Another amazing 2-player only game we added to our collection last year, TATSU has a BACKGAMMON feel to it, as players roll dice to control the movement of their colour pieces with the aim of taking out their opponents pieces.
But these pieces represent Dragons.
Each player has 4 Vine Dragons (pin other pieces in place), 3 Water Dragons (return enemy pieces back to opponent), and 2 Fire Dragons (remove enemy pieces from the game).
The aim is to destroy all of one colour of your opponents pieces.
TATSU is simple to teach. And with dice rolling involved, you’d be forgiven for thinking that it was all luck.
But how and when you move your Dragons is critical. Trying to keep your pieces together so that they can protect one another is vital. You don’t rush round the board, but instead stalk carefully.
One player moves clockwise, while the other moves anticlockwise. This is a great design decision. Instead of Dragons chasing each other in a loop, it’s more like they’re circling each other. A turn or two out of reach, closing in bit by bit . . . and then a big enough move sees one Fire Dragon swoop past the other, over shooting the attack, and getting ready to dance round again.
The game is a great 1vs1 game. Good quality resin pieces on a nice looking board. It doesn’t outstay it’s welcome and can have a nice flow to it with two evenly matched players.
The downsides are few. For players who don’t like luck, this perhaps isn’t the game for you.
Dice results can frustrate sometimes. I once had five dragons backed up, ready to join. But I had a drought on the 1’s, 2’s, and 3’s needed to tag them in.
And talking of those dice, they are quite simple looking compared to the pieces. They feel like I lost the original set and had to use some cheap plain ones I found in a drawer.
This is one of our favourite 2-player only games. It’s a relaxing, short game, that’s easy to learn.
Always Play Blue 