King of Tokyo Review

**Please Note: Review is of King of Tokyo (1st Edition).**

King of Tokyo is as close to a modern classic as you'll get as far as more casual games are concern. It's a light game short on compelling strategy or mechanics that is propped up by a humorous Godzilla-inspired “kaiju” setting. Richard Garfield's Yahtzee-influenced dice game offers some fairly typical push-your-luck and risk-taking elements but also benefits from the tension of direct conflict and a lightly applied layer of complexity by way of powerful ability cards that can be purchased as upgrades throughout the game. If you buy into the giant monsters concept, you might find yourself either bellowing like King Kong or swearing profusely as the buckets of dice roll on by. If you don’t, you might find yourself waiting for your turn with a furrowed brow, wondering why this simple dice game is so popular.

Cyndi Lauper once posited the suggestion that girls just want to have fun. The majority of casual gamers and many hardcore gamers ascribe to a similar philosophy. They don't care about the intricate, mechanical systems under-pinning a design and don't care to spend more time studying a rulebook than it takes to slam a cup of dice onto the table.. Meaty decision trees and deep strategy are often anathema to fast and loose gameplay, and King of Tokyo decidedly skews toward the later t. Big dice, large colorful standees and a bright board featuring Tokyo aflame all make for a fun-looking and appealing product that anyone can get excited over.

Each player takes on the role of a giant, city-levelling monster. The goal is simple- gain points or knock everyone else out of the game by reducing their health points. The gameplay is simple. On your turn, you roll a handful of dice. You lock in what you want to keep, and follow-up with up to two re-rolls of any unwanted dice. You're looking for Claws to damage your opponents, Hearts to heal, Energy to buy cards, or points to shoot for a more passive victory. Despite the randomness of the dice there is a distinct sense of decision making as you steer your way veer down one of several obvious strategic paths. Some games you'll go for the lightning bolts so that you can amass huge stacks of energy and buy the most powerful ability cards when they appear. Others you'll be all about rending your monster rivals limb from limb with those Claw results. Sometimes you just want to chill and kick your feet up as you shoot for 20 points while letting everyone else duke it out in the city. As in any quality dice game, choice and risk are rewarded with immediate feedback and payout.

Part of the allure of tearing up Tokyo as dinosaurs or aliens is having your impact felt. Besides dishing out damage to your fellows kaiju, you can carve out a chunk of power by purchasing one of the face-up ability cards in the center of the table. Timing here is of the essence as only three appear in public view, replenishing as cards are bought. The fact that they are loosely balanced at best adds to the tension of spending or saving. The imbalances also introduce a little shock and awe into the game when something truly special makes its way into your repertoire. The asymmetry is emergent; as the game goes on, players’ powers might vary wildly resulting in a highly replayable, volatile design.

While trading blows and amassing points are agenda items for these monsters, there is also a focal point to the mayhem on the board. Tokyo. Monsters may move into Tokyo to dominate it and are rewarded each turn that they can survive there, while all other monsters must attack them on their turns. The monster running amok in Tokyo cannot use heart results to heal It is a king-of-the-hill mechanic that provides lots of suspense, brinksmanship and braggadocio. There is a shifting teamwork dynamic as those outside of the city gang up on the titular (and temporary) King of Tokyo and the tense game of chicken eventually has to end when a player has to blink, ceding their reign to the next monster to take a shot at the title.

The back-and-forth shifts in power surrounding Tokyo create a sensation that players are trying to grab as many points as possible while enduring the punishment of your peers. This is a dynamic mechanic that supersedes procedure and pushes fun and engagement to the foreground. The magic here isn’t in the outcome as it is in the ups and downs of the game- the bad rolls, the goofy turns of events and the surprise upsets. This is an unpretentious game that knows its limitations and what it is capable of.

For the casual masses brought into the King of Tokyo fold by Wil Wheaton or by a random impulse buy at Target, those high points of praise are enough. The flaws that creep into the weak corners of the design are easily ignored or glossed over as the standard of better, more compelling games isn't there for this audience. For hobbyists, it's not quite as easy as there are a wider range of comparatives and we tend to be more critical of things like the game’s often too-long and draggy play time.

Dice-chucking, push-your-luck games need to move briskly and close up shop before boredom sets in. When you throw down in a game about giant monsters wrecking cities and beating the crap out of each other, the greatest crime it can commit is to lose the player’s interest. Every so often King of Tokyo drags out to nearly one hour, disengaging the players from the fantasy. This is a result of the ability to heal and shift strategic gears mid-game that is inherent in the design. A conflict-oriented experience such as this should not grant permission to turtle, but it is a viable strategy that introduces a game-y, not really very much fun strategy that sort of sours the spirit of the design. King of Tokyo may not be a timeless classic of the genre despite its recent popularity, but it is the style of design that can unite nearly any type of game group. You can vandalize Tokyo with robots and giant pandas alongside your 80 year old grandmother or your 8 year old son. It has an inherent appeal to almost anyone and it is the kind of game that is sure to see repeat plays in most groups. It may not be the most innovative design of our era, but it is certainly a favorite among many gamers and is definitely worth a look.