Uk’otoa Review

Heard of this interesting little game called Uk’otoa and want to know more? Then you’ve come to the right place because I give my thoughts in an in-depth Uk’otoa review down below. So, how does Uk’otoa hold up?

Uk’otoa is a fast and fun board game of playing cards where, on a sinking ship, you work with and against other players in an effort to keep your sailors from being devoured by the monster, Uk’otoa.

Overview

Alright, let’s take a look at Uk’otoa and how it plays! Please, keep in mind that I won’t be including every last little rule here, but I will be including the most important ones to help give you a sense of how the game plays.

Back-Of-The-Box Facts About Uk’otoa

• Player Count: 3-5
• Time To Play: 30-45
• Age Range: 12 and up
• Difficulty: Beginner/Easy
• Price Range: $25-$35
• Release Year: 2021
• Publisher(s): Darrington Press (tabletop publishing company of Critical Role)
• Designer(s): Jeb Havens and Gabriel Hicks
• Artist(s): Hannah Friederichs

Not familiar with Critical Role? Well, it’s professional voice actors playing their custom-made campaign of Dungeons & Dragons or D&D. They live stream it and have been doing this for quite some time. I hear it’s pretty good!

What Comes In The Box?

In Uk’otoa, you will get 26 ship tiles, 25 scared sailors, one Uk’otoa miniature, and a fairly sizable deck of cards. That might not seem like much, but that’s also all you need.

Theme

Uk’otoa takes place on a sinking ship that the monster, Uk’otoa, is slowly devouring along with any sailors unlucky enough to get caught in its path.

How To Play Uk’otoa

Let’s start with the sailors and who controls them.

Controlling The Sailors

In Uk’otoa, there are as many different colors of sailors as people are playing the game. So, if 5 people are playing, there will be 5 groups of different-colored sailors. Each person will control 2 of these groups.

You might be wondering how that’s possible, as the math doesn’t add up. That’s because the most interesting thing about Uk’otoa, the thing that elevates this game beyond something just okay or forgettable, is the fact that 2 players at the table control each group of sailors.

So, if I control green and red sailors, that means one other person at the table controls the green sailors too, and another player will share control of the red sailors with me.

What You Do On Your Turn

There are several actions you take on your turn.

Let’s start with moving Uk’otoa.

Move Uk’otoa

First, at the beginning of each turn, you can move Uk’otoa one space. You don’t have to, but you can. I won’t get into it too much, but Uk’otoa follows a set path around the ship. It is decided by laying out tiles in a pattern determined by the players.

Each time Uk’otoa moves, if it lands on a space with a sailor, that sailor is removed from the game. Also, the tile Uk’otoa just left is removed from the game as well. Yes, the ship is shrinking, and moving Uk’otoa in this way can give you the advantage by removing sailors that aren’t yours or making it harder for them to maneuver.

Drawing 2 cards

After deciding if you want to move Uk’otoa or not, you draw 2 cards. Then you can play and discard cards.

Options For Playing And Discarding Cards

You have three options here: play 1 card, play 2 cards, or discard cards.

Let’s start with playing 1 card.

Play 1 Card

Your first option is to just play one card. You get to choose which card you play. If you do, you complete the action on the card (move Uk’otoa, move a sailor, swap sailors, push sailors, and kill sailors), discard it, then your turn is over.

Play 2 Cards

Your second option is to play 2 cards that are the same (also your choice of which 2 of the same cards you play). If you do, you still only take the action on the cards once, but now you get a second turn! If you play 2 more cards that are the same, you get another turn!

Now, keep in mind that you can only do this as long as you have exact copies and enough cards to keep doing all of this, but you also have another option: discarding.

Discard Cards

Your third option is to discard any 2 of the same cards or 3 cards that are in the same group, which lets you draw a card and take another turn.

If we use the Advance Uk’otoa cards as an example, there are Advance Uk’otoa 1, 2, and 3 cards. The 1 card lets you move Uk’otoa 1 space, the 2 card 2 spaces, and the 3 card 3 spaces.

So, 2 Advance Uk’otoa 1 cards would be considered the exact same card, but Advance Uk’otoa 1, 2, and 3 cards would be considered to be in the same group.

So, theoretically, it’s possible to play 2 of the exact same card, discard 3 cards from the same group, then play another card. Pretty cool, huh?

At the end of your turn, if you have more than 5 cards, you discard them down to that number.

How To Win

The game is won when only one color of a sailor is still on the ship, in which case the two people controlling that color win together. If two colors still remain on the ship, then the player controlling both (they have to be the only one) wins.

Uk’otoa Review

Let’s start with the art.

Art

The art in this game is great. It won’t be to everyone’s taste, but it is unique and suits the game. It’s got this kind of dark, nautical vibe to it that just works.

Components

Pretty good! The little plastic sailors screaming with their hands on their heads is a nice, fun (if you can say that about screaming anything) touch to the game.

Theme

This is a fun and unique theme. Not one I’ve seen often, and although you don’t feel like sailors trying to survive on a ship being eaten by a sea monster, it’s still a great theme overall.

Gameplay

So, what did I think of Uk’otoa overall? First of all, it really is a fast game. It doesn’t take long for people to figure out how to play it, so you could easily play 2 or 3 games within an hour.

Uk’otoa works excellent as an opening game for the night, filler game, or game night closer. It’s also tight without being stressful.

One thing that makes this game interesting is that there is almost no room to spare in terms of where sailors can move. And since Uk’otoa keeps eating up all the tiles, sometimes a lot of tiles on one turn, the amount of available safe real estate for sailors to move to can dwindle rather quickly.

Fast Action And Player Dynamics

But that’s what makes the game so interesting: it doesn’t let you sit and think even if you want to. It’s not like some games where you can sit and build up and plan and maneuver. No, Uk’otoa throws you right into the thick of it immediately and it doesn’t let up from there. It’s kind of like a great action movie in that way.

That does take a moment to get used to as does the fact that you’re going to lose most of your sailors along the way, but the fact that you’re working against everyone else at the table, while still cooperating with 2 of them, it is a really fascinating dynamic.

What’s happening in the game shifts so much from turn to turn. One turn you might be sacrificing one of your ally’s sailors, the next turn you might be trying to save them.

I know I’ve used these words a lot in this review, but, for me, Uk’otoa was a really fun, and unique game. I liked it and so did the people I played with. For me, this is a keeper of a game.

Uk’otoa Review: My Rating

So, I don’t use numbers for ratings because I think it boils a review down to something it isn’t, although admittedly sometimes I just look at numbers too, I’m going to try to get away from that. With that in mind,

I’m going to use a simple rating system: Don’t Buy, Wait For A Sale, Buy.

I’m rating Uk’otoa as a Buy type of game. It’s a fun game that’s fast and easy to play. I think it could lose its luster after a lot of plays, but for what it is, it does a great job. I don’t think you need to go out and buy this right away, but if you’re looking for a solid filler game with some light strategy and interesting player dynamics, this is a pretty good one.

Where To Buy Uk’otoa

You can buy Uk’otoa at the following places:

• Critical Role Shop
• Miniature Market
• Game Nerdz
• Amazon – not available

Unfortunately, it is not sold on Amazon. There are likely other places to get it to, but this is a good list.

Did You Know?

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

Did you know that art really matters for a board game? While this isn’t always the case, a unique or powerful art style can elevate a board game from good to great. The reverse is also true.

Conclusion: Uk’otoa Review

In conclusion, Uk’otoa is a cool little game that’s worth buying. Maybe not right away, but if my Uk’otoa review is anything to go by, maybe sooner than later.

So, what do you think? Ready to give Uk’otoa a try or hold off? Is there anything that you would like me to clarify or cover further?

Let us know your thoughts and why in the comments below!

And, as always, keep on gaming, you maniacs.