| Recommended Age: | 5+ |
| Our Recommended Age: | 3+ |
| Players: | 2-4 |
| Cost: | $24.99 |
| Play Time: | 15 minutes |
| Company Site: | www.publishing.brain-games.com |
| Contents: | 2 colored dice, 6 predatory fish (in 3 different sizes), 16 small fish (in 4 different colors), Game board, Illustrated rules |
Brain Games is behind this cute game of fish survival. Keep your fish from being eaten while directing them and other fish to the safety of the reef…but also in the path of the various hungry sharks! Be the last fish swimming or the first to the reef to win!
This game may be a bit to easy for my kids at ages 7 and 9 but they do love it still. It is recommended for ages 5 and up but our 3 year old nephew could play with a little bit of help. There is no reading and only a little strategy but most of the turn is decided on the roll of the dice and options available to the roller.
The box is a standard lift top lid with an insert that is basically a slot the length of the box and fits all the chipboard fish and sharks and the dice, which are wooden loose in the middle. Not the best use of space but the game board does need to fit as well and the box doesn’t dictate the game.
The pieces are all very well made and artwork is a cute combination of adorable, funny and slightly ferocious. You can get a sense for each sharks personality which is cute, but the fish are all the same except for color. This is actually ok since some of those fish won’t make it during the game…my fish almost never do when I play but my kids are evil. Now let’s see how to play.
Objective:
Be the first to get a fish safely to the reef or be the last fish swimming to win!
“]Setup:
Put the game board where everyone can reach it and see it. Choose a color of fish out of the four, Red, Blue, Yellow or Green and put the Circle Fish Identifier (that is what we call it) in front of you so you and everyone else knows your fish color. If you are playing with younger kids or want the game to go faster play with 2-3 fish instead of all four.
Add the predators to the board on side with the Reef. Choose 3 of the 6 but keep in mind the longer ones make it more challenging and you CAN make it harder by playing with 4 sharks. We don’t but we tend to use the larger ones when not playing with my nephew.
Now starting with the youngest player place your fish on the board on the far left. The first fish you place has to be in the column to the right, which is closest to the sharks of course but after everyone places their first fish the rest can go anywhere in those two columns. Once players are done if there are less than 4 add the rest of the fish to the board as well. Just the same amount as you are playing with so all colors are fairly represented. Youngest player goes first!
Play:
On your turn roll both dice and then move fish and/or predators based on your roll. Predators move first, always but they can only move forward, up or down and when a Predator moves into a space with a small fish that fish gets eaten and is out of the game. No fish can move backwards or diagonally.
Only YOUR fish can move forward, up or down but if you roll and have to move a fish that is not yours it can only move forward. A roll is ignored if a small fish cannot move due to being blocked by other fish or predators. Otherwise you have to move based on your roll. If for some reason you cannot move any fish or predator based on your roll then choose any small fish and move it forward one space.
Winning:
When a small fish gets to the coral reef that player wins the game! Huzzah! You can also win if you are the only color of fish that wasn’t eaten by the predators.
There isn’t a lot to game play which is great for kids but it is still challenging enough for older kids and can keep parents engaged as well. Especially when we have to play it over and over…and over and over. If you have younger kids it will help with learning or reinforcing colors, taking turns, directions and even a little about the food chain but in a not so scary way. Reef Route is a super cute and fun game, perfect for family game night, homeschool or just for a fun game to play.
Show us your best shark impression! @MyGeeklings #ReefRoute @BrainGames_Int
