Game Preview: Tutankhamun

Reiner Knizia is one of the most well-known designers in the board game world. Some of his games have become classics and many more may have not had their chance in the limelight like others have. Today we will take a preview look at one of those games and see what new fun discoveries we can find in that game!

Tutankhamun is being published by 25th Century Games and is designed as mentioned by Dr. Reiner Knizia, illustrated by Jacqui Davis with development and production by Chad Elkins. It plays 2-6 players in 15-30 mins. The original game was published in 1993.

Details

First let’s discuss the gameplay for this one. The theme is that King Tutankhamun has passed away and arranged are being made to fill his tomb with artifacts that will go with him to the afterlife. We are all Priests who are trying to gather the artifact pieces as we travel up the nile to collect them all. Doing so allows you to rid yourself of your own wealth as you pay tribute to the King. The first to completely disperse their wealth will win and become the new High Priest!

The game comes with 80 artifact tiles, 6 boat makers and Canopic jar scoring markers, the game box which acts as the Tomb and Wealth track around the edge, an Underworld mat and 2 Guardian statues.

The game is laid out with all the tiles shuffled and placed in a long line from the upstream site of the Nile all the way downstream to Tutankhamun’s tomb. Each player chooses a color and places their boats at the foot of the Nile. Players wealth begins at the number based on the total players, for example with 4 players you all start with 24 gold in wealth.

Gameplay

The 60 Tiles are divided into 12 sets, three sets of 8 tiles, three sets of 6 tiles, three sets of 4 tiles and three sets of 2 tiles. Each is valued in gold at their numerical total. There are also ten Scarab ring tiles each worth 1 gold each.

To take a turn, you need to follow these steps:

1-First sail your boat down the Nile to pick up any tile in front of you.

2-Resolve the tile you have sailed to. If it is an artifact tile you take it into your collection in front of you and if it is a god idol tile you play it immediately.

3-Next you resolve any trailing tiles that have been passed by all players. These are added to the Underworld mat.

4-Now all tile sets that have been completed are scored. Check to see if all tiles are either claimed by any player or are placed in the Underworld. The player with the most of that particular type of tile collects the win and spends the number on the tile in gold, reducing their point scoring total down towards zero. The second place player will spend half the total on the tile and move their number down. When there is a tie, it is resolved by the player who is further behind downstream on the Nile.

Once a player has sailed your boat and collected a tile and resolved the steps as above, play passes clockwise and to the next player. The game ends on the turn when a player reaches zero on the wealth track or if all players move down the Nile the player with the least amount of gold will be declared the winner.

Things that are different with this version:

One of things you will notice immediately is the stellar artwork and graphic design work on this title. 25th Century really did a stellar job on bringing this game up aesthetically and improving the overall quality of the work. I really enjoy the way the art pops of the pieces-it is a game that will definitely catch the eye of players around the table.

My favorite addition are the new god tile powers and the way they play out. I loved how much they affected gameplay without being too overpowered or aggressive to other players.

Overall

Tutankhamun is definitely going to be a game you want to get ahold of and add to your collection. I enjoyed the gameplay and back and forth between players as they rushed down the Nile trying to set collect the most compared to other players. The push and pull of how to get enough and also how to swoop in and steal the victory is a lot of fun and one of the things we enjoyed the most.

Although the campaign has finished you can still get in on this one! If you go to the original Kickstarter campaign page you can read more about it here:

Kickstarter campaign

To get a chance to late pledge this one as well, there is a link to jump in for that as well! Go to this page and add yourself to the group of us who are really looking forward to getting this one in the mail when it publishes!

Late Pledge for Tutankhamun

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