by Mad Cave Bird Games

colorku review JDB 4-4-15 We purchased this game a year and a half ago and it has been without a doubt the favorite game my wife and I like to play together. She has always enjoyed the numeric version one sees in books and newspapers, but I was not attracted to working with numbers. But the Colorku board is a different matter. First, It involves colors, not numbers, which I find more appealing. Second, it is in a board version, where the colored balls can be put down and moved around. It is shareable format where more than one person can be work on in a puzzle together. We’ve had the Colorku board and balls on our breakfast table for a long time now, and we immensely enjoy solving the puzzles together. Particularly with difficult puzzles, we feel a rush when we manage to ferret out a ball placement that “breaks” the puzzle, after which the remaining ball placements are more and more straightforward until the puzzle is solved. We’ve purchased all three sets of puzzle cards, though the easy set is a little too easy for us. We have, incidentally, found a couple of games that had double solutions. Since there is no single solution, they cannot be solved logically. We found the difficulty ratings for puzzles variable: sometimes we could do harder rated ones, but were stumped by puzzles with lower ratings. We are now at level 65 in the hard deck and are solving most of them. We still get the high of having cracked a difficult puzzle! We are developing a vocabulary of the game: we call a single ball location a “cell,” a 3x3 division a “square,” and a line of 9 cells a “row.” We have developed a number of strategies for determining colors of cells. We looking for triples (a single color pattern across three squares), colors needed for row completion, the constraints on where a particular color can be placed in a square, and seek “bound” pairs and triples. A bound pair is two cells, each able to contain only one of the same two colors. Similarly, we look for bound triples, or three cells, each able to contain only the same three colors. Identifying bound squares and triples doesn’t necessarily “solve,” in the sense of being able to put a particular ball in a particular cell, but it adds constraints to the puzzle which may make it possible to solve cells in affected rows and squares. To help our analysis, I designed and 3d printed double- and triple-cell shapes which can be placed on the game. Colored balls can sit on these shapes, and it indicates that the color is not specifically located, but can be in one of two, or three, spaces. A bit like quantum particles which exist in two spaces for a while. We have found this method to be quite helpful. Should someone be interested in printing these, I can post the .stl files on Thingiverse. We have yet to tire of colorku, and continue to love the time together, the mental stimulation, and the rush of completion. We do worry that the supply of puzzles is limited to three packs. The game designers map the nine colors to the numbers 1-9, so it is possible to take a numerical game and translate it to a colorku game. This, however, is a bother. It would be great if the designers would come out with more puzzles, or possibly some program or app that would take numeric Sudoku puzzles and print out color puzzles/solutions.

We are a homeschooling family, and we had originally checked this game out from our local HSAP library! We enjoyed it so much, that we had to get one for our own use! (: The finish quality was excellent; we loved all of the bright colors! If you know how to play Sudoku, then learning how to play this version isn’t difficult at all! Our 7 year-old and 10 year-old learned how to play for the first time using this board. (We actually bought some metal o-rings to place around the game pieces that weren’t supposed to be moved, to help the girls remember where the given, or “clue” colors were supposed to stay.) It is more expensive than buying the paperback books, but it is absolutely worth it! This board can be used over and over again. It is also great for kids that love being hands on with games, and need that sensory engagement for a more holistic learning experience. This has quickly become a family favorite in our home! It will be taken care of, and I know that it will last for years to come!

Awesome, fine quality product. First learned of this through occupational therapy at Mary Free Bed, and got hooked. I tried regular Sudoku years ago, but found it difficult and so quickly tired of it. With the colors instead of numbers, it was fresh and seemed more interesting to me, and I found that I actually enjoyed the challenge. Great mental exercise that doubles as entertainment! Also, the solid elements are a welcome change from video type games.

If you know how to play sudoku, you’ll know how to play this game right off the bat. It doesn’t come with any instructions so if you do not know how to play sudoku then you’ll have to look up how to play online. It’s perfect for any age range from like 5ish and older, the colored balls are small and would be a choking hazard for small kids who like to put things in their mouths. I think it’s worth the price you pay, the balls and board are wooden so they are very durable, some of the balls in a few sets i’ve purchased have been a little lopsided but it doesn’t affect the game itself. it’s like a puzzle so there’s no rush to finish it in one sitting, multiple people can play without having to all sit around the table at the same time, you can come and go as you please and once you finish a level just start a new one!

My partner and I were up and playing within minutes - we had so much fun doing it together as we have different approaches to solving 😅 Setup was simple and straightforward with no hassle at all. What I love most is the versatility. You can use the preset puzzle cards that come with the game (easy to hard), or pull puzzles from any standard Sudoku book and match the numbers to colors, giving you endless challenges. A beautiful, tactile game we really enjoy together (just like the paper puzzles!).

I know plenty of people who won't go anywhere near a Sudoku puzzle, but every single person I showed this game to wanted to play it immediately. It's always a joy knowing someone is sharpening their math skills without even realizing it. Sudoku is a solitaire game, but Colorku is a very fun game that can be played solitaire or with several people placing the colored balls on the board together. For those who are unfamiliar with Sudoku or Colorku, there are nine colors, and each color has nine balls. The board is made up of nine 3x3 squares. 81 balls go in 81 holes with the object being no row can repeat a color, no column can repeat a color, and no 3x3 square can repeat a color. Relax. It is not as hard as it sounds. It is a lot of fun. I've tried this on kids and adults and they all loved it. It comes with 90 cards or so, with four levels of difficulty. The provided cards tell you where to place some of the colored balls to get you started on a game. But even better, it comes with cards to help you convert any Sudoku puzzle into a Colorku puzzle. Sudoku is played with the numbers 1 through 9, and you just convert each number to a color from the daily newspaper Sudoku puzzle. So Colorku has infinite play. Be sure to keep the plastic dimpled cover that goes over the balls and the board to help you store everything back in the box. Two minor glitches: 1. There is a small cardboard box provided in which you can place all the cards. However, if you stack all the cards and put them in this box, you cannot fit the playing board, cards, and colored balls all back into the larger game box. You have to store the playing cards outside the game box. Therefore, I prefer not to store the cards in the smaller box, and just spread them out in the larger game box under the playing board for storage. 2. There are exactly 81 balls. Sooner or later, you will lose one. Or two, or three, or four. Then what? You will have to go to the local craft store, buy some small wooden balls and paint them and hope the colors match. Or you will have to build a whole new color set from scratch. I'm thinking of maybe using solid colored marbles when that day comes.

I bought this because I am not a huge board game player but I wanted something on hand for rainy days or when I have someone over as a conversation starter. This fit the bill because most people know how to play sudoku so no need to teach the rules (I HATE that!), and if I wanted to play alone I could do that as well. When I got it, I was surprised that it was all made out of wood and I really liked the feel, heft, and quality of the pieces and board. No chemical smell like someone here noted. There are tons of suggested problems ranging from easy to super hard, and the amazing part of this game is that you can also look for sudoku problems online and copy them on this board by assigning numeric values to the colors--as such, you really can't run out of problems to solve. I had a date over for a glass of wine and we actually ended up playing a couple of problems together because he was excited to see this game on my shelf. It was great to have something to work on together while we talked and got to know each other better. I think this is such a great game to have around and now my mom wants one, too. Great gift, great for solo play, and great for playing with when you don't want to keep track of a million board game rules.

Colorku is a beautiful concept. Like a Rothko painting you can play with, except instead of contemplating the mysteries of color, you spend your afternoon crawling under the couch trying to find that one red marble that has rolled exactly where the cat can’t reach it, but can definitely still bat it further under while you’re down there, wedged like a beached seal, whispering curses. The board is solid wood, which is nice, and so are the 81 loose marbles. You know what’s less nice? The part where these 81 marbles live up to the “loose” part, scattering themselves across your living room like Home Alone marbles, while you watch in slow motion, coffee sloshing, a single tear rolling down your cheek. You think you’re buying a family-friendly game, but what you’re actually buying is a game of “find the marbles before the dog eats them.” They are bright and wooden, which is aesthetically pleasing in the way a bowl of poison berries on the coffee table is aesthetically pleasing: you just hope no one tries to eat them, but let’s face it, someone always tries to eat them. All of this could have been prevented if the game included a small satin or canvas pouch. For $45, you would think the least they could do is give you something to keep the marbles in, besides your mouth if you accidentally fall asleep during setup. But no, you get your marbles and your beautifully heavy board, and then you get the delightful surprise that the game cards, which hold the puzzle setups, arrive uncut. As in: you, a tired adult who has just spent money to not think for a while, must now spend 30 minutes carefully cutting out dozens of cards while questioning every choice that led you to this moment. There are no replacement balls, so if the dog eats one, the game’s difficulty jumps from “Challenging” to “Existential Crisis.” Also, there are no directions, which feels like an artistic choice on the manufacturer’s part. “Life has no instructions, so why should Colorku?” you can imagine them saying, shrugging into their artisanal linen shirts as they drop 81 marbles onto your floor and disappear into the night. In summary: Colorku is a gorgeous, well-made game that is fun if you have no children, no pets, and the steady hands of a retired bomb technician. Otherwise, you will spend your day finding rainbow marbles in the dusty corners of your house, cursing your optimism, and reflecting on how something so beautiful could also be a hazard, which is basically parenting in a box. Why did you pick this product vs others?: Why did I pick this particular version of Colorku? Because I am a sucker for craftsmanship, that’s why. The board is so beautifully made that it looks like something you’d find in an upscale cabin rental you can’t actually afford, and the wooden balls are so bright and colorful that they practically scream, “Look at us, we are wholesome family fun!” I imagined quiet afternoons of gentle brain exercise, the pleasing clack of marbles against wood, the satisfaction of color patterns emerging like a tiny rainbow quilt. What I did not imagine was the Home Alone marble scene reenacted every time someone sneezes near the coffee table, but the aesthetic appeal was too strong, and in that moment, the practicality of living with 81 tiny, rolling, rainbow escape artists did not even cross my mind. Ease of use: It would be easier if the game included printed directions, unless the goal was to encourage a family meltdown before the fun begins. Nothing says “quality family time” like everyone huddled around a phone, squinting at an instruction video, while marbles roll off the table one by one, each plunk a reminder that printed directions cost approximately three cents to include, but here we are, guessing our way to enlightenment. Size: wonderful!! large oversized board is perfect for strong as a piece of art on your coffee table! Value for money: This is a well constructed game I believe it is well worth the money.

Great

Well made , great gift for someone who enjoys puzzles. Could use a pouch to store the beads but otherwise a great and relaxing game

The package arrived on time and in great condition. The game is great for ages 8+. I think the game is expensive, but well worth the money.

Game for two works to learn how to be together

great challenge, and well made components