PLAYED FOR YOU

Puzzle of Oz

Defeat coincidence

A wooden board shows 25 dented squares, arranged in a cross. 25 lens-shaped pieces in five colors - blue, green, orange, white and black - are put into the bag. In a game for two each player is assigned two colors, black in this case is a neutral color. In the solitaire game as well as in a game for two in each turn you draw one piece from the bag and put it on the board. In the first four turns the four corner squares are filled, then in each turn you must place the new piece next to another already on the board; either horizontally, vertically or diagonally. Pieces of the same color can never be placed next to each other, neither horizontally, vertically or diagonally. When a piece cannot be placed in compliance with this rule, in a game of two players the owner of the color has lost the game, regardless of who did draw the piece. If the piece that cannot be placed happens to black you lose the game if you drew it from the bag. When all pieces could be placed, you win in a game for two players if you placed the last piece.

If you would like to play several rounds, the winner of a game scores one point for each piece on the board, regardless of its color, and you win, if you are first to reach or top a total of 61 points.

Puzzle of Oz is an elegant fast game that has all the makings to become a classic; it has very simple rules, to be exact, it has only one rule, and is nonetheless a tantalizing challenge in a solitaire game as well as in a game for two. Can you place all pieces and defeat coincidence? Should you try to count pieces and try to assess probabilities? Shall we play again?

Players: 1-2

Age: 8+

Time: 10+

Designer: David Parlett

Art: Christine Conrad

Price: ca. 40 Euro

Publisher: Pegasus Spiele 2012

Web: www.pegasus.de

Genre: Abstract placement game

Users: For families

Special: 1 player

Special: 2 players

Version: multi

Rules: de en

In-game text: no

Comments:

Two editions

Wooden components

Only one rule

Good solitaire game

Compares to:

All abstract placement games with color rules

Other editions:

Puzzle of Oz, Gerhards Spiel und Design 2012

Chance (pink): 3

Tactic (turquoise): 3

Strategy (blue): 0

Creativity (dark blue): 0

Knowledge (yellow): 0

Memory (orange): 0

Communication (red): 0

Interaction (brown): 3

Dexterity (green): 0

Action (dark green): 0