There
are some games which just look great, and they attract you based on that aspect
before playing them.
Splits is
one of those games.
It has
a modular board made out of wood. Yes, I said wood.
If you
are anything like this boardgamer, you are immediately attracted to games with
wooden components. They have an immediate traditionalist appeal.
So when
a game has a wooden board, well good quality pressed wood particles at least,
as well as wooden pieces, it's one to take a closer look at.
Splits
is designed by Francesco Rotta, and he did a nice job of keeping the
ruleset simple. When you open a box and see a single page of instructions you
have to smile.
Some
games, even abstract strategy games can get pretty bogged down in rules. Even
chess takes some paper to explain the movement of the various pieces etc.
So the
board is modular, with eight pieces, each made up of four hexagons. Players
take turn laying out the tiles to create the board. That alone means some
variation from game-to-game and that's a plus for Splits.
Players
also have 16 pawns (wooden checkers) in their colour.
You
place all the pieces as a single tower, then on a turn must cut a tower to
create a smaller one. So you leave some behind on the hexagon you occupied to
start the turn. The rest go in a straight line until they meet the board edge,
or another occupied hexagon, stopping just before that space.
When
you cannot move to create a new stack you lose.
Yes it
is a simple game, and that too is a plus.
The
board has only 32 hexes, so that is a bit limiting. Good players might end
games quickly if experienced. I would love to see the company offer additional
board pieces as an option, which could add depth to the game.
But as it
is, Splits works as a quick, well-made and easily transported game.
Check
the game out at www.jactalea.com
If
anyone is interested in this game, or other boardgames feel free to contact
calmardan@sasktel.net
-- Review appeared
in Yorkton This Week newspaper June 13, 2012 - Yorkton, SK. Canada
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