Qwirkle Review

Mix, match, score, and win! Qwirkle is a colorful tile-laying game that unites gamers and non-gamers alike. It’s become a modern classic and even a Mensa Select Winner, so you know they mean business! 

Qwirkle enhances many skills like color recognition, shape recognition, math strategy, and problem-solving. So, if you’re looking for an educational game that’ll challenge your kids, Qwirkle is your go-to game! 

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Brief Overview of Qwirkle

Qwirkle is a classic game released in 2006. It’s pretty much become a staple in board game family homes. It’s sort of like Scrabble but with shapes and colors.

It’s an abstract tile-laying game where players take turns to score points by placing tiles. It consists of six different shapes and six different colors. There are three of each tile. For example three blue circles. 

Players take turns placing their tiles to match the color or shape in a row. Slowly, you’ll simply build lines matching the tiles. However, players start to build complex combinations, scoring points along the way.

Unboxing Qwirkle

You’ll see Qwirkle is made up of a bunch of thick black tiles that create thirty-six different combos, with a total of 108 tiles.

Qwirkle tiles are manufactured really well. The wooden tiles don’t feel cheap at all which always adds to the experience. The cloth drawstring bag is also quality made with the Qwirkle logo on it. 

It’s great because this board game can be played over and over for years to come, and the fact that it’s quality, means you know it’s going to last. 

Setting up the game is super easy as there’s not even a board! You’ll just shake the drawstring bag, select your tiles, and you’re ready to go.

• 108 wooden tiles
• Drawstring bang 
• Rules book

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How to Play Qwirkle

To begin, the first player plays their largest group of tiles in a line. Players then take turns moving clockwise. 

On your turn, you can play one or more tiles. For example, if the player before you plays a yellow circle you’ll have to play a tile that’s a circle or yellow. If you have tiles that work, you’ll place them down in a line. With each tile played, you’ll score a point. Once you’ve played your hand, you’ll draw more tiles to make sure you have six. 

Players then build on the horizontal and vertical lines, laying down tiles in the right combination.

Each line is either all the same color or all of the same shape. So, the further the game goes and the more rows added, the more difficult it becomes to make sure you’re matching the horizontal and vertical lines. 

If you’re able to get six of each in the same row, like purple, red, yellow, green, orange, and blue, you’ll score bonus points. Also, the person who finishes all their tiles first gets bonus points. 

Once the drawstring bag has emptied the game is over. At the end of the game, players add up their score sheets and the player with the most points wins.

Versions of Qwirkle

Pros & Cons

What’s great about Qwirkle is that it’s a decent price yet it’s manufactured with quality materials. The tiles don’t feel flimsy at all, and a thick score pad in the 10th-anniversary edition. 

Pros:

• Fair price
• Good quality products
• Educational 

Qwirkle, often compared to Scrabble, offers similar mechanisms to tile laying, but what’s great about Qwirkle is it’s a bit more of a fair game. Because it uses shapes and colors, rather than words, you avoid players that have played before or memorize words. It feels like a clean slate with each play.

Qwirkle has won many awards and won over the hearts of parents. Its simple mechanics mixed with brightly colored wooden tiles engages and challenge children. 

Cons:

• Age limitation 
• Limited strategy

You’ll find Qwirkle in quite a few classrooms nowadays. It’s great for kids to play against each other but the game doesn’t smoothly translate to a parent playing their child. Obviously, the adult places tiles more strategically, than a child so there’s some restriction on ages playing other ages. 

There’s only so much strategy that can be implemented in a game of Qwirkle. This could be a con for some more advanced gamers, but I think its limitations with the colors and shapes are what make it such a great game. 

Conclusion: Verdict?

Qwirkle is a great game that’s most likely going to please most players. Sure, it’s not heavily thematic or requires intricate strategy, but there’s definitely something to enjoying a board game as a pastime activity. 

Qwirkle is fantastic for children in particular. It teaches kids a wide variety of skills like spatial recognition, planning, and problem-solving. What’s great is that your kids can grow with the game. As their cognitive skills develop, so will their strategies.

There’s a reason why Qwirkle has sold over 4 million copies. It’s so widely appealing to gamers, non-gamers, and kids alike. It’s a great investment for your board games shelf.

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Have you played Qwirkle? What did you think of the game as an activity or learning tool? Drop a comment below and let us know what you liked or disliked about the games. We’d love to hear from you!