In the world of games we like to play, abstract games are often seen on our table with friends and family. And more often a good two-player abstract finds its way to be featured on a game night, or quiet evening. Today we are going to look at a new two-player game called Qawale and see how it stacks up to the rest!
Qawale is a 2 player game from Gigamic games that plays in approximately 15 minutes. It is designed by Romain Froger and Didler Lenain-Bragard.
Overview:
In Qawale players are competing to be the first to make a line of all four of their color of pebbles. Score four in a row horizontal, vertical or diagonal and you win!
Gameplay:
Players begin by picking a color and taking all the 8 pieces for that player. Then take two tan pebbles and place them on each corner.
Pick a starting player and they take one of their pebbles and places it on a stack. Then that player takes the stack and places the pebbles one at a time from the bottom up orthogonally from the first space out. Movement can never be backwards but can circle back to a piece.
This will create new tops to stacks throughout the game board. The game continues like this back and forth until one player has created a row, column or diagonal pattern of four pebbles. Whoever reaches this first wins! If both players play all their pebbles and no win condition was met, the game ends in a draw.
Impressions:
Qawale is a super fun and easy to understand abstract game that has been a hit in our home. It’s a good two player game that players are well balanced in competition and challenge, trying to find ways to push each other into just the right move that will help them.
The game is not language dependent so it gives an easy way for players of all ages to jump in and play. When this hits our table at home it has been a good fit for younger players who understand the basics and love the tactile parts of the game.
Overall if you have enjoyed the abstract games from Gigamic and Hachette then Qawale should be an easy addition to your collection. Give it a try and see who can bounce their way around the board to victory!
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