OUR REVIEW

Come into my trap!

KAKERLAKAK

Let’s Play exterminator!

It is obviously written in our genes that we are afraid of certain things or think them icky. Spiders, snakes, worms, mice, rats and last but not least cockroaches. Those creepers surely because they are a synonym for dirt, waste and sickness, because a cockroach is a storage vermin of a special kind, and – this is not generally known – with a maximum spiel of 1,5 m/s or 5,4 km/h the Common Cockroach is the fastest crawling insect.

I was very much amused by the fact that somebody picked this animal and created a game for and was very curious to see how that topic would be implemented. Well, you take the invention of an American company, the HEXBUG nano and hand it to a renowned designer by the name of Peter-Paul Joopen and – behold the result:

The traditionally large box from Ravensburger shows a desperate cook on its cover, who is chasing after a cockroach with a kitchen utensil. In the box we are given the opportunity to assemble the game in the tradition of Ikea; luckily, the instructions here are clearer and all the parts are in the box.

You set up traps in all four corners of the box; don’t be afraid, those traps don’t aim to snap at your fingers! Most of the game board is transformed into a labyrinth; the walls of the labyrinth are made up with pieces of cutlery, knives, forks and spoons. The rules give several versions how to set up different labyrinths, but there is room for your own creations, too.

There are two relevant components in the game, one six-sided die and the Hexbug nano. The die shows symbols for knife, for and spoon and question mark, which allows you to choose one of the three cutlery pieces.

The Hexbug nano, from now on going by the name of cockroach, is a vibration, battery-driven item scurrying about on 12 legs, which not only has a close resemblance to the insect but also moves as fast and hectic. You switch it on and put it into the middle of the board/labyrinth.

Due to the vibration the cockroach moves forward until hitting a wall, which causes it to change directions, sometimes quickly, sometimes taking a bit of time. Players in turn roll the die, the result tells you which kind of cutlery element you may turn by 90 degrees; you can choose which of the designated elements you want to rotate. The aim of those rotations is to rotate the wall elements in a way that guides the cockroach into your own trap. The walls click into place easily, which is of tremendous help.

When you managed to entice the cockroach into your own trap you are awarded a chip and the labyrinth is set up again and a new round starts. The game ends when one player wins by accumulating five chips.

Well, that describes the rather simple flow of the game. But what is the essence of the game? The speed in which players advance the game, that is, roll the die. The quicker you roll and rotate the walls the more hectic the game gets and this is exactly what provides fun and entertainment.

Peter-Paul Joopen is known not only to insiders of the gaming community. With Kayanak from Haba and Maskenball der Käfer from Selecta he has proven that he is a master of his trade. His games have won several awards, among them twice Children Game of the Year. With Altamira from Zoch he has tested his abilities also in a game for adults and he is also writing books.

He managed very nicely to integrate this battery-driven insect, which I still deem to be unsellable – but probably there is a market for everything – into a game and in a way that is fun and enchants not only the younger ones.

The cockroach really does remind you of a real insect. On its 12 legs, already mentioned, it scurries over smooth surfaces and changes direction as soon as it meets an obstacle. When it happens that it ends up on its back it straightens itself easily. It can happen that it gets stuck in a corner – all you need to do is give it a little push and it resumes movement.

It can be of excellent use – which is easily imitated by any child (or by each adult with a child still alive within) – to frighten your mom. Simply switch it on and let it loose on the kitchen table or kitchen floor. But please keep in mind that the electronic insects reacts similar to the living one to rolled-up newspapers, books or to being trodden on. It even crunches like the real cockroach and leaves as much dirt. But mopping it up is easier!

The producer is located in Greenville/Texas and offers tracks that can reach the size of a room. The basic marketing idea is to provide a collector’s item that is available in different shapes and colors. In Europe is has not yet penetrated the market. The cockroach contains a AG13/LR44 battery, and Ravensburger has in its wisdom provided a second one for a reserve. Shops offer the battery for 5,99 Euro.

It must of course be mentioned that the game was nominated for Toy Award 2013 on occasion of Spielwarenmesse Nürnberg. Nominations for this award have in past years often be an incentive for retailers to take a closer look at the nominated products.

At the end of my review I can only give one advice: Don’t ever play this slowly or give other players a chance to ponder too long – because this is not how the game works. It thrives on hectic and chaos, and for a chance you can try the version in which you must try to keep the cockroach away from your trap.

Ravensburger and Peter-Paul Joopen have managed to create a really entertaining game that has proven to be as difficult to remove from a games table as its living counterpart from your pantry. If one or more adults ask themselves if this would be a game for them, too – I have observed players who usually play economic or conflict simulation taking several hours to amuse themselves for more than an hour by trying to get the cockroach into their trap!

Kurt Schellenbauer

Players: 2-4

Age: 5+

Time: 20+

Designer: Peter-Paul Joopen

Artist: Janos Jantner, Maximilian Jasionowski

Price: ca. 35 Euro

Publisher: Ravensburger 2013

Web: www.ravensburger.de

Genre: Action, reaction

Users: For families

Special: 2 players

Version: de

Rules: de

In-game text: no

Comments:

Quick and easy access

Fast, hectic game

Short duration

Not only for children

Compares to:

First game of this kind

Other editions:

Currently none

My rating: 7

Kurt Schellenbauer!

Icky, chaotic, hectic and – not to forget – funny, those are terms that come to my mind for this game. I have seen grown-ups who let the cockroach run for more than an hour and had tremendous fun with it!

Chance (pink): 3

Tactic (turquoise): 0

Strategy (blue): 0

Creativity (dark blue): 0

Knowledge (yellow): 0

Memory (orange): 0

Communication (red): 0

Interaction (brown): 3

Dexterity (green): 2

Action (dark green): 3