Race for lettuce
Rushing turtles. Extreme introduces a lot of changes to the original gameplay. In the basic version, the turtles jumped on each other’s shells and raced to the lettuce. Players had the choice of either moving forward one or two squares or moving the turtle back. It was also possible to move a player who was standing on the last square. Extreme brings a breath of freshness to this simple and family game.
First: there is a sixth player, as well as a black turtle, which cannot belong to any player. Interestingly, finishing the race on the field with him results in disqualification. This is a new, interesting way to win the competition without reaching the finish line.
Secondly: the route has been extended and diversified. On fields with mounds, we discover tokens that can speed us up, move us back one field or to the very beginning. Therefore, it is sometimes worth moving a turtle that does not belong to us to see what surprise the moles have prepared. In addition, there is a river where you cannot stop and a field with foxes. In it, the stacks with turtles are falling apart.
Third: the deck has been diversified. Now you can also move the leader back, and in addition, our cute reptiles can move forward at a dizzying speed of three fields. And that’s not all, because you can also introduce a black raven into the game. It hinders the turtles’ movement and also disqualifies the competitors. I must admit that with all these extras, this is a great family title that everyone will have fun with. There will be plenty of emotional moments. I had a great time playing Rushing Turtles because it is a nice, light and funny board game.
There’s nothing like stepping on a shell
Already after opening the box, the biggest drawback of this item is immediately visible. Because there is more air in the box than components! I regret that the Egmont publishing house did not publish it in sizes equal to the size of the board. Unfortunately, this causes all the elements to fly around the box. I have another complaint about the instructions. There was a mistake in the description of mole tokens. In my opinion, the descriptions of the symbols for the “Try again!” and “Take a Chance” were swapped. This does not change the fact that overall the release is decent. The turtles are big, solid, it’s nice to watch them jump on each other and create a giant tower. It’s great that the box includes two additions: a raven and a black turtle. It would be even better if the board was double-sided and on the other side you could play the classic version of Rushing Turtles with the youngest . Finally, I will mention the troublesome randomness when laying out mole mounds. If the action to move the turtle back one square occurs near the river, overcoming the water obstacle will be very difficult.
Is it worth investing in your turtle?
Although I haven’t played the basic version of Rushing Turtles, I’m sure that Extreme is much better, thanks to the surprising mole mounds and disqualifying other competitors with the black turtle and raven. A great starter title for the youngest, families with children, and even as a light, fun diversion for experienced players. Reiner Knizia is undoubtedly a talented designer, and the Extreme version shows that he can also easily improve his title.
