Game Review

Concept:

Place a piece to surround or "outflank" your opponents pieces, then flip the captured pieces to be your color.

Gameplay:

The board starts with four pieces in the center alternating black and white. (See the picture at the top of this page.)

In turn, each player places one piece with their color face up onto the board. To place a piece, you must "outflank" your opponent, this means your opponent's row is bordered at each end by a piece of your color.

Once outflanked, all pieces of your opponents color between your "border" are flipped to become your color.

The game ends when neither player can place any pieces.

Winning Conditions:

• The player who has the their color on the most pieces at the end of the game wins.

Our Opinion:

Othello is a heavy-thought strategy game. The premise and basic rules are very simple, but the best strategy is learned -- luck seldom enters into it.

Othello is a good game for people who like the strategic thinking of chess without the cumbersome piece movement rules. The Baronness and I found it very cerebral and a good quiet game. There really isn't a lot of adrenaline involved in the play of this game, as the player who appears to be in the lead can suddenly lose control of most of the pieces on the board in one play by his/her opponent.

Additionally, Othello is a good two player game that does not take hours to play. It is short, yet strategy filled the entire time. If you like chess, definitely look into getting this game.

Where to buy:

Any local toy store -- Our copy was from a Target and cost about $10.