Game: Valley of the Vikings

• Publisher: HABA
• Designed by: Marie and Wilfried Fort
• Illustrated by: Maximilian Meinzold
• Ages 6+
• 2-4 players
• 15 minutes

HABA provided a copy of the game for a review. Thank you to HABA for this opportunity.

Shoe Rentals: $2.75 per person

Bowling Alley Cost for one game: $5 per person

Taking a family of five for two games of bowling: $38.75

Valley of the Vikings: Around $30 with multiple plays and fun.

So I used to go bowling a lot. The cost wasn’t bad during college night and it was a great way to relax and not think about the craziness of life.

Jump into the future, marriage, work and kids and bowling has been replaced with choir concerts, soccer games and board games. Costs of games have gone up and getting those chances to go out as a family don’t happen as often.

That is where board games come in, and in this case Valley of the Vikings from HABA.

In Valley of the Vikings, you and your clans are competing for gold and glory through bowling. On your turn you are taking your viking and bowling barrels of different colors in hopes to knock someone into the water.

When a player bowls the barrels, the ones that get knocked over represent the player markers in the game. The player who bowled gets to move the markers closer to the end of the viking dock, in hopes to push someone off and possibly get some loot. Along the dock are random items, such as gold coins and other players. When someone is knocked off, the players whose markers are still on the board get the treasures that they are below. The player knocked off makes their way to the beginning of the dock and gameplay continues until all the coins have been achieved. The player with the most coins is the winner. Huzzah!

Components

The board is like a cute little puzzle that can be put together with ease. I recommend letting the kids have fun with it. The ball is lightweight, but has enough to knock over the nice wooden barrels. The markers for players and tokens are a nice thick cardboard with vibrant colors and characters. The artist gave it a feel of something you could easily take from “How to Train Your Dragon,” and that only adds to the appeal of the game even more.

Now for the best part of the components, the coins and the boats. The coins are a simple large plastic coin that are a bright yellow. The boats are these adorable viking ships that are easy to assemble and need little disassembly to get them back into the box.

I am not surprised at the quality of components in this game. HABA has made some quality components before and the boats are my favorite piece. I want to play with them after the game.

Our Family’s thoughts

Abigail, 13: Well, its an okay game, but I like ones with more strategy to it. There is a little but not much. Its a good kids game that you can mess people up by throwing them overboard. I would try it. Recommendation: Try it.

Beth: This is a game I would pull out when we need a simple family game to just have a good time with. There isn’t much thinking which sometimes is needed! This game definitely has its time and place and that will usually be when we have less than 30 min before bedtime at our table. Go ahead and buy it. Recommendation: BUY IT!

Chris: There is something great about a game that mixes family fun and bowling into a board game. I love the idea that I can rework the knocked down barrels to mess with my opponents even though I know my kids will plot to see me in the water. This is a great filler family game that is worth the purchase. Recommendation: BUY IT!

Daniel, 11: I like it because it involves actually knocking down stuff and i like how you can arrange the barrels how you want so that I’m not the one knocked down. I like knocking my brother or dad in the water. Its a really fun family game. I usually just end up with 2 coins at the end of the game though. Buy it. Recommendation: BUY IT!

Elijah, 8: I like dumping someone in the water and I like knocking the barrels over. I like winning! I would buy it. Recommendation: BUY IT!