I love a good fish tank or display of aquatic life of any kind. Big tanks, ponds, lakes, oceans-you name it I want to look at it. The peace and the calm serenity that come with it are just right to ease and settle anyone. Today we are going to look at a game trying to place us into a world just like that but in a small, personal pond-sized experience.
Kohaku is a 1-4 player game that plays in 30-45 mins for ages 10+. It is published by Gold Seal Games and 25th Century Games. It is designed by Danny Devine with art by Danny Devine also.
Overview:
Kohaku is a tile-laying game where players compete to build the best koi pond and score points for interactions between their koi and their features of the pond.
Gameplay:
The game is setup on a beautiful neoprene koi pond mat with alternating pieces of koi tiles and feature tiles. The unused ones are shuffled and placed face-down in a stack next to the board.
The game begins with the first player and moves clockwise around the table as players take turns selecting koi and feature tiles to add to their person koi pond. On each player’s turn, they will follow these three steps:
1-Select tiles: Players will take any two adjacent tiles, one koi and one feature tile from the pond.
2-Place tiles: These tiles are then placed adjacent to existing tiles in your own personal koi pond and must be placed in alternate tile patterns like a checkerboard. This will keep koi and features from touching each other. All tiles placed after the first two do not have to be adjecent to each other and can be placed anywhere on the pond.
3-Refill the pond mat: Any tiles left in the center move out to the edges and then you refill the center space with new feature and koi tiles.
There are a wide variety of koi on the tiles, some of which are single colors and some are two-toned. The two-tone koi are considered to be each color when it comes to scoring the tiles.
The feature tiles are the ways you can score in this game. There are 7 different types and each one scores differently. There are ones that count certain colors of fish around them, that look for baby fish on the tiles or look for dragonflies. Some will also be simple scoring based on the amount or type of koi around them. Each have various ways to score points and are the way you will win the game.
The game ends on the amount of koi you have added, this is varied based on the amount of players in the game. The features are added one at a time and the player with the most points wins!
Impressions:
What could be better:
Scoring track. I really don’t mind it, but the scoring track isn’t the most intuitive to use especially for players who aren’t used to it. It is also hard to leave the other player’s tokens on the board while scoring it, as it caused some sliding around when you score others.
Colors. I like the colors and the artistic approach of this game but I wouldn’t have minded a little more color pop on the features. I would love to see an expansion for this game with some new features and maybe even some different fish.
What I liked:
The Tiles. Can we take a minute here and talk about the best part of the aesthetics of this game? These tiles are amazing. Straight up one of the best pieces in a game I have ever seen. They are smooth, there is texture on the top of the tile and depth to it because the art is on the bottom of it also. I love the looks of these tiles on the table, they really shine. These are a keystone feature in the game.
The art. I love the style of this game, it has a very zen-like simplicity to it. The koi and features get across what they are trying to do with an ease and beauty that makes the game a calming experience on the table.
Player count. This game moves very easily between 1-4 players and I love that when you never know if this is going to be a two player game for just me and my wife or if the kids will join us. It has a solo experience also for those interested in that aspect.
Overall:
This game has made its way up the charts on our family favorites list. We really enjoy this one and have played it at 2, 3 and 4 player count with everyone really enjoying it. The competition is just right and the strategy involved is deep enough for players to really get into it but not feel like they have to commit to a really long game to do so. At under an hour it is just in the right amount of time for us especially for a good after dinner game.
I already mentioned it above but this game is just beautiful on the table as well. The team went all in on the art and style of this one and it really shows. The game is pretty and that alone can be a way to bring someone into a sit-down for a game like this. My wife really like a game like this that fits a puzzle/challenge on the table but looks like something you want to spend an hour staring at. Kohaku fits that mold easily.
Overall I have to recommend this one as a must-grab for your collection. The art is terrific, the gameplay is simple and smooth while also being a challenge to figure out how to place and score your tiles for the most optimal points. My critiques are minimal for this one-I recommend anyone to check it out as soon as they can to find a peaceful experience into the world of koi ponds at their next game night!
Be the first to comment