BAO

As a Tanzanian local who grew up playing this game I am glad that the game now has a good and accurate representation on Steam. The game has a lot more strategic options and variations than most mancala like games.

Like chess, this game requires that the players think a few steps ahead; however, while chess has a few set of rules and a few kinds of pieces, Bao has only one kind of piece and a complex system of rules to govern them. In chess, you take time to set up your pieces. In Bao, you work through two different phases of the game, and watch your work chain react (the flow to this is hard to explain, but satisfying to experience). Those looking for a popular, simple game may find this hard to warm up to (that said, this game does come with a tutorial, and will highlight legal possible moves). Those looking for a fresh mental exercise, or perhaps wanting to learn about other cultures may be interested to give this a shot. The people working on this game are likely to add new things over time, like a French translation, and a possible hot seat mode. There is an online mode, but I wasn't able to find anyone there at the time (I do hope this game gets more popularity over time); if you are able to find someone, it is expected that your experience with online will differ from person to person. Parents will want to know that online communication with strangers is possible in the online mode. I am glad that I was able to learn about this game's existence, and tried this out. *** ~ House Blythe team, curator for Non-violent Entertainment: https://store.steampowered.com/curator/35899705/

Had a lot of fun playing this game. The design of the game looks really nice and the background music is great! Practice really makes perfect with this game, and I totally forgot the time sometimes because you really have to focus and strategize while playing. If you like chess or similair strategy games then I highly recommend to give Bao a try!

If you are into abstract strategy games, Bao is a pretty cool game, it is also quite complex though. It does take a while to truly understand the game (after playing about 2 hours I did understand most of the game, however that is probably not enough time to become good at it). You have to really concentrate, kinda like with chess. The tutorial is good for learning the basics of the game, and I guess you have to just play against the ai to really practice. The music is nice but I only use it when I start because I still have to concentrate on understanding the game. All in all, would recommend.

[i]BAO[/i] ist die digitale Umsetzung des traditionellen Brettspiels, das insbesondere am Kilimadscharo seine Heimat hat. Das Regelwerk musste ich erst erlernen, doch nach den ersten kundigen Partien entdeckt man Rhythmus und Plan. Sind auch die komplexeren Prozedere verinnerlicht, scheint es fast, als säße man auf der schattigen Veranda einer Lodge oder Herberge, während die Steine klackend in die Schalen fallen. Diese unaufgeregte Atmosphäre reicht weit über das auf dem Bildschirm Sichtbare hinaus. Jeder Durchgang erweist sich als ruhig, ehrlich und verwurzelt - wie ein alter Baobab, dahinter die Sonne, die über den Hügeln versinkt. Und doch: So sehr die digitale Version auch überzeugt, weckt sie den Wunsch, [i]BAO[/i] einmal richtig zu spielen - auf einem authentischen Spielbrett aus gediegenem Holz, dessen ungleichmäßig handgeschnitzte Mulden Geschichten von langen Nachmittagen im Schatten erzählen. Ich habe gehört, man findet besonders schöne Exemplare in Sansibar.

Simple, easily usable software with a very good tutorial part. My only problem is thtat the tutorial is not reachable by parts. You have to click a lot to get a specific information.

The game looks good. Tutorial could be a bit more clear, but I think I can deduce the rules with more play. However, I don't understand how to play with my friend via the online game feature. So I can't recommend game in it's current state. And I can't find any help on the online feature.