Pyramid of Pengqueen
Designer: Marcel-André Casasola Merkle // Publisher: Brain Games// Ages: 8+
For the longest time we have been looking for a kids game named Pyramid (aka Fluch der Mumie). It was first published in 2008, but quickly went out of print and became very difficult to find. Luckily our patience paid off as Brain Games bought the rights to the game and redesigned it in their Ice Cool penguin-themed universe of games. We couldn’t wait to get our hands on it, so much so that we asked a friend to pick it up at a convention earlier this year, before it officially released to stores (which should be very very soon).
Pyramid of Pengqueen is a one-versus-many game, where one player plays the Pengqueen Mummy, hunting down the other players as they try to steal treasures from your frozen pyramid.
Gameplay Overview: Roll and Move, Collect Treasure, Don’t get Caught
Game play is simple. It’s essentially a roll-and-move, but with several dice using a Yahtzee mechanic. You can roll your handful of dice and choose which one to use. If you don’t like the choices you can roll them again, up to 3 total rolls. However, one side of the die has a mummy face, which when rolled causes you to lose that dice to the Mummy player, granting them an extra movement on their turn. So, there is a little bit of risk in using extra rolls. If you lose too many dice, you can always ask for them back, granting the Mummy player and extra movement for each die returned to the players. So you have to be sure you are far away before asking for them back.
At the beginning of the game you receive a number of treasure cards with images matching spots on the game board. You must land on each item to collect it, then announce what you have just collected (giving the mummy their only clue to find you). If you get caught, you lose 1 of your 3 lives and start again at the pyramid entrance again. Collect all your treasure items to win. Unless the Mummy player catches you too many times (the amount of times the mummy has to catch players depends on how many people are playing).
Gameplay is simple enough, right? Like a game of capture the flag. Here is the interesting part, the game board is standing vertically so that the mummy player is on one side and all treasure hunters on the other. Each player piece is a magnet that sticks to the vertical board. The mummy player can only see and move their own piece on their side of the board. The mummy cannot see where the other players are until the mummy lands on their spot and the magnetic pieces stick together. The treasure hunters move their pieces on their side of the board, but they can also see the mummy move around on their side (via the magnets), so only they know how close the mummy is getting to them.
Impressions
Theme & Components: The art style is fun and vibrant. Although the idea of a mummy chasing you around can be scary, the cute artwork keeps it from being too scary for younger kids. My 4 year old is scared of a lot of things, but isn’t afraid of the artwork here. The cat & mouse theme with mummy and treasure hunters works wonderfully. In fact, it is the theme that engages the kids the most. The nail-biting suspense and tension as the mummy gets closer translates very well into strong emotional responses. The strong emotions keep them fully engaged throughout the whole game and results in constant requests to play it again.
Age Range: Because it is a one versus many, the age range is very flexible with one grownup around. Our 6 year old plays easily independently, and even plays the role of the mummy. Our 4 year old plays well as a treasure hunter with another treasure hunter providing some guidance. This is one of the rare games I have seen both of them pull out and play without us around.
Strategy/Luck: Dice games always have luck, but the Yahtzee mechanic of re-rolling and losing dice mitigates the luck and adds some strategy to rolling. Using your dice wisely is very important. You don’t want to give the mummy player too many dice because they will be able to move further and get closer to you. The game provides a good amount of push your luck and teaches the consequences of risk. We also find that a lot of counting occurs throughout the game to keep track of how many spaces you need to get to your treasure, and how many spaces away is the mummy, and does the mummy have enough movement dice to reach you. We found that for young ages like 4-6 years old, it was great practice for simple addition. Also, developing a spatial understanding is key to winning. You may not want to go to the item closest to you because it would be easier to get caught, instead go to the furthest item and make the mummy chase you across the whole board.
Duration: Gameplay length can be easily modified by determining how many treasures the players must collect, giving you the option for a quick game with players with shorter attention spans.
Player Interaction: The mummy player will feel separated from the rest, but listening skills are key here. Paying attention to what the other players are doing and discussing will assist in finding them. On the other side, treasure hunter players will constantly be discussing strategy of what item to go for next in ways to draw the mummy player away from them.
Verdict: Suspenseful game play keeps them wanting more
Pyramid of Pengqueen provides an emotion-filled experience of tension and accomplishments. The balance of cooperative and competitive play keeps everyone involved and constantly deep in strategy. It works wonderfully for a group of players of varying ages to play together. It even works extremely well for a group of grown ups to play without the kids. We have been waiting a long time for this one and now it’s finally here … and here to stay.
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* Pyramid of Pengqueen is a soon to be released game (as of the posting of this article). If your store does not have it, ask them to contact Luma Games, the exclusive Canadian distributor of Brain Games.