Game review and criticism, test

Welcome to Clearwater High School. Shifter kids live here. They can transform from animals to humans. Whether a spider, ant, wolf or puma. In the world of author Katia Brandis, some people are not what they seem. The “Woodwalkers” book series is now such a strong brand that it has been made into a movie. It's the fall of 2024. If the subject matter is right for a board game to make it work, game designer Kai Haverkamp is not far behind. He is known to have a talent for turning literature into a game. The result is Woodwalkers – The Game (Magellan).

What makes Woodwalkers – The Game special?

The first thing I noticed about Woodwalkers – The Game: a large, heavy box. In order not to be mistaken, the cover apparently corresponds to the first volume of the book series. The weight comes from the game board, which when opened fills a regular table quite well. Things get cramped on the kitchen table. It’s printed on both sides. The game instructions are also great. But it lies nicely in the hand. Katja Brandis herself welcomes the readers on the first page of the base and introduces us to Link to their fan page with.

What is the game about?

The theme of Woodwalkers – The game is combat and survival at Clearwater High. Anyone who knows the books certainly knows what's coming. Duels between animals.

If you want to play, you will get your own set of cards and tiles with different animals. The cards also have the names of the animals (not the names of the animals, of course). The most popular ones are Karag, Holly or Brandon. You can also see the power values ​​there and on the tiles of the interesting animals for the combat mode.

Combat and discovery in Woodwalkers – The Game

Before each round, everyone chooses one of three squares for open combat mode. Now everyone knows who they should send into the ring in the current round. When strength is required, a squirrel would do well to take cover when confronting a bison. But it's not just about fighting, it's also about discovery. There are many things hidden under the hidden jungle tiles on the playing field that always bring advantages.

defend the flag court

You move one animal across the board using a die. Either to discover (e.g. medicine or dot tiles) or to research and duel. During duels, the values ​​in the category are compared in the current battle mode. The template value is added to this. The higher value wins. In the event of a tie, the challenger wins. There are two points to this. If you lose, you have to go back to the beginning and collect the Wound Tile (for the medicine). To provide an incentive for duels, there are flag tiles with higher values. Anyone who was able to defend such a tile until the end of the game could count it in the final score. Whoever has the most points wins Woodwalkers – The Game.

Attractive night mode on the back

On the other side of the gamepad, Night Mode is a little more mysterious. Here the animals are drawn face down and are only exposed for duels. Anyone who was able to remember the opponent's animals got an extra point if they could name the correct animal when attacking them.

Woodwalkers – game and fun

Even if you don't know the books, you have a simple and fun family game. The rule should also be read through examples. During the duel you ask yourself: Will the dice be thrown again for the duel or not? Only in the example it happens as in Wood Walkers – The Duel The obvious answer is yes. Not everyone reads the fine print. The size of the game board contributes to the atmosphere of the game. When playing with four players, one person plays from the side unless the table is round.

But please don’t let that put you off. Anyone who is a fan of the book series will enjoy Woodwalkes – The Game. I’m currently reading the third volume with my toddler and am once again amazed at how author Kai Haverkamp has managed to turn the books into games. Woodwalker fans will say – nutty!