At the end of the day, I just like playing with toys. It’s that core concept that keeps pulling my attention back to dexterity games, and no company in hobby board gaming does dexterity games quite like Itten games. I’ve previously talked about Tokyo Highway, and today’s review I’m covering designer Naotaka Shimamoto’s follow-up, Crash Octopus
First thing I want to speak of, is the cost. It’s not something I generally talk about when I review a game, but in times where the cost is exceptional, it’s worth commenting on. Crash Octopus launched on Kickstarter for about $30 (CDN), plus $15 shipping. Since the Kickstarter, I’ve only seen it for sale on Board Game Bliss for an eye watering $70+ shipping. So when it popped up on Marketplace for $25, I jumped on the opportunity. And talking with the fellow who I bought it from, there was significant interest in the game.
I didn’t expect just how small the box was going to be. At $70, I expected so much more. While the box was packed well (unlike Tokyo Highway‘s large, mostly empty box), there was still some dissonance between the product I held in my hands, and the perceived value. If I had paid $70 for this box, I would have felt ripped off. There is a discussion to be had about how to value a game, how the cost of the game is more than the physical production. The time and effort of everyone involved with a project deserve to be fairly compensated, but I can’t shake the feeling of holding a small box and mentally figuring out how many hours I have to work to pay for the game.
Enough about economics. Let’s talk Crash Octopus. Aesthetically, Crash Octopus manages to evoke an incredible about of theme from a vibrant pink half dome and 8 wiggly tentacles. The boats are simple and effective, and the treasures you’re trying to collect are suitably eclectic. Itten knows how to utilize simplicity and minimalism to great effect to create a great looking game. Crash Octopus is vibrant and exudes charm and fun.
The game is contained within a blue string, with a line of white and black beads. The gameplay is simple, on your turn you either flick a treasure at your boat, or flick your anchor to reposition your boat. If you flick treasure and touch your boat, you get to load that treasure onto your boat. The first to collect all 5 different types of treasure is the winner. Every time someone loads treasure, a pink crab moves one bead forward. When it passes a black bead, an octopus attack occurs. Each player drops the dice on top of the octopus head, then, moving either a tentacle or the octopus head itself, depending on the die roll. Should that die manage to crash into any boat and send treasure skittering back onto the table, the octopus attack ends. The game continues until either the crab has stepped over all the beads, or, one player has collected all 5 treasure types.
My biggest criticism with Tokyo Highway, and most dexterity games in general, is that if players are sufficiently skilled, the game can last forever. Tokyo Highway in particular comes to a grinding halt as soon as one player makes a mistake, and is tasked with meticulously rebuilding the city before play can continue. Crash Octopus‘s game timer (the crab and the beads) keeps the game short. I can’t tell you how often I had 4 treasures on my boat, only to get bumped by the dice and my hard-earned treasures knocked off the boat, effectively undoing several turns of effort. The visual representation of how many treasures are left to be loaded makes Crash Octopus feel quick and breezy, for which I’m thankful.
The dexterity itself is fickle. You flick the treasures with a little flag, and some of the treasures are awful shapes for flicking. Like the goblet, which is a cone shape and has a tendency to roll in the exact wrong direction. Or the stick, which somehow always seems to be pointing at the wrong angle towards your ship, making a direct flick nigh impossible. The pieces are all delightfully challenging in their own way, and it’s hilarious when someone mis-judges their flick strength and sends their treasure crashing into their hull, scattering everything else.
Speaking of flicking, it’s kind of satisfying that you have to use a little flag to do all your flicking instead of your finger. Using a foreign tool flattens the play field right off the bat, rather than having your Crokinole expert friend having an advantage right off the bat. The flags are stiff and are fun to use, and like everything else that Itten makes, is well crafted.
Flicking bits of wood is a simple pleasure, and Crash Octopus is a quintessential example of a good dexterity game. A little push your luck, some space for the hail-mary clear across the table shot that gets everyone shouting and standing in their chair when you manage to land it, and some delightful spite when you use octopus to attack to knock your opponents hard earned treasures back into the ocean. Also, the instant karma when you accidentally smash your own ship with the die. It’s so simple, so pure, and so much fun.
