A few years ago, I reviewed the game Affenraffen. In it, I stated, "The game does not require much brainpower at all to play. There are very few strategic decisions, and those with a good memory, keen eye, and quick hand are going to do better. That being said, everyone I have played the game with enjoys it tremendously. It’s not our favorite game, and it grows tiresome after two or three repeated plays, but it is an excellent filler."
I could almost repeat the same thing about Beetlez (daVinci Games and Mayfair Games, 2005 - Eligio Cazzato). Both Beetlez and Affenraffen involve all players flipping over tiles at the same time, frantically searching.
Beetlez isn't a perfect game, although it's better with the maximum players (six). It's light and is a game of speed and quick recognition. There can be a serious error in the game (especially with fewer players), but the tiles are of high quality, and every game I've played in has resulted in great fun. Not a game that I'd want to play continuously, but definitely fun for a "filler".
There are one-hundred tiles in the game - each with a refrigerator on one side, and either food (fish, sandwich, French fries, steak, cake, chocolate, or lettuce), a light bulb, or another refrigerator pictured on the other side. The tiles with refrigerators on both sides are known as "safety" tiles, and a number of them are used in the game equal to one less the number of players. All of the tiles are then mixed up and placed in a huge pile in the middle of the table with the refrigerator side up. Six "Spotted" cards are shuffled and placed near the table along with a "Greedy" card. A pile of "Taste" cards is shuffled, and one is dealt face down to each player. The first round is ready to begin.
Players are all cockroaches who are searching for food in the darkness. Each player quickly looks at their "Taste" card. It shows them which food is worth two points for them, which two foods are worth one point, and which food is worth negative two points. Players then simultaneously search through the pile of tiles in the middle of the table, flipping them over with one hand only. They can then either take the tile, placing it face down in front of themselves, or turn it back over and continue searching. If at any time a player turns over one of the four "light" cards, they must yell "light!" (placing the light bulb tile in front of themselves). All players must then hide from the light, finding a safety tile. When a player finds one of these tiles, they place in front of themselves, shouting "safe"! The player who does not find a safety tile must draw one random Spotted card and place it in front of them (each Spotted card is worth negative two to four points).
The Safety tiles are placed back in the center of the table, mixed up with the remaining tiles, and another round begins. After three rounds have ended, players turn over their tiles, and add up their scores. Each food tile is equal to the points shown on their Taste card, with each light tile also giving two points. The player who has the most tiles gets the Greedy card, which is worth negative four points, and that and the Spotted cards are also factored into players' scores. All players then sum up their scores, and the player with the most points is the winner!
Some comments on the game…
1.) Components: In a game like this, with players' thick fingers pawing at tiles, it's very important that the tiles are of good quality, and they are. Each tile has clear pictures on both sides, with white backgrounds, allowing them to take a decent amount of abuse (they do in my groups). A few blank tiles are included for house rules or lost tiles, and all tiles fit inside a nice drawstring bag included with the game. The cards are small, but really don't matter, since players only can look at them once during the game. The artwork on the cards and box depicts a beetle that looks like it's playing Yellow Submarine - thus resulting in a double pun. Everything fits easily into a smallish orange box.
2.) Rules: The rules come on two sides of a small sheet of paper, which has a lot of pictures of the contents on it, leaving little space for rules. That's because the game is so simple that more rules really aren't necessary. The game can (and has been) be explained in thirty seconds, and players immediately catch on to what they are supposed to do.
3.) Speed and Fun Factor: How do you know if you'll like this game? Simple - if you don't mind a game where all the players are excitedly snatching tiles as fast as they can, flipping them with a speedy ferocity, then the chances of you liking this game are high. Folks who want slower, deliberate games should run for the hills; this game will drive them absolutely mad. I personally don't usually like speed games, but this one is fair enough to all players involved (a super fast player won't do TOO much better than the other players) that I can enjoy it.
4.) Points: The point system seems a little skewed, with Spotted cards not being as dreadful as they might seem. If a Spotted card is only two to four negative points, then when a player draws a "light" card, why shouldn't I just ignore it and grab as many food tiles as I can? There's even a chance I might come out ahead!! In our group, we made a house rule that you MUST look for a Safety tile and can't keep any food once the light is turned on.
5.) Problem: If one player has fish as their two-point food, and the other three have fish as the food they cannot take, then the game will become unbalanced, because that player is the only one grabbing all the fish. Yes, this has a decent chance of not happening; but in a three player game, it's very possible for two players to have similar cards, and the third player to have an inherent advantage. This isn't a big deal, but people who like games that are fair and balanced will go nuts.
6.) Age group: While the game works with adults - and I've used it successfully there, it really only is a passing fancy and is something to be played before a "real" game. With youth, however, the game becomes much more interesting, and they will treat it as the most serious games they've ever played, yet laughing and turning over tiles with a maddening hilarity.
I think Beetlez is best played with teenagers or even younger children - something that they can have a lot of fun doing, without worrying about any inherent unbalances in the game. Adults can play the game as well, but I'm not sure that it would be worth it to pick up a game that you'll only play for five or ten minutes every odd gaming session. However, if you work with children and want a game that they'll have a blast playing, then the size, price, and fun of Beetlez makes it a game that will work great with them!
Tom Vasel
"Real men play board games"
www.tomvasel.com
