Monkey Palace

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Monkey Palace
Monkey Palace.webp
Designers David Gordon, Tin Aung Myaing (TAM)
PublishersDotted Games (Asmodee), licensed by The Lego Group
PublicationOctober 2024;2 years ago (2024-10)
GenresBoard game
Players2-4
Playing time45 minutes [1]
Age range10+ [1]

Monkey Palace is a Lego board game published by Asmodee through their Dotted Games subsidiary in collaboration with the Lego Group.

Contents

The game, which provides players with objective of building a structure as high as they can while earning "banana points", has received generally positive reviews from critics.

Overview

Monkey Palace is the first in a series of board games, released through Dotted Games, a subsidiary of Asmodee created in partnership with the Lego Group as part of a multi-year deal. [2] Created by game designers David Gordon and Tin Augn Myaing (known by the alias "TAM"), the game was initially revealed at the Nuremberg Toy Fair in January 2024 before being released that October. [3] [4] [5]

The main objective of Monkey Palace is for players to build a "staircase" structure in the jungle as high as they can for their monkey characters to climb in order to reach bananas, with players taking turns doing so. The game comes with a selection of 231 Lego bricks for players to build the structure with, a baseplate to build the structure on, and a selection of flat sheets to put under the structure, each of which is themed to a different climate. Aside from this, the game also comes with trackers for each player as well as cards which guide players on which bricks they can use. As they play the game, players earn "banana points", with the player earning the most being the one who wins. The game is designed for 2-4 players, and ends when there are no more bricks left. [1] [6] [7]

Reception

Rollin Bishop of GamesRadar+ gave the game a mostly positive review, rating 3.5/5 stars. Although they found the game's rules to be well constructed, they also noted finding them difficult to learn. [1] Ross Miller of Polygon also gave the game a positive review, calling it a "collaborative art project disguised as a competitive builder." However, they also noted the choice to use Lego in the game, while unique, limited how structures could be built, and led to the possibility of it easily breaking if players tried to rebuild it. [6] Online publication The Fandomentals, in their similarly positive review of the game, noted the game contained both "collaborative and competitive elements" and that it gave players "endless possibilities." [8]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Bishop, Rollin (2025-01-13). "Monkey Palace: A Lego Board Game review - "Once you have wrapped your head around the rules, it can be a genuinely great time"". GamesRadar+. Retrieved 2026-02-05.
  2. ↑ Watson, Cole (2024-08-09). "LEGO and Asmodee formalize a board game partnership". Kidscreen. Retrieved 2026-02-05.
  3. ↑ Langsworthy, Billy (2024-08-12). "LEGO's Jaume Fabregat on why the time is right for LEGO to return to board games". Brands Untapped. Retrieved 2026-02-05.
  4. ↑ Carter, Chase (2024-01-29). "Catan, Ticket to Ride and Pandemic makers partner with LEGO on new family-friendly board game". Dicebreaker. Retrieved 2026-02-06.
  5. ↑ "LEGO Board Game Monkey Palace Confirmed". Tabletop Gaming. 2024-01-31. Retrieved 2026-11-01.
  6. 1 2 Miller, Ross (2024-10-03). "Asmodee's first Lego board game, Monkey Palace, feels like Scrabble for STEM kids". Polygon. Retrieved 2026-02-05.
  7. ↑ Seher (2024-10-04). "Build the Best LEGO Staircases in Monkey Palace". www.thefandomentals.com. Retrieved 2026-02-05.
  8. ↑ Seher (2024-10-04). "Build the Best LEGO Staircases in Monkey Palace" . Retrieved 2026-11-01.
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