It's a "Hit"!
Written: May 03 '01
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Pros: A popular and timeless classic that gets the whole family together.
Cons: Small pieces and length of play make this unsuitable for very young kids.
The Bottom Line: Battleship is good fun for two players to sit down and have a nice time together, trying to outwit their opponent.
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| mcommini's Full Review: Battleship |
Battleship is one of those nice family games that I think will never go out of style. It's great because children as young as age six can play it and understand how the game works, and it's fun for adults as well. This is a good one to keep handy for family fun nights, for the kids to play instead of watching tv, or to pull out when friends (old and young alike) come over for a get-together. For that scenario, though, you might want several sets -- the game is only for two players.
Each player gets a folding game grid. In each plastic case are stored enough ships and pegs for that player. I believe there are 6 ships, each of varying sizes. A red peg is used to mark a hit, and a white peg is used to mark a miss. On the top half of the grid, you use the pegs to mark your guesses as to the location of your opponent's fleet. The bottom half holds your ships, placed wherever you like, and when your opponent guesses a spot (for instance, A9, where part of one of your ships is positioned, you put a red peg in the ship and call out, "Hit!" If they guess incorrectly, you say, "Miss!" instead.
Each player takes turns until one person has hit and therefore "sunk" all of their opponent's ships. When a ship has been "sunk", the victim player calls out, "You sunk my battleship!" (or whatever particular ship it might have been). Ships are named on one side of the game grid. A red peg is placed on the top of the game grid (there's a small strip of holes along the upper edge for this) for each ship that is sunk.
One thing that makes this particular game so much fun is that it is never the same twice -- each player positions their ships in a different formation every time, so you're always in for some surprises.
The game does not teach any major skills such as letters or numbers, but it does teach strategy, logic, and patterns, which is good for any of us to practice. The tiny pegs are easy to lose, and another little problem is that they often get stuck in the area where the grid closes on itself, near the hinges. You have to remove all the pieces in order to get just one little peg unstuck! Even the ships are small enough to pose a choking hazard for little ones, so I don't recommend this for kids under age 5 -- I doubt very much that they would understand how the game is played anyway at such a young age.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): Around 10?
Type of Toy: Board Game
Age Range of Child: Whole Family
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Epinions.com ID:
mcommini
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Member: Mary Commini
Reviews written: 607
Trusted by: 48 members
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