Game: Kingdomino
Publisher: Blue Orange Games
Designer: Bruno Cathala
Main Game Mechanism: Tile Laying, City Building
Number of Players: 2 to 4
Game Time: 15 to 20 minutes

Description: Do you like dominos? Do you like building your own kingdom? Bruno Cathala combines the two in a really unique way in the game Kingdomino. You play with these long tiles that are reminiscent of dominos – they have two sides, and there’s a landscape on each side. Deserts, mines, plains, grasslands, forests, and waterways are put together to help you build your Kingdom, which is represented by a starting tile with a little 3D castle sitting on it. You want to connect like tiles together in a grid (size based on player count) in order to make the castle that gives you the most points.

Here’s the thing – you can only score those tiles if there is at least one crown located in the landscape. If not, all of that effort goes to naught! So, by drafting tiles, you want to be the one to get the crowns and show off that your new kingdom of dominos is the best!

Review: Kingdomino actually scratched an itch that I didn’t know existed. I love Carcassonne; it’s been my number 1 game for years. But, sometimes, I don’t have time to play a full game of it (and I must have the Inns and Cathedrals and the Traders and Builders expansions when I play, so it makes it a bit longer). Kingdomino gives me a taste of Carcassonne in a unique, compact little game that allows me to build this little kingdom in an attempt to get the most points.  I love the speed of the game, and I love that I can play “best out of 3” in the same amount of time that I’d get a game of Carcassonne. I’d call it about the same weight as Carcassonne as well, because there is a certain level of decision making that you do need to work through.

Buy, Try, Deny: If you like tile laying games as much as I do, you definitely want to consider getting Kingdomino if you can. It can be hard to get sometimes, because it goes in and out of stock on Amazon. At the very least, you want to try it out and see if you like it, too. Check out Rahdo and Zee‘s reviews to see more gameplay and to check it out so that you can figure out if it’s a good fit for you, your family, and/or your friends.

Game On!
Marti – The Fluffy Meeple