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Mandala Stones
Mandala Stones is a tile placement game for 2 to 4 players aged and up, and plays in about 30 minutes. I was initially drawn to the game due the bright colors of the tiles and my love for Azul. This looked like a natural fit for some relaxed game play in my home! While I do believe this to be my first Board & Dice purchase, I will be on the lookout for other content.
East of Set Up and Play
I would set aside about an hour for your first play through. While the game is easy to unpack and get on the table, I did require several read throughs of the rules to understand the scoring. The stones are beautiful and it plays like a light combination of checkers and Azul to me. Now that we understand the scoring, future play throughs of Mandala Stones will be a nice family pick up and a great game to play with the multiple generations of gamers we have.
Replayability
As our current home gets prepared for hurricane season, I can see this one being pulled out a lot in the near future. It’s casual and easy to play. While Mandala Stones does have 10 different Objective Cards to change how the final points end up, I don’t see this as a game where I will feel the need to play through all of them to get the full enjoyment out of what is offered. That being said, Mandala Stones really comes down to the last few rounds of play and the final points of the objective cards to determine a winner!
RELATED: Check out our review for Azul!
Artwork
The designs on the stones are simple and beautiful. While the stones only come in two designs on four colors, it does appear some thought went into the contrast of the colors they used to allow those experiencing color blindness some differentiation. I appreciate the uncomplicated look of Mandala Stones.
Enjoyment Level
The three of us enjoyed our experience with Mandala Stones. It was a nice and relaxing game to play at the end of the night. I personally enjoyed that there was more than one “right” move and that you could correct mistakes with future play. This make for a low stress game experience for my family!
“…Mandala Stones really comes down to the last few rounds of play and the final points of the objective cards to determine a winner!”
Overall
Mandala Stones is a great game to play with those who enjoy a more lighthearted game style with a less complicated rule set. This is a game that could easily be played at a table during a family event or holiday party, as it won’t take too much focus away from the events at hand. It would also be quite easy for a younger player to team up with an adult or teen so they are able to join in on the fun!
