Greg Chapman
Ingenious

One of my Collection of Games

Fast Risk Taking Game

Ingenious Board Game

This game was bought in 2015 for amusement while spending time aboard nb Adderbury, a boat Diana and I had bought a share in, along with my brother and his wife.

One of our requirements for games to play while on a boat is that it should come in a small package, be simple to learn, quick to play and not require a lot of space. This game meets those requirements. The box is only about seven by four and a half inches.

I can't now remember whether it came with the bag for the pieces that you see in my photo or whether I had acquired it somewhere else. Search the Internet and you'll find plenty of pictures of the game and its components, but none I have found show the bag you see here and to be honest it is a little small for adult hands. However, it's great advantage is that it saves having to turn all the 126 cardboard tiles face down to shuffle them before each game with the risk that one or more find their way onto the floor or under furniture.

It's not a game for those who want to to be challenged with strategic issues. It's simply a question of balancing risk and potential benefit at each turn.

With two or three players the aim of the game is to collect a set of seven tiles of each of the six types before other players manage it. That target is reduced to five tiles when there are four players.

As play continues an increasing number of exposed tiles are found in the "holding area" and available to add to your collection. Deciding whether to continue to draw a tile from the pool (bag) in the hope of making a match with those in the holding area will settle your fortune.

A wrong draw means the lead can easily swing from one player to another so younger players need not be discouraged that they have no hope against an older player. While I can imagine that many adult groups would enjoy playing for small stakes against the outcome.

My only caveat I've only played the game with two players. Sometimes the balance of the game can be affected with additional players but I can't see that would be the case with this game. It's one we continue to play even taking it with us this year, when spending a week house sitting at our son's place in the New Forest.