Video Review: Dungeons & Dragons - Castle Ravenloft

Our very first video review! Andrew, Brenda, and Darren tell you all about the Dungeons & Dragons board game, "Castle Ravenloft."

Board Game Review - "Lego Games' Pirate Plank"!

I wanna start by saying I have been calling for a Lego board game series for like six years now. ALL TOYS should be made out of Legos, it should just work that way. A full on fantasy pen-and-paper Lego RPG would CHANGE THE WORLD.

ANYWAY, about a year ago, Lego premiered a line of very creative and high quality family board games, one of the latest of which is the very clever Pirate Plank. It's rated for 7 yrs. and up, 2-4 players, and takes about 10-20 minutes. Basically, you play as a pirate, rolling the die to move your fellow pirates closer and closer to their sharky doom, while avoiding your own imminent demise.

Die, you say? LEGO DIE? Yes, a build-it-yourself Lego die! All these new Lego games have one, and if you're into unique Lego elements, the die is worth the price of admission all by itself. But that's not all - have you seen the MICROFIGS?! Wee Lego pirates in giant hats, it just keeps getting better! I am first and foremost a total Lego whore, and as a $15 building set, it's worth every penny.


But, Andrew - it's a game, right? Umm, oh yeah! The idea is each player has a pool of movement tokens, and on your turn you roll the die, placing enemy movement tokens on the empty faces. Then, whenever someone rolls your movement token, they can force you forward, and eventually off the plank. It's a simple, but well executed idea that leads to a very fast-paced game. I'd suggest playing with 3-4 players; with two, maybe have each player control two pirates. As is, it's a great time for family game night, but the JOY of playing a Lego game comes from building your own rules; the rulebook even suggests variants to spice up the gameplay.

So, final thoughts - it's obviously meant for the younger audience, but if you are looking for a great game that you can play with the young ones, but still actually enjoy yourself, this, like so many of the other Lego games, is a great, very affordable choice. Highly recommended!


(Thanks a bundle to Brenda for the wonderful pictures!)