Memory training exponentially

We are living in a world of rethinking old works, so we are not surprised by the motion movie based on the worthily popular Tetris game, and it is a common phenomenon as a fantasy novel from the ‘90s is adapted into the outstanding video game Witcher. So it is obvious when one the most popular mini-games of the recent years is adapted into a board game, as it has happened in the case of 2048.

LET’S THINK THIS THROUGH: 2048 - THE BOARD GAME. SUCH A WONDERFUL IDEA! OR IS IT?

At first glance it seems that the developers tried to be sure, like they were trying to milk the popular original once again. The question comes up: how can we create a multiplayer board game from a game that typically serves the purpose of a single player time killer on long bus travels and boring lectures? For example, by transforming the game’s basic idea into a two-player (or more) memory card game.

Memory cards are specifically for children, they are skilled in them and they mostly also enjoy it more than the adults do. If you were thinking that you are good at it, then challenge your six-year-old niece or boy from the neighborhood for a party of memory cards, and you can be sure that they beat you easily.

But if you challenge them for a 2048 game, then you will... no, I won’t fool you: they will still defeat you in a glance, but you will surely enjoy the loss. And if you train enough with the clunky adults like you, then it will be possible that maybe you can win against the niece/neighbor boy once or twice in a blue moon.

Because 2048 - The Board Game is a totally okay piece of work. The board game version twists the original’s idea about the exponential numbers just as much as it doesn’t kill its essence, but it still offers a quite different game.

The box, the board and the cards are designed to resemble the original game, which means that even the printed version looks nice. The rules differ from the original in the case if two players by the following:

According to the rules, some cards are to be taken back into the box, then every player gets their own set from 4 to 2048 which they must hold in hand or in front of themselves, but they must ensure that this hand doesn’t get mixed up with their other deck.

The Rules

At the beginning, there are only twos and fours on the board. The starter player takes a look at a card (it shall be a two or a four), puts it back and takes another one. If these two cards show the same numbers, then they take them up and put their sum from their hand on the board on one of the two empty tiles - then it’s the other player’s turn. If a player finds a pair that’s sum he has already put down, then they can take that pair, too, and fill the empty spaces up with randomly drawn cards. The first player putting the 2048 card on the board wins. As the deck runs out before any player has put down the 2048, then the player with more pairs wins.

The pairs are to be piled up in front of the players face down in a way that the other player couldn’t guess their amount. It is worth to pay attention to our opponent’s reactions and what they take up and when, and whether they put anything into its place from their hand or from the drawing deck.

Hint: We can shuffle the cards in our hand, so it will be more difficult for the opponent to keep our progress in mind.

Luck also has an important role in the game because of the randomly drawn cards, so it is possible that a player gets advantage from Fortuna’s grace. We don’t recommend it to those who cannot stand those turns, or those who are terrified by Math.

The game cannot only be played by two players, but also three or four. The difference is that in the case of three players less cards are to be taken back to the box, and none in a four-player game.

It is an extra pleasure that the board game is developed in Hungary, and its Kickstarter project will begin soon, by which all its supporters can get their own copy. The year 2016 has been generous to the Hungarian developers so far, as the campaign of Ave Roma and Saltlands concluded successfully, and Anachrony even reached the sixfold its goals. We hope that 2048 - The Board Game will also be one of the successful projects, and it has every chance for it, as long as the world of internet is ready for a board game adaptation of 2048.

It is a small thing, but... I know that I only have a test version, but I struggled a lot to successfully store it, because the components have hardly any room in the box. Both the game and the customers deserve a larger box, or even a good insert.

Verdict:

2048 - The Board Game is certainly a good choice if you like memory card games and the original 2048 game. But it is still a good deal if you are looking for a simple, short and easily learnable two-player game.

- KralleKralle

(Translation Gergely Lajtai-Szabo)