Connect 4 Review

Hey, do you want to read a review of Connect 4? Well, that’s good news for you because this is one! So, what do I think of Connect 4?

Connect 4 is a good game for kids, families, or those who have limited time and want a simple game to play. The components are well-made, it’s cheap and easy, and fun to play.

Connect 4 Overview

First up, let’s start with the back-of-the-box facts.

Back-Of-The-Box Facts About Connect 4

• Player Count: 2
• Time To Play: 10 minutes
• Age Range: 6 and up
• Difficulty: Beginner/Easy
• Price Range: $10-$15
• Release Year: 1974
• Publisher(s): Hasbro Gaming
• Designer(s): Howard Wexler and Ned Strongin
• Artist(s): Unknown
• Where To Buy: Amazon

What Comes In The Box?

With Connect 4, you’ll get the following:

• one grid with two legs and a slider bar
• 21 yellow discs
• 21 red discs
• one rulebook

Theme

No theme here!

How To Play Connect 4

Playing Connect 4 is easy! To set up, you connect (pun intended) the legs and slider bar to the plastic grid as seen below.

Then each player takes either the yellow discs or the red discs. The youngest player goes first (although you can make up your own rules for who goes first since it doesn’t matter).

On a player’s turn, they drop one of their discs down one of the columns in the grid. Once that player’s done, the other player goes. Players keep going back and forth until one of them wins!

How To Win Connect 4

It’s aaaaalllll in the name with this one. To win Connect 4, one of the players has to create an unbroken row of four of their discs.

They can do it horizontally…

Vertically…

Or diagonally…

As soon as that happens, that player wins!

Connect 4 Review

So, does this (as of December 2022) almost 50-year-old game still have the same magic that’s kept it going this long? Let’s get into it.

Art

There’s no art for Connect 4. You could argue the box has art though, and in that sense, I think it does a good job communicating what it is.

Components

I like them! Everything’s plastic, but doesn’t feel cheap.

The grid has weight to it and is well-made.

The discs are easy to hold thanks to their ridges. Because of their colors, it’s easy to distinguish what’s going on in the game as well.

Theme

Still no theme here!

Gameplay

Connect 4 is one of those games that are just fun to sit down and play. There’s hardly any setup, the rules are easy to teach and easy to understand, and the game is just plain fun.

Games like this remind me of tic-tac-toe. At some point, they should stop being enjoyable right? At some point, you’ve figured the game out, seen all its variations, and so on.

And yet, you keep playing.

Some games just do well with simplicity and Connect 4 is one of those games. Plus, since you don’t have to focus all of your attention on Connect 4, it’s a great game to play when you want to play something but aren’t sure how much attention you can give it.

Replayability

I wouldn’t say Connect 4 is forever replayable. It can definitely lose its shine after a while, but it is a game you can play a few times in a row without getting bored. I would make sure to have other games in your collection too though.

Connect 4: My Rating

On a scale of Don’t Buy, Wait For A Sale, or Buy, I rate Connect 4 a Buy.

In my early years of getting into the board gaming hobby, around 2012 or so, if you’d asked me about Connect 4, I would’ve said it was a kids’ game and not for me. What I probably wouldn’t have said was that it was an outdated game that was far too simple, but I definitely would’ve thought it.

However, I’ve gone through an arc with my board gaming narrative. As a kid/teenager, I started out playing games like Connect 4, Clue, Monopoly, Risk, and so on. Simple games, mass market games, and the like.

Then, as I started getting into the hobby in 2012, I played games like Mansions Of Madness 1st Edition, Libertalia, and more. I wanted those meaty games, the ones that immersed me in them and made me think!

Years later, I don’t know exactly when, the people I played games with shifted. I started playing more games like Exploding Kittens, Queendomino, Potion Explosion, and so on.

Perhaps you’ve seen the arc too. I started out with simple games, moved on to complex games, then moved back to simpler games. While Exploding Kittens, Queendomino, Potion Explosion, and others are more complex than games like Connect 4, they’re not by much.

And with life having changed, with the amount of free time I have shrinking, games like Connect 4 appeal to me. Not only are they nostalgic, but they’re also games I can just sit down, play, and have a good time with.

Who Would Most Enjoy Connect 4?

You know, I’d say this game would work with kids best, but in today’s world, that’s hard to say. So many kids are so connected to technology now, I’m not sure Connect 4 can compete.

However, one of the joys of games like Connect 4 is since you don’t have to think too much about what you’re doing, they give you lots of room to talk. In a sense, one of Connect 4’s greatest strengths is that it’s something to do while you talk.

It’s also something to do while you’re listening and not talking. It’s a way to be present without having to be fully present.

In that regard, I’d say it’s the perfect game for kids and families. However, I’d say if you’re like me and have limited time and just want an easy, enjoyable game to play, Connect 4 will do you just fine.

Did You Know?

(Each time you refresh the page you will get a new “Did You Know” fact!)

Did you know there’s a fun dice-rolling, push-your-luck racing game? If that sounds like an interesting combination to you, then check out my review of Cubitos! Enjoy!

Conclusion: Connect 4 Review

Were you surprised by my review of Connect 4? I know past me is surprised. I wonder what future me will think of the current me.

What do you think? And what do you think about Connect 4? Let me know in the comments below!

And, as always, keep on gaming, fellow board gamers.