Klask

Last updated
Klask logo.png

Klask is a board game in which two players compete using large magnets under the playing board to control their playing piece and steer the ball into the goal in their opponent's side of the board. The game has been described as a combination of air hockey and foosball. [1]

Contents

History

Klask was created by Danish carpenter Mikkel Bertelsen in 2014. [2] The name Klask means "slap" in Danish and allegedly comes from the onomatopoeic sound made by one of the playing pieces falling into its own goal. [3]

Gameplay

The two players sit at opposite ends of the playing board and use large magnets underneath it to control their playing piece (striker) and steer the ball into the hole (goal) in their opponent's side of the board. If they do so and the ball stays in the goal, they score a point. A player also gains a point if two or more of the three white magnets in the centre of the board stick to their opponent's playing piece, if their opponent's playing piece falls into their goal, or if their opponent loses control of their playing piece and they are unable to bring it back under control using their magnet under the board. The game is played over a number of rounds, with the first player to score six points winning the game. [4] [5] [6] [7] [8]

Reception

Klask received positive reviews upon its release. Dicebreaker considered it to be similar to air hockey and tabletop football, and praised its simplicity and engagement. The review also compared it to a four player version reimplementation, but recommended the original one. [4] Emily Heller from Polygon also stated that it was "simple and dynamic", complimenting the engagement. [3] Matt Thrower from IGN also recommended the game, and commented on its intensity. [6] Dominique Pariso and Rob Sparks, writing from The Strategist , also considered the game to be "a simple addition to a tried and tested game which adds a whole depth of strategy". [8] The game was also recommended by the Spiel Des Jahres jury. [9] A Wirecutter review, however, was more critical, praising its engagement but criticising its size, price, and replayability. [5]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Spiel des Jahres</span> Yearly award for board games and card games in Germany

The Spiel des Jahres is an award for board and card games, created in 1978 with the purpose of rewarding family-friendly game design, and promoting excellent games in the German market. It is thought that the existence and popularity of the award was one of the major drivers of the quality of games coming out of Germany, particularly in the 1980s and 1990s. A Spiel des Jahres nomination can increase the typical sales of a game from 500–3,000 copies to around 10,000, and the winner can usually expect to sell as many as 500,000 copies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Can't Stop (board game)</span>

Can't Stop is a board game designed by Sid Sackson originally published by Parker Brothers in 1980; however, that edition has been long out of print in the United States. It was reprinted by Face 2 Face Games in 2007. An iOS version was developed by Playdek and released in 2012. The goal of the game is to "claim" three of the columns before any of the other players can. But the more that the player risks rolling the dice during a turn, the greater the risk of losing the advances made during that turn.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Reiner Knizia</span> German board game designer

Reiner Knizia is a prolific German-style board game designer. He was born in West Germany in 1957 and earned a doctorate in Mathematics from the University of Ulm before designing games full time. He is frequently included on lists of the greatest game designers of all time. Many of his hundreds of designs are considered modern classics, and many have won or been nominated for significant gaming awards, including the Spiel des Jahres and the Deutscher Spiele Preis. His notable designs include Amun-Re, Blue Moon City, Ingenious, Keltis, Lord of the Rings, Medici, Modern Art, Ra, Taj Mahal, Tigris and Euphrates, and Through the Desert. Many of his designs incorporate mathematical principles, such as his repeated use of auction mechanics.

<i>El Grande</i> Board game

El Grande is a German-style board game for 2-5 players, designed by Wolfgang Kramer and Richard Ulrich, and published in 1995 by Hans im Glück in German, by Rio Grande Games in English, and by 999 Games in Dutch. The game board represents renaissance-era Spain where the nobility fight for control of the nine regions. El Grande was praised for its area-control mechanism, and was awarded the Spiel des Jahres prize and the Deutscher Spiele Preis in 1996. Following its release, several expansions and an alternative version were published.

Modern Art is an auction game designed by Reiner Knizia and first published in 1992 by Hans im Glück in German. Players represent art dealers, both buying and selling works of art by five different fictional artists. At the end of each round, they sell the paintings they bought back to the "bank". More popular artists' works are worth more, and the value carries over into future rounds. Although the game is played entirely using cards, a board is used for scoring, so the game is sometimes referred to as a board game. 25 versions has been released for the game. It was also recommended for the 1993 Spiel des Jahres.

Manhattan is a board game designed by Andreas Seyfarth. In the game, players aim to construct and control skyscrapers that will award points. Manhattan received generally positive reviews and won the 1994 Spiel des Jahres award.

<i>7 Wonders</i> (board game) 2011 board game

7 Wonders is a board game created by Antoine Bauza in 2010 and originally published by Repos Production. Three decks of cards featuring images of historical civilizations, armed conflicts, and commercial activity are used in the card drafting game 7 Wonders. The game received critical success upon its release, and won numerous awards, including the inaugural Kennerspiel des Jahres connoisseurs' award in 2011.

<i>Camel Up</i> 2014 board game

Camel Up is a board game for two to eight players. It was designed by Steffen Bogen and illustrated by Dennis Lohausen, and published in 2014 by Pegasus Spiele. Players place bets on a camel race in the desert; the player who wins the most money is the winner of the game. Camel Up won the Spiel des Jahres in 2014.

<i>Colt Express</i> 2014 board game

Colt Express is a railway-themed family board game designed by Christophe Raimbault, Illustrated by Ian Parovel and Jordi Valbuena, published in 2014 by Ludonaute and distributed by Asmodee.

<i>Kingdomino</i> Board game

Kingdomino is a 2016 tile board game for 2-4 players designed by Bruno Cathala and published by Blue Orange Games. In this 15-20 minute, family-oriented game, players build a five by five kingdom of oversized domino-like tiles, making sure as they place each tile that one of its sides connects to a matching terrain type already in play. The game was critically successful and won the 2017 Spiel des Jahres award, and was followed by several spin-offs and expansions.

<i>The Quacks of Quedlinburg</i> German board game

The Quacks of Quedlinburg, also known as Quacksalber, is a board game designed by Wolfgang Warsch and first published by Schmidt Spiele in 2018. After winning the Kennerspiel des Jahres in 2018, an English version of the game was released by North Star Games.

<i>Just One</i> (board game) 2018 board game

Just One is a cooperative party game for 3 to 7 players, designed by Ludovic Roudy and Bruno Sautter and published by Repos Production in 2018. In each round of the game, players write down a one word clue for the round's guesser, who must figure out the secret word for the round. Identical clues are discarded before the guesser sees them.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wingspan (board game)</span> 2019 board game about birds

Wingspan is a board game designed by Elizabeth Hargrave and published by Stonemaier Games in 2019. It is a card-driven, engine-building board game in which players compete to attract birds to their wildlife reserves. During the game's development process, Hargrave constructed personal charts of birds observed in Maryland, with statistics sourced from various biological databases; the special powers of birds were also selected to resemble real-life characteristics. Upon its release, Wingspan received critical and commercial acclaim for its gameplay, accurate thematic elements, and artwork. The game also won numerous awards, including the 2019 Kennerspiel des Jahres. Several expansions and a digital edition have been subsequently published.

The Crew: The Quest for Planet Nine is a board game for 3–5 players designed by Thomas Sing and released in 2019. In The Crew, a trick-taking cooperative card game with 50 missions, players aim to win tricks based on their task cards, but can only communicate limited information on their cards. Upon its release, The Crew received critical success and won numerous awards. A sequel, The Crew: Mission Deep Sea, was released in 2021.

Root: A Game of Woodland Might and Right is a 2018 asymmetric strategy wargame board game designed by Cole Wehrle, illustrated by Kyle Ferrin, and published by Leder Games. In Root, players compete for the most victory points through moving and battling using various factions with unique abilities. Upon its release, Root received positive reviews, and was followed by four expansions. A digital version, developed by Dire Wolf Digital, was released in 2020.

<i>Cascadia</i> (board game) 2021 board game

Cascadia is a 2021 board game designed by Randy Flynn and published by Flatout Games. In Cascadia, players draft and add habitat tokens and matching wildlife tokens to score victory points based on various scoring conditions. Upon its release, Cascadia received critical success, with reviewers praising its components, accessibility, and strategy, but also noting its lack of player interaction. Cascadia won the 2022 Spiel des Jahres and the 2023 International Gamers Award for the Best solo game.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Living Forest (board game)</span> 2021 game designed by Aske Christiansen

Living Forest is a 2021 board game designed by Aske Christiansen and published by Ludonaute. It is a deck-building, tile placement game. Players aim to rescue forest trees from Onibi, a fictitious beast. Upon its release, Living Forest received positive reviews and won awards, including the 2022 Kennerspiel des Jahres and the As d'Or awards.

Dune: Imperium is a 2020 board game designed by Paul Dennen and published by Dire Wolf Digital. In the board game, which is set in Frank Herbert's Dune universe, players use deck-building and worker placement to gain alliances with factions and combat to earn victory points. Upon its release, the game was nominated for several awards, including the Kennerspiel des Jahres.

Quacks & Co.: Quedlinburg Dash, also known as Quacks & Co., is a German children's racing game designed by Wolfgang Warsch and first published by Schmidt Spiele in 2022. It is a spin-off of the game The Quacks of Quedlinburg. Players take turns drawing coloured chips from a bag in order to move their animal along a racetrack and be the first to make it to Quedlinburg.

References

  1. "Klask". Big Potato Games. Retrieved 2022-01-16.
  2. "KLASK". BoardGameGeek. Retrieved 2022-01-16.
  3. 1 2 Heller, Emily (2020-06-05). "Klask is better than air hockey (and it fits on your kitchen table)". Polygon. Retrieved 2022-01-16.
  4. 1 2 "10 best two-player board games". Dicebreaker. 2022-03-31. Retrieved 2022-07-27.
  5. 1 2 "The Best Two-Player Board Games". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 2022-07-27.
  6. 1 2 Thrower, Matt (2019-12-11). "The Best Short Board Games with Fast Play Times". IGN. Retrieved 2022-07-27.
  7. Girdler-Maslen, Matt Thrower last updated Contributions from Bethan (2020-07-27). "Best two-player board games 2022, with head-to-head and cooperative games". T3. Retrieved 2022-07-27.
  8. 1 2 Pariso, Dominique (2021-09-16). "The Best Two-Player Board Games, According to Experts". The Strategist. Retrieved 2022-07-27.
  9. "Klask". Spiel des Jahres. Retrieved 2022-07-28.