. I like that the goal is simple and the game play is very easy to learn and play too. You can either give a clue (if a counter is available), play a card to the center, or discard a card (gaining back a counter). So simple!

The blue counters are limited however, so you may need to make a best guess to discard a card to gain one back for the team. If you choose a card to play to the center and it's wrong, Ssssss, the fuse shortens - you have 3 chances for a mistake. The clue giving can be very strategic, but it can be hard sometimes to not give more information than you can. 

The game is light and is very enjoyable, but some may have a hard time with the game if they don't have a very good memory or are not very good at making logical deductions. For me and my wife however, this is a perfect game. It definitely is going to be different with 2 than it is with 5, but I have enjoyed both ways and will continue to do so. Lots of fun. I do need to mention however that the cards just barely fit in the box - too tight for my liking. I don't know if it is just my copy of the game, but it seems to me that they should have made the box slightly bigger. The counters are good quality though and so are the cards. This game is definitely worth your while and that is How Lou Sees It! 

Yardmaster Preview

Yardmaster
Designed by Steven Aramini
Published by Crash Games
2 to 4 players
20 minutes
Set collecting, trading, and train building
Prototype version reviewed, on Kickstarter soon

Background/Introduction
I won a copy of a prototype version of Yardmaster from a contest on Board Game Geek. I was very excited to get my copy. Yardmaster recently won the ION award from the 2014 Salt Lake Gaming Convention. This award is given to......blah blah blah.

There are a lot of train themed games out there, but I have yet to play one myself that doesn't involve train routes - until I played Yardmaster. Yardmaster seems to be unique in this regard as the goal is to be the first to build or link up your train before your opponents. You are building a train by purchasing railcars using sets of cargo cards. Players score a set amount of points for the different railcars added to their train. First player to the designated amount of points wins.

Components and Rule Book
As this is a prototype I won't be saying much considering that what I played with was only a prototype. That being said, the quality of the prototype cards were very nice and I would be happy with that quality for the final version.

I would also like to say that even though high quality cardboard tokens could work for the exchange rate tokens, I would love to see these produced as high quality poker chips. Or at least an option for such as a stretch goal.

The rules presented in the prototype were straight forward and we'll explained. Simple game play is not over complicated by rules. Seem good enough. I would like to see some other variants possibly (again, maybe via stretch goals). I share some variant ideas a bit later.

The artwork is really cool. It is a good overall analogy to how I feel about the game. Clean, crisp, simple, and enjoyable. Like the rule book, the artwork does a lot by not over complicating things. Words are provided with symbols or depictions of railcars along with an old school feeling color theme that just seems to fit the game so well.

Game Play and Thoughts
Setup is easy. Shuffle the railcar and cargo card decks, put three railcar cards face up and deal out three cargo cards to each player. It may be very small, but I like the fact that it is easy to remember the number of cards as it is three and three and this doesn't change with amount of players. Each player also starts with one of the four exchange rate tokens given out at random.

Game play consists of performing two actions on your turn. You may perform each available action multiple times if you wish although you can only purchase one railcar each turn. Basically there is three different actions you can perform.

Gain a new cargo card
You may gain a cargo card by drawing blindly from the top of the facedown cargo deck, or you may take the top cargo card from the cargo discard pile (you can't perform the later if the top card is a bonus card).

Gain a new railcar
You may purchase one of the three face up railcars from the center by paying the number of cargo cards matching the color and number shown on that railcar. The color represents the type of cargo/railcar and the number on the car is both the cost and point value.

Trade exchange rate token
Each player begins the game with and can utilize at any time the 2:1 exchange as shown on their current token (i.e. If you have the coal exchange rate token, two coal can be any other cargo). As one of your actions you may exchange your token with any other player or with any tokens left in the bank.

The Yardmaster token allows the player to take an additional action (three instead of the normal two). This token is passed to the right after that players turn and play continues to the left. The first player to the goal point value is the winner.

Building your train
When purchasing a railcar from the center, this must be added to your train if possible. The first card behind the engine can be anything, but then cards to be added after must match the color or number of the last car. If a purchased railcar can't be added, it gets stored in a player's sorting yard. Then, later in the game, cars will be added to the train if able, not costing any actions to do so.

Thoughts
Yardmaster is a great light set collecting game. Very easy to learn, Yardmaster still offers some nice strategy while keeping it simple. I really think that the artwork is great and refreshing. The game play is interesting, because players need to balance nabbing a train each turn and waiting to try and get a larger point value train (while risking the possibility that an opponent would nab that same train). Switching an exchange token with an opponent could mess with your opponent's strategy and perhaps keep a railcar still around while you try and get the last cargo that you need. The game is a light card game though, and at times the options seem very limited. I guess that is where some of the other strategy and risk taking comes into play. You will most likely be taking many cargo cards blindly, so that adds a luck element to the game (and yet you have the option of taking a known card - but that is just it - it is only one face up cargo card to choose from or you take one blindly. Interesting.

The train building and sorting yard is also an intriguing thing. You can purchase some higher priced railcars even if they can't be added to your train right now, but you risk not being able to add them at all. Placing lower valued cars is a safer bet that you will be able to continue to add more and more cars, but then again is taking 4 actions to purchase 4 different 1 value cars better than taking 1 action to purchase a 4 valued car? You won't be able to add on your train as easily, but you still have the same color you can add and get the value lower again to match other cars. But I ramble. The truth is, the game has some strategy, the game is simple, and it has a large luck component as well. Is it all balanced? I'm not sure yet, but I can say that it is a fun game that you can start playing within a couple of minutes and provides a nice casual game play that can be enjoyed by a wide range of people and that is How Lou Sees It.

A big SHOUT OUT to Crash Games for the prototype version sent to me free of charge and for the opportunity to review Yardmaster. If you are interested in learning more, I will post a link to the Kickstarter here when available. Video review also provided below. Enjoy!

Variant Ideas
-Sorting yard rail cars must be played/added to your train in order of purchase.
-Play with the exchange tokens face down. Reveal it when you use it. As an action you can take all the tokens and shuffle them face down and pass out again.
-Play either without the exchange tokens, or play with fixed tokens (can't trade them).

(Work in progress, I may add more ideas for variants, or house rules here in the future.)

Lords of Waterdeep is Amazing!

Lords of Waterdeep 
Designed by Peter Lee and Rodney Thompson
Published by Wizards of the Coast
2 to 5 Players
60 Minutes
A fantasy themed worker placement game that includes city building, completing quests, and intrigue

Background / Introduction
Lords of Waterdeep is a fantastic worker placement game with high quality components and a great fantasy theme. You will notice the Dungeons and Dragons label on the box and in most cases this will either make you very excited about the game or turn you off to it immediately. I for one, have never played Dungeons and Dragons or any other tabletop RPG. I wanted to play this because of all the great things I kept hearing about it and I saw it played on TableTop. Well, all the good things I heard are true and I love this game.

Components / Rule Book
This game has a very high quality production value. The first thing you will probably notice is the nice box that the game comes in. The box has a nice finish to it and seems like it will be very durable. It also has a very unique way that the lid and box fit together creating a nice visual effect. Once the box is open, you will notice the amazing plastic insert that will help organize the game components. This insert is probably the best one that I have encountered. Everything has its place and it all fits perfectly. The insert also is designed such that you can very easily retrieve the components from the box without having to tip the thing upside down. Hands down the best use of an insert.

Another nice touch to keep the game feeling unique, is the shape and design of the gold used in the game. There are two different types of gold tokens, one is square and the other is a half-moon shape each with a little hole in the middle. I really like this little detail that adds to the theme and just gives another component that stands out above just using a normal round looking coin. The gold tokens are very high quality cardboard type pieces, but they have a nice finish to them and will keep well. Of course, I would have loved actual metal coins, using the cardboard I'm sure keeps the price point down.

The game includes a board and building tiles which are also made of some nice cardboard. I am impressed with the building tile pieces from Lords of Waterdeep, because similar tiles in other games seem more prone to warping or just feel flimsy. These tiles are anything but.  The game includes wooden meeples and scoring tokens that are well painted and look nice. The cards used in the game are nice quality and shuffle well.

The only thing that I wish was better is the player mats. The mats in my opinion are not a real huge need, but they are nice to have to keep things organized and to keep track of players' factions. These mats divide your completed quests from uncompleted ones and provides a storage area for Adventure Cubes and resources. I really wish these mats were made out of the same material as the building tiles - that would be awesome, but alas, they are not. The mats seem to be printed on a cardstock type material and they are flimsy. They could easily become bent or ruined. Again, I know that it was probably a price point thing and the mats are not necessarily small like the building tiles - but that is really the only part about the components that I found lacking.

The instruction booklet is also great quality in material and content. A durable rule book with lots of illustrations and well understood rules. The rule book also provides a diagram on how to use the insert - pretty sweet! I think the quality of components and rule book are top notch.

Gameplay
Players are trying to obtain the most victory points by completing quests, building buildings, playing intrigue cards, and by trying to get bonus points from meeting a special goal for your specific Lord. Setup is pretty quick and consists of shuffling some cards and gathering adventurer cubes and other components. Each player gets a Lord of Waterdeep card that will provide bonus points for completing specific types of quests or building buildings. Players will also start with some intrigue cards and some quests.

Players will place an agent (one of their meeples) on one of the open action spaces which will allow them to gain adventurers, gold, build a building, gain or play an intrigue card, and take on more quests. Building buildings will add more action spaces to the board and the owner of the building bets a benefit whenever some other player uses that building. Intrigue cards allow you to snare up your opponent with such things as mandatory quests that are required to be completed before completing any other quests. The game really is simple and easy to teach/learn, but the game offers a lot of strategy. The game is a great length as well lasting about an hour (the game is played in 8 rounds and the game is adjusted for the different amount of players by adjusting how many agents a player will start with).

Closing Thoughts
I really have enjoyed Lords of Waterdeep. I am just amazed at the nice quality components and the attention to detail for each right down to the wonderful box insert to keep everything organized. I like the little things that make the game have a unique feel like how the box closes or the shape of the gold coins. The artwork is great and all the gameplay with components create a really great theme that is enjoyable and yet isn't overwhelming to those who may not care for fantasy. Those who don't enjoy fantasy at all can still really enjoy this game! It isn't too heavy, so more casual gamers can still enjoy it. The game length is perfect at around 60 minutes. There is variation in the different quest cards, intrigue cards, and building cards used in each game along with the different Lord cards with special bonus point goals. I like the building concept where if you build a building and another player uses that space, you get rewarded. The simplicity of the game combined with the shear fun of completing quests and great strategy depth should make this game shoot to the top of your want list. And with a great player range of 2 to 5 players, this game seems to have it all. It plays really well with 2 players, a lot better than I originally thought it would. I think that there is a lot of replayability and there is also currently one expansion (that apparently is like two in one) available to add even more fun. I hope that I can try it soon as well, for Lords of Waterdeep is amazing and that is How Lou Sees It!

A big SHOUT OUT to Wizards of the Coast for making this review possible.

Cartoona: Fun for All Ages

Cartoona (and expansions)
Designed by Robert Burke
Published by Robert Burke Games
and by Game Salute
1 to 8 Players
30 Minutes
A set-collecting-tile-laying-creature-creating game for ages 3 and up

Background/Introduction
One of my absolute favorite games is Carcassonne, which just happens to be a tile laying game as well. Cartoona caught my eye because of the interesting cartoonish artwork and the fact that it was a tile laying game. The artwork is pretty simplistic, but it is fun and it really reminds me of the early Simpson episodes. I really think this game shines with its ability to work well with a very large age range. My daughter who is between 2 and 3 loves just playing with the tiles and sorting them according to their color. The game tiles are very thick and good quality, so I'm not worried about my daughter bending them or ruining them very easily. The game is very simple in nature and is a light family game. The instruction book comes with some great different ways to adjust the game for the younger age groups or just provide fun variation. There is an expansion pack that you can get with a few more tiles and cards, and this just really adds to the giant box of stuff. You will notice right off that the game box is fairly large and that isn't just extra room for expansions, it is there to fit all 94 creature tiles (don't worry, the expansion materials all fit in here too), 70 action cards, 8 player screens, a scoring track with pawns, and the rule book.

Components/Rule Book
As I just stated above in the background above, the game is chalk full of good quality components and in a game where the tiles really make up the game, I'm very glad that the tiles are top notch. Great colors and fun artwork with very thick and sturdy tiles, will make this game last a long time and makes me feel more comfortable letting the younger children play the game. The scoring card or track that came with the game feels more like a heavy paper however and I would have liked to see a fun scoring card made out of similar material as the creature tiles. The cards are good quality and the instruction book is very nice (again, with the different variants that you can play) and includes illustrations.

Gameplay and Thoughts
The basic idea for the complete game is that you have a certain hand or pool of creature tiles that you can use to build and create different creatures. The creature tiles are split up into certain body parts (front legs, rear legs, tail, neck, head, ears, mouth) and you can create creatures by matching up these tiles appropriately. You will score points for your completed creature and you will be able to start another creature. There are points on each tile that you play and each of the tiles have a different color (some are split into two colors providing an option - a mini wild card if you will). If your creature is made up of all the same color, you get double the points! This seemed more challenging to me than I originally thought it would be, but it is a nice reward for being picky on your tiles and tile placement. I found myself too many times not being able to complete a creature in one color and just settling for normal points by adding a yellow tile to my otherwise purple creature. Drawing and adding tiles - pretty straight forward right?

Well, you can play a variant with just the tiles, but the cards included in the game add a needed element in my opinion to the game. With the younger kids, tiles alone will be great, but if you are playing with older kids and adults I highly recommend the cards. When playing with the cards, players also are able to draw cards and play cards in addition to creature tiles. These cards can give bonuses, block other actions, change tile scoring, swap tiles, and much more. This adds some fun and gives the game some player interaction.

The game isn't Carcassonne or wont feel like other euro style strategic games, but the game is a fun light family game. I am impressed with the different variations given in the rule book and how the game can be played with such a young age group. That is probably my favorite thing about the entire game is that I feel like my kids can enjoy this at a really young age and it can continue to evolve for them as needed. Again, the quality of the tiles is just fantastic and there are a lot of them. I recommend this game for those looking for a family game that can work well with a really young age group. It can be fun with the cards added for an older group, but may still be too light for some more strategic gamers. I give Cartoona and its expansions a 2 Fingers Up or 7/10 Stars for being one of the few family games that can reach such a young generation and that is How Lou Sees It!

A big SHOUT OUT to Game Salute and Robert Burke Games for providing this review copy and making this review possible.

Stacking SUTAKKU Style

SUTAKKU
Designed by Curt Covert
Published by Smirk and Dagger Games
For 1 or more players
Push-Your-Luck Dice Game

Background / Introduction

With all of the Japanese characters on the box, the game might seem foreign and be pretty mysterious. The fact is, the game is a very easy to learn, quick to play, push-your-luck style dice game. Fans of Yahtzee, Farkle, Fill or Bust, or Incan Gold are those most likely to enjoy SUTAKKU. The symbols on the dice may be a little intimidating at first, but they just represent numbers with the Japanese characters. The game is really simple, elegant, and fun.

Components

The star of the game (as it should be) is the set of 12 beautifully engraved large (3/4") dice. These dice are awesome! Top notch quality. The bigger dice are perfect for stacking (and yet not too large to make rolling them awkward) and for good visibility around a big table. I repeat, these dice are awesome.

The game also comes with a little black cloth dice bag, a stacking/reference board, a score pad, 11 'Smirky's Challenge' bonus cards, and rule book. 

The stacking board isn't necessary, but it is kind of cool. The board really serves three purposes: 1) Look

cool. 2) Center a spot where the dice will be stacked. 3) Provide a reminder to what the Japanese characters represent. You could create a house rule that involves the board (as suggested in my video) when dice fall from an in-progress stack, but in general the board is their to look cool - and it does a great job.

The cloth bag fits all 12 dice for convenient pocket travel. The score pad is nice and there is a blank copy in the rule book so you can make additional copies (smart idea). The rule book is nice and even includes a little Japanese folklore story that gives some background for the origin of the game.

The bonus 'Smirk's Challenge' cards are a great idea and I like playing with them. I am disappointed however in the quality of these little 'bonus cards.' I would have loved for these cards to be more 'poker card' type quality, but they are basically printed on card stock paper. They are considered to be just a little bonus to the game, but I really would have liked to see them included more as a part of the game and the quality increased.

Gameplay Overview

Without getting too detailed with rules, the game really consists of rolling 3 dice and stacking 2 of those dice onto your scoring stack. These 2 dice must be equal to or greater than the top die of the stack and if you can't stack 2 of your 3, you bust - losing all your points for this turn. While you have one free mulligan per turn to re-roll 2 of your 3 dice, you must be careful not to get too greedy. You get bonus points for stacking on 5s, 6s, or if you are able to stack all 12 (which would be amazing!). 

That is the game! Simple and yet extremely fun. You can add in the challenge cards which really makes the game interesting. It will basically set a challenge to a player that that player must complete to score any points - and yet the player may get rewarded nicely by doing so. A nice element to the game (again, I wish there was a bit more of).

Conclusion / Thoughts

I really enjoy SUTAKKU and it has been well received by friends and family. The game is a very light dice game and with that comes very little strategy. The real decision you have to make throughout the game is if you will be pressing your luck to try and obtain some major points, or if you will keep the small points and stay safe. Then, there is always the last round or so for those who are so far behind that they will always push their luck trying to score big - and they just might. I like the gameplay and I really enjoy the larger dice in this game. Great quality and they look cool. I also enjoy playing with the challenge cards although I wish they were a little bit better quality. The actual game could really be played with any regular dice, so you will be purchasing this game mainly for the artistic large dice, stacking board, written rules, travel bag, and the challenge cards. That said, I'm giving the game 4 Fingers Up or 9/10 stars because I enjoy the simplistic game and the dice are fantastic and that is How Lou Sees It!

A big SHOUT OUT to Smirk and Dagger Games for making this review possible. Stay tuned for future Smirk and Dagger game reviews (Dread Curse, HEX HEX XL, and Cutthroat Caverns).

Rolling Into The Dungeon

Dungeon Roll

Designed by Chris Darden

Published by Tasty Minstrel Games

1 - 4 Players (Best with 1 or 2)

Unique Hero Rolling Dungeon Delving Dice Game

Background / Introduction

Dungeon Roll is definitely not your typical dice game.  If you are expecting the roll your dice three times routine, think again!  One of the things that I really enjoy about Dungeon Roll is how unique and different the game feels.  You should already get that feeling just from the actual packaging of the game.  I mean, the game comes in a little cardboard treasure chest and not only that but during the game when you gain treasure you actually open the chest to randomly get a piece of treasure - how cool is that.  The theme is nice, the variability is great, and the quality of components awesome.  The game is very light, easy to learn and doesn't take long to play.  There are dice involved and the game does have a large luck element to it.  So, for all the hard core strategists that can't stand games with luck, this may not be the game for you.  The game has a great variability built in with the different hero cards which really shape what kind of strategy you will play each game.  In this base game, there really isn't any player interaction, so while the game makes for great solo play and is enjoyable, don't expect to work together or attack one another in this game (although this may change with future expansions/promos, as the soon to be released Winter Promo has some fun player interaction).  Well, enough chit chat, let's talk about the game in a little bit more detail.

Components / Rulebook

OK, so I mentioned the really cool treasure chest packaging.  The box actually opens like a treasure chest too.  I was a bit worried that it would just rip right off the box after a few uses, but I have to give it to them - it seems to be doing very well.  It may not last forever, but even if the "hinge" functionality of the box is lost, it is still awesome.

Moving on to the dice.  Being such a huge element in the game, one should expect these dice to be the really nice quality.  I'm happy to say they really are.  The custom 15 dice (7 party dice, 7 dungeon dice, and 1 dungeon level tracker die) are very well made and I think they will remain that way.  The color coding and icons used are good and make sense.

The hero cards (8 included in the base game, and 8 more available in the Hero Booster Pack #1) in the game are printed on good card stock and each of the cards has really nice artwork.  Each hero card is double sided (one side is a Novice side and the other side is the Master side) and abilities change when flipped over.  I am disappointed that they didn't take the opportunity to provide the hero slightly differently on the Master side as each side has the same artwork of the hero.  They could have changed to pose of the hero, or add armor, or something.  The game also includes 4 reference cards to help remind players what each face of the die do and what treasure tokens can be obtained with their special purpose.

 

The game includes 36 treasure tokens and 24 experience tokens.  These are your usual card board cut out pieces.  the pieces are good thickness and didn't have too much of a problem punching them all out.  The game also includes a rulebook along with a Book of Heros.  The game play is simple, and the rulebook does well to explain the game and includes some illustrations.  The Book of Heroes is just a book comprised of pages summarizing the different hero cards and providing further clarifying information as necessary.

Setup

The game has a very quick setup.  Empty out the treasure chest if you choose to use it as your treasure token randomizer (which you always should!).  Place the treasure tokens in the chest or flip them all face down if keeping them out on the table.  Place the experience tokens near by.  Each player can have a reference card and then each player will either choose their hero or deal these out randomly.  That is it!

Goal / Gameplay

The game is played by each player entering the dungeon exactly 3 times to seek glory, treasure, and to gain experience points.  The winner of the game will be the one with the most experience points once everyone has tried their hand at the dungeon 3 times.

On a players turn (in general, this and other actions can be modified by a heroes special ability or ultimate ability) the player first rolls the 7 party dice.  This will represent the company of adventurers entering the dungeon with you and perhaps some scrolls (just in case you feel like reading in the dark dangerous dungeon).

The player will then enter the dungeon at dungeon level 1.  The dungeon level tracker die will be moved to show the number 1 face up.  The dungeon lord will be rolling dice equal to the number on the dungeon level tracker die or as many available dice as able if that can't be reached.  So, for example the dungeon lord will roll 1 of the dungeon dice for level 1 and 4 dungeon dice for level 4.

The player will then enter the Monster Phase of his turn and will need to defeat or otherwise dismiss any monsters rolled (Skeletons, Oozes, and Goblins make up the monsters you will encounter).  This is done by using your party dice rolled at the beginning of your "delve into the dungeon" (a.k.a. 1 of your 3 turns going through the dungeon).  You may use any one adventurer die (Clerics, Mages, Fighters, Thieves, and Champions) to defeat any one monster die.  Each type of adventurer also has specialties that help remove more of a certain kind of monster etc.  These are color coded for your convenience.  Example: The grey Cleric can defeat (or in other words remove) any number of grey Skeletons, the green Fighter can remove any number of Goblins, and the Thieves can open any number of chests (we will discuss these soon).  The gold Champion is pretty special, it can remove any of the same type of monster (consider it a wild die of sorts).

Also during the Monster Phase, you can activate your hero's ability or ultimate ability, you can use treasure tokens, or you may use any Scrolls that you have.  Scrolls allow you to re-roll any of the dice (party and dungeon).  Once all the monsters are removed from play, the player can then continue on to the Loot Phase where players can open chests or quaff potions.  It is always optional to open chests or quaff potions.  While players may not always want to open chests or quaff potions, each one of these rolled means one less monster (or possible dragon).  If you choose to open a chest using your dice, then you can gain a treasure token at random (these can be really useful!).  If you quaff a potion (even your scrolls can do this), then you can bring a party die back from the "graveyard" (the place where your used party dice end up) and you get to choose what face you want to use.

Without getting into too many details about all the rules, I do need to mention the dragon and how experience tokens are obtained as well as what happens if you can't defeat the monsters and/or dragon at a given level.  Whenever a dragon is rolled, it is set aside in an area known as the dragon's lair (these dice can't be re-rolled with the Scroll, but can be manipulated with certain hero abilities).  After the Monster and Loot phase, it is then the Dragon Phase.  If there are 3 or more dragons the hero must defeat the dragon.  To do this the player must use 3 different adventurers (or Companions as they are really called in the rulebook).  This can be done with the help of certain treasure tokens that can act as companions too.  So, here is a good spot to point out that while Champions are really versatile, you still need a variety of companions to defeat dragons.  When you defeat a dragon, you receive 1 experience point and you get 1 treasure.

After the Dragon Phase comes the Regroup phase.  Players can now determine if they want to leave the dungeon and receive experience points equal to the number shown on the dungeon level tracker or continue to go down to the next level (although 10 is the maximum and you are required to leave after defeating level 10).  If at any time you can't defeat the monsters or you are faced with a dragon that you can't defeat, you must end your delve that round without scoring any of the experience points on the die.

Conclusion / Final Thoughts
I really enjoy playing Dungeon Roll.  The quality of components are great and the theme really works well.  The heroes and their special abilities really make the game for me as they provide unique strategies depending on your character.  Dungeon Roll is just a great light dice game that can be taught and played very quickly.  The base game doesn't really have much as far as player interaction is concerned, but I think most players will enjoy watching to see what other players choose to do as well.  Now, with 3 or 4 players, the down time between turns lengthen and may result in people not enjoying the game as much.  The game fits well for a nice 2 player game as one player can always be rolling dice (either as the hero or the dungeon lord).  The game does have a large element of luck and that keeps the game different and challenging in its own way, but this may keep some gamers away that don't like a large element of luck in a game to mess up all their perfectly contrived strategies.  The game retails around $19.95, so the price point is nice too.  I am really looking forward to playing the Winter Promo pack and I can't wait to learn more about what they have in store for Dungeon Roll this year (I'm hearing that there will be some great things coming out).  If you like dice games and you are OK with a large luck element and dungeon fighting theme, I think you should get it!  I'm giving this game 4 Fingers Up or 9/10 Stars and that is How Lou Sees It!

A big SHOUT OUT to TMG for making this review possible.  I should be receiving Coin Age and the Dungeon Roll Winter Promo over the next few months.  TMG is really coming out with some great little games.  I will be reviewing The Village soon as well!  Hopefully I can take a look at Belfort too to give you an idea of how the TMG more complex games are.  Until next time!