Smart Zone Games Tatsu Board Game

If you like backgammon or parcheesi you may like this game.All-in-all, the game play is quite good as you roll dice to determine your potential moves to remove or capture your opponents pieces. The variable tile powers (entangle, wash, destroy) are interesting as you will may need to think of the best possible way to control your opponents options. Should you entangle (limit movement) your opponent's dragon, wash (temporarily remove it from play) it away, or try to avoid it entirely for other options? I also enjoy that this isn't strictly roll-and-move. You have choices of which pieces you move. While the dice add a random aspect to the game you can still apply strategy to the results as the dice are resolved individually rather than combined together.I also like that there are variable win criteria. You can win by destroying all of your opponents pieces of a single color or by removing all of your opponents pieces from the board (regardless of color).I think the theme of the game is good. When I play with my kids they really get into the idea of dragons battling each other. When playing with adults this has an "old" game feel in that you're metaphorically controlling dragons somewhat like chess is two armies combating one another.The board is sturdy and design looks good as two dragon symbols intertwine and provide direction of play. The tiles are good quality and feel substantial enough to last a long time.I've watched online reviews of this game in which the reviewer complained about the box for storage as you had to put the pieces back into the box as displayed or it would fall apart. I think this can be solved by turning the clear plastic piece upside down over the black plastic piece to create a cover and tray for the board. I agree it's not the best option for storage as the box is open on top (exposure for scratching or potential water damage), but it's good enough.

Let me explain... this is a great game. My wife loves it, it has a great feel to the titles, it looks great and its easy to learn. The instructions were clear ( a pet peeve of mine) and it doesn't have to be a long play time. I give this a 4 stars because I can't give it a 4.5. This game play isn't strategy first, luck second. It's luck first and then strategy. You roll the dice and then you can decide how you want to move your pieces. It isn't terrible, but it all in all, but for me personally it kind of kills part of the game for me because my strategy is more based on the luck of the dice. My wife absolutely loves the game, and I don't hate it, it's just not as skill based as I would really like.

The game itself is great. I bought it as a Christmas gift for a friend of mine who loves dragons. BUT the cool packaging you see with the dragon artwork isn't what you're going to get. It comes in a very drab poopy looking game box and it's kinda just disappointing compared to the other cool 3 fighting elemental dragonsEdit: upon playing the game we discovered that the included dice are incredibly poor and extremely weighted. We needed to switch to some chessex dice we had around to actually play the game.

I was very surprised to see that the game came with a new and very welcomed packaging. The previous plastic box version shown in the product images looked like a nightmare to use over and over again. Every item in the game is high quality and will clearly last a long time.If you are a fan of backgammon this is a must buy. It takes the antiquated game to the next level.

His other game, Hive, is way better, but this is relatively fun and was quick to learn. Lacks the elegant design of Hive though.

Fun game for two people. Great to for pandemic quarantine - break away from checkers and standard card games and challenge yourself and your gaming partner.

Great game that is not too difficult to learn and doesn't take long to play. The quality of the board and game pieces is fantastic. The box it comes in is horrible, but that doesn't take away from the enjoyment of playing the game.

Borrowed the game for months, then decided to purchase a copy. Box is better without the plastic display, and small enough for us to toss into a backpack and take with us. For those who enjoy a chess-backgammon type game, try this. Time to play depends -- we've played 15 minute and 2-hour games.