Tom Vasel
United States
Homestead
Unspecified
Top 100 Games of all Time
Dice Tower Convention, July 2012!!!!
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Almost anyone who is on the modern board game scene knows of Settlers of Catan. Klaus Teuber, the designer, is well known for this game, along with its many spin-offs. However, Mr. Teuber has designed several other excellent games, such as Barbarossa and Entdecker. So, I started to look for other Teuber games and found Chip-Chip Hurra. The name made me curious, and even though it was touted as a mostly children’s game – I bought it. I am a teacher, so I figured that even if the game didn’t work with adults, I could use it with my classes.
So is this game a great children’s game, a great adult game, or neither? The answer is that it’s barely passable for a light filler game for adults, but a fun dexterity game for children! If you have kids, it’s a great game! Now for the longer answer…..
First, a short description of game play…
A small board with a six by six grid of squares on it is placed in the middle of the table. Since the four corners are missing, the grid is made up of 32 connecting squares. The squares are separated by a small raised plastic grid. Each player (up to four) takes two robots of one color, and two six-sided dice of the same color. Starting with one player, each player places a die on the board, placing it so that the three is face up. After all the dice are on the board, the matching “Robbies” (robots) are placed on top of each die. The first player then takes the “Professor” and takes his turn, and turn order then follows clockwise.
A turn consists of setting the Professor - it’s a little seesaw-type launcher - down on the table at least 10 cm from the board and places a plastic “microchip” onto it. He then hits the Professor’s “feet” – one end of the launcher – to shoot the chip onto the board. If the player misses the board, they get two more tries before losing their turn. Whatever space the chip lands on (or mostly on) is where the chip stays. Starting with the player who shot the chip, each player moves one of their Robbies on the board – which can only move in straight lines. Because of the raised plastic grid, the dice underneath the Robbies change their value randomly with every space moved.
After all robots have moved, the robots who are directly next to the chip (orthogonal) are removed, revealing the value of the die underneath (the side facing up). Whichever robot has the highest number gets the chip and sticks in the back of their robot (there are four slots). From now on, that Robbie has a +1 modifier for every chip in it whenever checking the value of the die underneath. If there is a tie among the adjacent robots, each one is placed back onto their die, pulled back in a straight line as far as they want (or are able) and returned. This is repeated as often as necessary until one robot breaks the tie. On future turns, if a player missed the board three consecutive times, they LOSE a chip from one of their robots. Once a Robbie gets four chips in it, it is removed from the game. Whoever removes both of their Robots first is the winner!
Some comments on the game:
1). Components: The components for this game are extremely colorful and durable – excellent for children. The robots are nice, funny looking plastic models. The four colors of the robots are nice, and each robot is dry-brushed in black to simulate wear and tear. The results are very nice looking models which are rather durable. (I threw one at the wall rather hard while writing this review, and it seems fine). The dice are good sized, and the colors are snazzy and match the colored Robbies. The board is brightly colored and looks like the floor of the Professor’s workshop. It is also quite durable. In fact, everything about the game screams that it was made to play with children, especially the box. The box is a good sized, bright and cheerful box that has a plastic insert to hold every component of the game. I have to give a high thumbs up to the components of this game.
2). Fun Factor, Luck, and Strategy: I mention this second because it’s so important. Adults, please don’t play this game to win. There is a huge amount of luck in the game. Try as you want, the robots, dice, and board work in such a way that you cannot control which side the die will flip to, so you are at the total mercy of the dice. Flipping the chips introduces some dexterity skill, but I have yet to see someone get very good at it. Mostly people flip the chip, and hope it lands near their robots. There is some strategy to the game – such as moving your robots to block other players, and where to start your robots, but it’s minimal. I would use this game, however, to teach young children some basic strategy, while they are having fun. And that’s the draw. Even with erratic dexterity, and extreme luck – this game is a boxful of fun! Kids (and even I) really enjoy flipping the chips on the board. And kids really like it when they do better than their elders at the same thing. The game is a lot of fun, and even if you think it’s full of luck, it makes for an enjoyable activity.
3). Rules: The rules are in German, but it’s very easy to download the English translation of the rules on the internet. But you can play the game with what I wrote in this review, they are that simple. The rules do include some variants for children, such as allowing them five shots instead of three, or not taking a chip from them when they miss the board – but anyone can make up variations such as these. If kids have a hard time, give them a slight advantage – one of gaming’s golden rules. Anyway, Chip Chip Hurra can be easily learned and taught in a very short time. Also, if more than four players are needed, it’s not too hard to mark the robots and give each player one robot instead of two. This can allow up to eight players to play the game.
So, I have to say that while most adults should probably pass on this game – it’s a very enjoyable game to play with children. And it’s not just young children, even pre-teens had a blast when I taught them this game. It’s a good value and has decent replayability. The components are excellent and durable, and it’s one often requested by my kids. And when kids ask to play a game – drawing them into the great hobby of board games – then that game is a winner in my book!
Tom Vasel
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Top 100 Games of all Time
