This game seems to be lacking any reviews at present, so let me offer my thoughts.
I was wandering around Dragonmeet 2008 between RPGs when I was invited to play a quick board game by the designer. The game was colourful and attractive to look at, with a bold, simple design, nice box and board art and with large tactile playing pieces. Ever one for a new game experience I sat down to give Kamisado a try.
What at first glance had seemed a very simple abstract game proved to be... well, a very simple abstract game. No real theme to speak of. The rules took less than 60 seconds to explain and we were off. I could move any of my pieces forward or diagonally forward. The colour I landed on dictated the colour of the piece my opponent had to play. The aim of the game was to get one of my pieces to my opponent’s back row. Nothing to it.
But as the moves continued the sheer elegance of the game’s design became increasingly apparent to me. Hidden tactical depths were slowly revealed as the game entered the midway point, and around move 12 or so I had that growing "Wow" feeling. I was really enjoying this! This game was simple enough to teach to anyone in seconds, but was profoundly complex tactically. It was light and pleasant to play, our game being over in 15 minutes or so, but a rewarding brain burner for those minutes. The further ahead you thought the greater the opportunity to trick, trap or block your opponent.
I won our game, thanked the designer and headed off to play Mutants and Masterminds. But I couldn’t get that simple, colourful game out of my head. There was something of chess in there, but with far more interaction and much less downtime. It was odd; I’m typically attracted to games with a strong theme, and don’t really go for abstracts. But the more I thought about Kamisado the more I wanted to play it again, and by the end of the convention I just had to go back to the Kamisado stall and pick up a copy.
That "just one more game" feeling still hasn’t gone away. I’ve had the game several weeks now, and I’m finding that everyone I play it with enjoys it. My wife, a very reluctant gamer, enjoys it a great deal. The simplicity, game length and attractive packaging are a just right for her, and the tactical challenge is very enjoyable for me. The universal response I get when I introduce someone new to Kamisado is "What a clever game. Let’s play again." The game mechanic is one of those ideas that’s so simple you can’t quite believe no-one has thought of it before. It works beautifully.
For the more serious gamer the game can be played in a longer form. The winning piece has a Dragon Ring added to it, which limits the distance of its moves, but allows it to "Sumo Push" opponent pieces out of the way in subsequent games. Up to three rings can be added to a playing piece, further reducing its range and increasing the power of its Sumo Push. There is also an alternate piece deployment that grants a tactical advantage to the game winner. Personally I’ve not found these mechanics add an enormous amount to the game, but I have played the advanced variant far less than the standard game so far.
In summary then:
• An simple abstract 2 player game with an elegant game mechanic and impressive production values.
• Extremely easy to learn, with clear, full-colour rules filled with examples.
• Light and fun, but with sufficient tactical elements to get the brain warmed up. Apeals to gamers and non-gamers alike.
• Highly interactive: your moves determine which piece your opponent can move, and visa versa.
• Limited downtime: analysis paralysis tends to be short-lived in the games I’ve played.
• Extremely replayable: I just can’t get enough of this game at the moment, and don’t see the interest waning.
Kamisado gets a solid 9 from me.
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  $15.00
 $6.50
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Posted Wed Dec 24, 2008 10:58 am