Bean To Me!

Picked this up with a friend after discovering the demo during next fest. So far the first impression is very good. [h2] Condensed thoughts: [/h2] [list] [*] there is a tutorial and the start is pretty simple, no need to be scared if you have never played mancala [*] the magical beans [i]do[/i] make you change up your strategy as advertised [*] additional depth is added by things like the order of beans in a stack mattering [*] unlocking new beans every other game keeps you motivated [*] charming artstyle and cool music [*] if you want to play online multiplayer you need to know someone else with the game, no matchmaking or lobby system [*] alternatively there is a singleplayer against enemies with different difficulty/strategies, so if you like mancala and unlocking things, this is also worth a try [*] read bean trivia if your opponent takes too long with their turn [/list] [h2] Details: [/h2] The beans i've unlocked so far affect the game in a varying degree. Some have a niche bonus effect that might not even activate during a game and you are only interested in them because they are worth more points. Others are interesting because they disrupt your opponent, but might also end up backfiring if he manages to put them back on your side. Some have powerful effects that warp your strategy to play around them, like the emerald bean that doubles in value if you manage to get multiple bonus moves in row. Mancala is in of itself already a deep game, but the beans with effect are definitely an interesting addition. Instead of just thinking about aspects like "how do i protect this big pot from getting stolen" there are new things to consider like "how do i make it so that this powerful bean ends up in my bank" or "i have to add beans to this stack so that the bomb ends up in the right pot". The deckbuilding part is pretty simple. Your default "deck" has 30 normal beans with no special effect. Now for every special bean that you pick one of those normal beans is replaced, so you always have 30 beans. Note that you can only put one of every special bean in your deck. So at the start you wont have much to think about and might just try out everything you have unlocked to get a feel for the effects. Can't say much about if you can build different decks with distinct strategies since i haven't unlocked enough, but thats what i'm hoping to see. [h2] Things i would like to see added/changed [/h2] A nice quality of life addition for a digital mancala game would be a visual indication for all the pots you will drop beans in if you hover over a pot during your turn (or if you press a specific button). Maybe even show what kind of bean goes in which pot? During your opponents turn you can't look at the specifics of any pots or read what their special beans do, this hinders thinking about your strategy while they play. When i tied with my friend in an online match the music track seemed to play twice, or at least quite a bit louder than usual.

Digging the bean game! I'm not very good at the strategy but it's a great kind of zone-out game. Really glad I bought it on a whim after seeing a post about it.

Super fun twist on an ancient game. Cute and quirky with fun things to discover :D

A very nice version of the Ancient game Mancala with a nice twist and good humor. The special beans really change the game and the music and artstyle fit very well together and add to a nice athmosphere. The not-a-beans seem a bit useless but at least some of them are funny. All in all a nice little game with a very classic feel and well worth the price. I recommend playing with a friend.

Really fun game! I love all the different beans (and non-beans) you can unlock and the chaos this creates. The beans interacting with each other led to some fun scenarios. Also I played on steam deck and it runs perfectly!

A really wonderful box of beans! Getting bonus turns and stealing are as fun and satisfying as they always have been in Mancala but add in the many, many beans and it really spices up! (just like a great burrito) I have won against all the single-player opponents and played several rounds of local multiplayer both of which had me on the edge of my bean filled seat. My personal favourite moment was landing a bomb bean in the Gourmand's big pot but then they cleared their side with only 1 turn left until exploding and won by a few points!!! Not to mention the brilliant music and artwork and writing, all round a treat!

it's mancala but beans

Worth it just for the music but the games chill too

Very fun and lots of great beans to collect! The variety of beans makes replaying different every time. I give this game my bean of approval!

This game is the best modern mancala variant that I have seen.