Easy to make PnP ‘has game’ too

So I do find the idea of print ’n’ play games fascinating as a general comment.

To see some of the truly outstanding game creation designers come up with only to give them away for players to enjoy for the price of some printing ink and time is just plain cool.

A subset of gaming in general, one which seems to have growing interest, is nanogames, games which as small and highly portable.

While sadly not part of the culture in Yorkton, there is a growing community of board gamers who rarely seem to leave home without a game in their briefcase, backpack, or pocket. They are often games with simple rules to teach, which play quickly, meaning they can be pulled out and shared over lunch, or coffee, or as a quick filler game at one of the games-based coffee shops which also seem to be springing up.

Over at www.boardgamegeek.com there has been a contest going on for nanogame game design, one where the heart of the game is to be nine playing-sized cards.

I reviewed one of the entries which caught my eye last week, and am back this week with Kokono (Japanese for nine) by Mark Tucker.

In this case the cards are two-sided, and are laid out in a three-by-three pattern to create the playing board.

Kokono is a two-player game of strategy and luck. Be the first player to get three pieces from your base into your opponent’s base across an ever changing board.

The board changes because the individual cards may be flipped as part of game play, to open up, or seal off, the paths to players’ bases.

Tucker, in designing the game has tried to ensure fairness in the starting stage of the game, not always easy in a quick game.

Black shuffles the nine cards (reversing and turning some whilst doing so). White turns the deck over and deals out the cards to form a 3 x 3 playing board. The cards must be placed in a specific lay-out order. Cards may not be rotated while placing them.

Players place their three pieces together in their base.

Compare the number of black to white Spots shown on the cards. Whichever player’s colour has the least goes first. They take three dice. Their opponent takes the remaining die.

The cards each show a number, which is their flip value, a critical aspect of the game.

Again straight from the rules; on a turn the player rolls three dice. Choose the combined score of two of the dice as your Flip score. The remaining die score represents the current Strength of each of your pieces in play, and stays with the player until their next turn when it is re-rolled.

Flipping is used to open up paths to adjacent cards or an opponent’s base. It can also be used to seal off paths. Flipping will change the Spot colour from black to white and vice versa.

To flip a card its Flip value must match your Flip score. The card must be occupied by, or be adjacent to a card occupied by one of your pieces. If you have a piece in your base you may flip a card on your first row.

A Flip score of 2 or 12 allows you to flip any card that is occupied by, or adjacent to a card occupied by, one of your pieces.

If you roll three of the same number, you may flip any card irrespective of where your pieces are placed.

When flipping, you may rotate the card before placing it.

Any piece occupying the card (whether yours or your opponents) remains on the card’s Spot once flipped.

Movement is even simpler. On each turn you may move one of your pieces along an open path:

a) from your base to a Spot on any card in the first row

b) to the Spot of an orthogonally adjacent card

c) from the last row into your opponent’s base.

And then the neat feature of capture. You may move one of your pieces onto a Spot occupied by your opponent if your current Strength score is greater than theirs. Each player adds one to their piece’s Strength score if it occupies a Spot of its own colour before the move. Pieces moving from their base do not add this bonus.

Return the defeated piece to its base.

Simple rules but lots of choice, and the randomness of the dice rolls actually helps this game.

For a game with its basic simplicity, based on the contest guidelines, Tucker has added some great flavour.

“Kokono is first recorded being played at the Japanese Imperial Court in the 10th century. By the 15th century it had become popular among the general public,” begins the ruleset.

“During Japan’s feudal period it was often played as a means of settling arguments and petty disputes. Due to element of luck involved, players were known to make offerings to the Seven Gods of Fortune (Shichi Fukujin) before an important encounter.” The game was traditionally played with Go pieces on a playing board of nine wooden tiles. On the sets of the wealthy, the spots on the tiles would commonly be inlaid with ebony and ivory.”

Kokono simply works, and as a quick game for the camper or cabin this summer is certainly worth the effort to create.