Review -- DRAGONS OF KIR

DRAGONS OF KIR

If a game was simply enjoyed based on the box, Dragons of Kir would be among my favourite games.
The box shows a quartette of Oriental-style dragons, one in each corner; a red one, green, yellow and blue. It’s a mythical-theme and being dragons, I was immediately attracted.
The game was released in 2005 from One Eye Productions and give these guys credit they’ve learned a bit about quality along the way.
The game, as you might expect, has dragons, and initially they we paper that had formed into sort of cubes. The game also has tents which are the attack goal of the dragons, and again they were little folding paper creations. They were flimsy, and really detracted from the aesthetics of the game.
The company has recently released a components upgrade, issuing wooden tents and wooden blocks with an imprint of a dragon on them. I might prefer a sculpted dragon, but the upgrade certainly enhances the game.
The wood expansion set also adds rules for three and four players.
The game was designed by Dove Byrne and Jason Conkey. Dragons of Kir is a themed version of Darter, which won the 2006 Origins Vanguard Innovative Game Award at Gama. Dragons adds some new tiles and different rules.
You can check out the game at www.dragonsofkir.com. The site explains the game as “(a) new and exciting, fast-paced, strategy board game from Future Magic Games. The object of the game is to strategically place tiles that deflect one of the four marauding dragons into your opponent's war tent, while defending your own.”
The game is basically an abstract strategy revolving around tile placement. Players strategically place tiles which deflect one of the four constantly moving dragons into your opponent’s war tent. At the same time you have to balance the attacking with the use of tiles to defend your own tent.
The tiles, made of heavy cardboard, represent the forces of nature and the forces of man, which when placed interact with the dragons and influence their movement.
I must also mention the board, again very nice, with a big dragon on it.
The game plays quickly, and is a balancing act between attacking an opponent by altering the course of a dragon toward an opponent’s tent, and keeping them away from your tent.
There is of course some luck, depending on the tiles still in-hand, but overall there is a solid strategic feel.
A very solid offering that is a quick, fun board game.
-- CALVIN DANIELS
-- Review first appeared in Yorkton This Week newspaper Feb 17, 2010 - Yorkton, SK. Canada