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Description
Kohaku is a peaceful koi-pond-building, tile-laying game. Each turn, players will draft both a Koi and Feature tile from the central pond board to place into their personal koi pond.
Score points by surrounding flowers with koi containing matching colors, placing frogs next to koi tiles that have dragonflies, and ensuring that baby koi have a safe place to hide by placing them near rocks.
Butterflies score based on line of sight, so make sure to line them up with similar-colored koi. Turtles and statues bring a sense of balance to your pond and score points more easily, but sometimes aren’t as valuable as some of the other features.
You must carefully plan the placement of your tiles, because once they are in your pond, they can’t be moved! With no restrictions on the shape of your pond, you can build a unique layout to maximize your koi pond’s appeal.
After there are no koi tiles available to refill the central pond board, the game ends. Players will total the points scored by each feature in their pond. The player with the most points wins.
—description from the publisher
Year Published
2020
Transcript Analysis
Browse transcript mentions, sentiments, pros/cons, mechanics, topics, quotes, and references.
Total mentions: 5
This page: 5
Sentiment:
pos 3 ·
mix 0 ·
neu 1 ·
neg 0
Showing 1–5 of 5
Video h0-9dFmiVtc
Unknown Channel general_discussion at 0:03 sentiment: neutral
video_pk 12203 · mention_pk 35664
Click to watch at 0:03
Overall sentiment (raw)
neutral
Pros
- Aesthetic pond-building theme with rich tile details
- Checkerboard placement adds strategic depth
- Varied scoring options based on multiple features
Cons
- Placement rules can be fiddly and slow down play
- Koi adjacency constraint may frustrate some players
Thematic elements
- Koi, water features, pond aesthetics
- A koi pond building scenario
- abstract puzzle with pattern-based scoring
Comparison games
- River Valley Glass Works
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- End-game scoring — Score is tallied after all tiles are placed based on tile features.
- pattern-based scoring — Score based on tile patterns in rows/columns and tile features (dragonflies, rocks, baby fish, flowers).
- Placement with adjacency constraints — Place tiles adjacent to existing tiles with a checkerboard-style restriction that koi cannot touch another.
- Tile drafting from a central pool — Draft koi tiles and water features from a central pond.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- The player to have the best collection of stones will win the game.
- This game also has a number of expansions that are available and really shake up the way you play the game.
- So which would you rather play, Kohaku or River Valley Glass Works?
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video tbwsg1QU3Gw
Board Game Spotlight playthrough at 0:09 sentiment: positive
video_pk 11975 · mention_pk 35114
Click to watch at 0:09
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- Relaxing, beautiful components and art
- Simple rules with strategic depth
- Great for two players and family-friendly
- Dynamic board and floating tile mechanic keeps decisions fresh
Cons
- Scoring can be dense or calculation-heavy for some players
- Not ideal for players seeking very long, epic games
- Two-player balance may feel different from multi-player variants
Thematic elements
- Nature and koi pond landscaping with floating tile mechanics.
- A koi pond garden with decorative tiles and aquatic-themed features.
- Abstract, tile-placement with pattern-scoring
Comparison games
- Skull King
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Demand-based scoring and color patterns — Certain color combinations and configurations yield point bonuses; butterflies add row/column scoring elements.
- drafting — Players draft one fish tile and one feature tile each turn.
- Floating tiles — Tiles shift as tiles are taken, keeping the board dynamic.
- Pattern scoring — Scores are earned by forming specific patterns around features (flowers, pagodas, dragonflies, etc.).
- tile placement — Placed tiles affect scoring patterns and must be connected to existing pond.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- Spoilers: it's a great game.
- It's a fantastic game.
- This game is gorgeous.
- It's relaxing to put this koi pond together.
- We love it.
- The frog i love the frog.
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video mba5ZaVbJPo
Our Family Plays Games top_20_list at 18:56
video_pk 8600 · mention_pk 25334
Click to watch at 18:56
Pros
none
Cons
none
Thematic elements
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
Mechanics unknown.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- happy pride month
- diversity inclusion and that's for everybody
- patience is a virtue
- play games
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video eRaxBqnRNO0
Board Game Spotlight top_5_list at 10:38 sentiment: positive
video_pk 1185 · mention_pk 3445
Click to watch at 10:38
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- beautiful acrylic tiles with koi, turtles, and frogs
- easy to learn and quick to play
- accessible solo and with a partner
Cons
- light in depth; may not satisfy heavy gamers
Thematic elements
- Japanese garden aesthetic with koi imagery
- Japanese koi pond / koi fish motif
- pattern-building tile drafting
Comparison games
- Five Tribes
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- central pool drafting — tiles are drafted from a shared center and placed into a personal pattern.
- Pattern Building — players try to assemble patterns from placed tiles to optimize points.
- tile laying — tiles are taken from a central pool and placed into a personal koi pond.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- it's just beautiful
- it's a comfort game
- it's quick to learn
- it's not for everyone
- it's very cute
- the pagoda rotation mechanic is integral to gameplay
- it's a puzzle-thinking game
- fantastical asian style theme that's the one i'm going for
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video HrFf727u1Jw
Crack a Little top_10_list at 19:11 sentiment: positive
video_pk 119 · mention_pk 325
Click to watch at 19:11
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- Very relaxing and aesthetically pleasing
- Two-player mode is well-paced with tight drafting
Cons
- Can become tight on board for some color strategies
Thematic elements
- Calm, serene, nature-inspired pond-building
- Koi pond garden with decorative tiles and natural motifs
- Relaxing, zen-like
Comparison games
- Orleans (expansions and drafting vibe)
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- tile drafting and placement — Players draft tiles and place them to optimize their pond with color-matching dynamics.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- Two-player head-to-head pitcher.
- This is Star Wars in a box.
- It's the most thematic experience in a board game you will ever play.
- Get out and play some games.
- This is like forcing a book lover to choose their favorite book.
- Orleans with Trade and Intrigue changes it in such a way that it's necessary.
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Transcript Navigation
Showing 1–5 of 5