I spent way too long deliberating about what game I should pick for my first review. There was a self-imposed "heaviness" to the decision that gave me analysis paralysis, something that I'm sure most gamers can relate to. I eventually landed on Marabunta - and by the end of the review, I'll talk about why.
Quick Overview #
For the full rules, here is the rulebook directly from the publisher.
Marabunta is a two-player roll-and-write by veteran designer Reiner Knizia. During the game, players take turns flipping a tile and rolling dice. The active player then split the seven available items (six dice and one tile) into two piles. The other player then gets to choose which pile to take, taking the relevant actions of placing lines of ants, gaining supplies, and blocking opponents. The active player then gets the remainder of the actions before the active player rotates.
What I Love About This Game #
What I love most about the design ethos of Reiner Knizia is just how juicy the decisions can be with such a small ruleset. While this game isn't as streamlined as many of his other games, the juice is worth the slight squeeze. Every part of the game has tight choices: the splitting of dice is tense, with the values of each die diverging quickly for each player. Once they are split, how you apply each die is a difficult choice of its own, reminiscent of Knizia's classic Through the Desert. The sheer amount and weight of the decisions in such a short game is astounding.
Does Marabunta Belong In Your Collection? #
Marabunta is a game that I doubt will ever leave my collection - but is it the right game for your collection? That depends on the answer to a few questions.
What are your thoughts on roll-and-writes? #
Roll-and-writes have seen a massive spike in recent years. As of this writing, BoardGameGeek had 166 roll-and-writes published last year in 2023, up from a mere 53 from five years ago in 2018. This influx of roll-and-writes has resulted in many people - myself included - becoming immediately wary of purchasing "yet another roll-and-write." That said, I think that Marabunta might be a great choice for some people who dislike roll-and-writes... but it depends on what you dislike about them.
Many roll-and-writes are solitaire affairs. While this is a positive for some, especially those that tend to avoid conflict in their games, others enjoy board games because of the interactions between players. If it is the solitaire nature that turns you off of roll-and-writes, give Marabunta a shot! It is the least solitaire roll-and-write that I have played. Every step of it is interactive.
That said, if it is the tactile nature of roll-and-writes that bothers you - the physical action of writing on paper rather than moving pieces around - then Marabunta may not sway you. This is something that I both love and dislike about this game. The fact that is comes in such a small box makes it a perfect travel game, rivalled only by Hive as a great camping game. This does come at the cost of the tactile pleasure of placing troops on the map.
Do you like cutthroat games? #
This game hits the ground running with mean, cut-throat decisions, and they persist through the entire game. If you prefer your games to be less mean, Marabunta might not be the right choice.
Closing Thoughts #
Why did I choose Marabunta as my first game to cover. Because this game isn't being talked about enough! The publisher, Space Cowboys, has other games in their line of two-player games that I frequently hear about, such as Jaipur, Botanik, and Splendor: Duel. Marabunta, on the other hand, I only hear about in the Reiner Knizia Enthusiast Discord! While this game isn't for everybody, I think that it does what is it trying to do flawlessly, and I hope that I can help introduce it to some new fans!
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