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Game Info
Year
2007
Collection
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Description
TZAAR is a game about making choices. Both players have 30 pieces, divided in three types: 6 Tzaars, 9 Tzarras and 15 Totts. The three types of pieces form a trinity: They cannot exist without each other. The aim is either to make the opponent run out of one of the three types of pieces or to put him in a position in which he cannot capture any more. The tricky question the players will have to ask themselves on each of their turns is: “Shall I make myself stronger or my opponent weaker?” Meaning: Will you capture an opponent’s piece and make him weaker, or will you jump on top of one of your own pieces and make yourself stronger? If you choose to jump on top of your own pieces too often, you will probably leave your opponent with too many pieces on the board. On the other hand, if you capture too often, you may end up with pieces that are not strong enough at the end of the game. What to do? Up to you to decide!
TZAAR replaced TAMSK as part of project GIPF, which was felt to not quite fit in with the others due to its use of sand timers.
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All mentions
Browse transcript mentions, sentiments, pros/cons, mechanics, topics, quotes, and references.
Total mentions: 5
This page: 5
Sentiment:
pos 5 ·
mix 0 ·
neu 0 ·
neg 0
Showing 1–5 of 5
Video dTW-JJH6nv8
UndeadVikingVideos Discussion at 1:17:46 sentiment: positive
video_pk 87859 · mention_pk 230285
Click to watch at 1:17:46 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- Unique mechanics with dice towers as pawns
- Great table presence
- Fun and light gameplay
- Low price on Kickstarter ($36)
- Includes promo card from artist
- Family involvement in design
Cons
- Kickstarter goal might be too low
- Generic marquee description
- Artwork might not be the main draw compared to components
- First game from the designer (Karma Race) was not well-received by some.
Thematic elements
- dice tower board game
Comparison games
- Tumbling Dice
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Dice tower — Each player has their own dice tower to roll polyhedral dice onto a board.
- Player vs. Player — Players' dice rolls on the board conflict with each other.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- Father time is undefeated.
- We're just a bunch of nerds.
- You're trading one in the hand for two in the bush.
- Do you realize how stupid you sound?
- The world has moved on without you, and you don't like it anymore, tough shit.
- I'm not trying to shame her in any way, I mean that's she it causes her anxiety and she starts to feel uncomfortable if I'm like even if I'm right even if I am right you know.
- My mom made me put it up.
- That's a good idea.
- We're going to need a bigger boat.
- I'm just like, 'What the hell is this?'
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video 6-s3MYcvF8w
Chairman of the Board Top List at 10:29 sentiment: positive
video_pk 87267 · mention_pk 227654
Click to watch at 10:29 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- Confrontational style.
- Strategically rich, especially as the game progresses.
- Super quick and punchy.
- Up there with the better Gip games, likely top three for the reviewer.
Cons
- None explicitly mentioned.
Thematic elements
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- abstract strategy — Two-player game with black and white pieces of different types.
- Action Points — Players must at least claim an opponent's piece, then can optionally take another move or bolster their own pieces.
- Area Control (Implicit) — The objective is to eliminate all of one type of opponent's piece.
- Stacking/Combat — Stacks of pieces can only be taken by a stack of equal or greater size.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- This is where I take a look at the last five new to me board games that I've played and I rank them from my least favorite up to my most favorite.
- I find them a little bit syy and a little bit tedious a bit monotonous.
- Mechanisms wise I think this game is awesome but the cards themselves just a little bit too restrictive.
- it kind of strikes that Perfect Harmony of being again enough going on but not basic
- This one's up there with probably I imagine it's probably top three for me at this point.
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video 9eQ9sVz9Ys8
Chairman of the Board Discussion at 15:48 sentiment: positive
video_pk 87232 · mention_pk 227532
Click to watch at 15:48 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- Fantastic luckless design.
Cons
none
Thematic elements
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- abstract strategy — Games that are purely strategic with no thematic elements or randomness.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- Um I'd have slight concerns about the replayability of the game, but please do correct me uh on that.
- Maybe a little bit maybe a bit oversaturated in terms of how many there are out there.
- Unfortunately, I'm not familiar with either of those.
- Um I also thought that there wasn't enough mitigation in terms of activating the spots that you wanted.
- Um and pretty much the uh the cards not doing anything terribly interesting either.
- Um but I just like it in every way. But I'm a big sucker for really good Dawn games. I think he's a brilliant designer.
- Um hopefully I'll get copies of those for for sale relatively soon.
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video TvyV-MJzzqM
Board Gaming Ramblings Discussion at 19:42 sentiment: positive
video_pk 42293 · mention_pk 242211
Click to watch at 19:42 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- highly engaging abstract with replayable scoring permutations
- short, tight play sessions
Cons
- some players find abstract games less accessible
Thematic elements
- abstract conquest
Comparison games
- Hacx
- Hanamikoji
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- tile placement with scoring cards — Players place tiles to claim zones and trigger scoring patterns.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- it's so tight like if you play this with five players it would be probably horrible so three or four players is the best
- this week we played 22 games and three of those were not for the talents we played and then 19 games for this challenge
- i'm having fun so far
- this is basically the same designer so it has a lot of the same element
- the weirdest thing that has ever happened in a board game
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video nmV7WkWX-ek
Board Game Animal Top 25 List at 5:38 sentiment: positive
video_pk 39645 · mention_pk 223193
Click to watch at 5:38 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- distinct twist on a familiar genre
- strong thematic integration in mechanics
Cons
none
Thematic elements
- imperfect information and deduction
- trick-taking with betting flavor
- clever, strategic
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Trick-Taking — authentic trick-taking feel with betting and deduction
- trick-taking with betting — authentic trick-taking feel with betting and deduction
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- it's a wonderful little family game
- it's relaxing puzzly and a great implementation of the concept
- the puzzly nature really stands out in this version
- Wormspan was a highlight of 2024 for me
- Inventors of the Self Tigress is an achievement
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Transcript Navigation
Showing 1–5 of 5