Customer Reviews

Hive 3Rd Edition

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This game is quite chess-like in the nature of its strategy, which I like. Hive is a seemingly simple game, with the straightforward rules about movement and a small number of types of tiles. It isn't easy to win, though. The biggest challenge is reconciling that none of the pieces on the board will ever leave once they're placed, and that some of your pieces (one placed) may never move again due to the dynamics of the hive (which your player tiles collectively create).

In the end you have a durable, highly portable, thinkers game. It's great for trips, indoor weather or afternoon lulls. I find it to be unique and fun, and would recommend it to most anyone who's enjoyed playing chess or go.

Hive is an excellent game. It can be learned in just a few minutes and the matches are very quick. Unlike many other strategy games, playing is fun from the beginning.

The game will remind you in many ways of chess in terms of its strategy. There are, however, important differences. The rules for placement of the game pieces are very straightforward. There are only a few types of pieces, and the biggest difference between chess and Hive is that most of the game peices will ever move once they're played.

Each individual match is different from the others, because the two players create a different game "board" with their initial piece placement, and each game takes on a unique dynamic, which the two players create. The result is a a variable game that two players of different skills can enjoy equally.

The game set itself is very durable and very portable. It's a great spur-of-the-moment game that requires just a few seconds of set-up time, and it's also great for trips, rainy weather, etc.

I evaluate games on the basis of how many units of fun I have per unit of money I spent on the game, and by that measure, Hive has a great payoff. I'd recommend it very highly for those who enjoy strategy games.

This is a terrific game for two people which requires chess-like strategy, but it can be learned in just a few minutes and played in less than 15 minutes. My 7 year-old child plays this with friends and they love it. So do my husband and I!! There is no board or set up. The game starts with each player placing an insect tile on the table which creates the playing field. In addition to a queen bee, both players have four other types of insect tiles each of which has its own way of moving about the hive (grasshoppers "jump", beetles "climb", spiders move 3 spaces in any direction and soldier ants "move about the perimeter". The object of the game is to completely surround the opposing players queen bee while you prevent your opponent from doing the same to you. One wrong move and watch your queen bee quickly surrounded!

I am a teacher and I use games in my high school math classes. The best games for my classes are strategy games that don't have too many rules,require a sense of the big picture and don't take too much time. They also have to be visually appealing or my students won't try them. Some of the games that have worked well are Blokus, Quarto, Gobblet. The games work on several levels. They help build a culture of challenge. They help the students think logically without the intimidating format of problems in a math book. Students learn that the more familiar they are with the elements of a game the more successful they can be.
Hive is the perfect new game for my classroom. The tiles are visually appealing and sturdy. There are few rules. It requires focused attention. I will be buying more copies of this game in the future.
My twelve year old really enjoyed it too.Hive 3Rd Edition

Let me start by saying that I think Hive Carbon is a better buy. Unknown to me at the time I purchased this product, the Carbon game contains two expansions for a few bucks extra. The expansions sell for around $7-$10 each while the Carbon set only costs $5-$10 more than the 3rd edition set. Unless you have no interest in the expansions, I would go with the Carbon game as you'll end up spending more at this current time if you buy the 3rd edition and then the two expansions.

With that out of the way, Hive is a simple game with no game board, meaning it can be played practically anywhere. It involves hexagon shaped pieces that have images of various bugs on them. Each bug has certain rules about how it can move, much like how each piece in chess has various movement patterns. Also like chess, the game revolves around "defeating" a single piece, in this case the queen bee. You do this by completely surrounding the queen bee with pieces (yours and/or the opponent's, it doesn't matter).

I wont go into full detail, but the game plays out much like a game of chess, with each player trying to bait the other into making moves while defending themselves. Games are quick and fun and the pieces feel in-flavor with the bug they represent (i.e. the grasshopper can jump over piece).

As for the product itself, the tiles are made of Bakelite and come with a zip-up carrying case if you prefer not to keep them in the box. I was a little disappointed as my tiles came with some black smudging on them. The price at the time I purchased it ($30) seemed a little high for what you get. The game is still fun to play regardless.

Hive struck me like a fresh new concept in tabletop gaming when I first ran into it at the manufacturer's own website. There, you could play the game against a robot that they said wasn't all that good a player. He taught me so much, beating me 15 consecutive times before I finally beat him.

Hive has tiles with special movement rules, like chess, but there is no "board". The first tile played in the game initiates "The Hive", and all subsequent play takes place on, or adjacent to, The Hive. The tiles depict bugs, and both players get a queen bee, 2 spiders, 2 beetles, 3 grasshoppers, and 3 ants. An expansion set gives each player a mosquito too.

Players take turns adding tiles to the hive. When adding a tile, it must touch already-laid tiles of your color and no tiles of the other color (except for player #2's first tile). During the first 4 moves, both players must add their queen bee to the hive. Once a player's queen bee is played, they may elect to move a tile rather than play a new one. Moving tiles are allowed to land next to the other color in a way that newly played tiles cannot. This decision about bringing a new piece into play or working with the pieces already in play is one small example of the strategy at play here.

The object is to completely surround the opponent's queen bee. Doesn't have to be all your tiles, but if she is surrounded you win. Don't let it happen to your queen bee! The game play is strongly oriented towards "1) Don't lose, 2) Win, if you can" That was the lesson of my first 10 games against the robot at the Hive site.

Ants can move anywhere on the outer perimeter of the hive - any distance. Spiders can do the same thing, but they must move exactly 3 hexes, no more, no less. Grasshoppers leap over the hive along hex lines to the first vacant space. Beetles can only move one hex in any direction, but they can crawl up onto the hive itself and move around on it. The piece they are sitting on is immobilized until they leave. The optional mosquito can move like any tile of either color that it is touching at the beginning of it's turn.

Enough about the game - it's a brilliant invention in game-play with really thought-provoking strategy. Its not a quick learn-and-play game. That said, it is a delicious long-term learn-and-play game - lots of "ah ha!" as I witness my own improvement as a player.

This product tho - WOW! These tiles are bigger than I expected - you can squint one like a monocle - and substantial like well-made dominoes, finger-tall. The hexes are white and black, each type of bug is painted into the recessed image in it's own color. The green-on-black grasshopper contrasted with the green-on-white grasshopper is very cool - these pieces are lovely.

This is a great game to play even with disparate ages. I play with my 7 year old and she already has the concepts down. She especially loves when she can outsmart me, which she has time to time. Everyone I have shown the game to has at first thought it was a simple game but after playing they begin to understand that it has the potential to be a very difficult strategy game. I highly recommend it for its playability and for its depth but mostly for its fun.

The pieces are thick hexagons of heavy bakelite. No commercial game has better components -- the only games made better are high end versions of the classics (Go, Chess, Dominoes, Backgammon). Very durable and portable.

This is also a deep, fun game, with lots of deep, subtle strategy. As such, this has become my favorite game, out of many.

Each person has a queen tile. You lose if this tile is surrounded. The other pieces are also insects, that move in a variety of ways. A move consists of adding a new tile to the board in a spot that does not touch an opposing piece, or moving a tile.

My son loves the game and I was happy that it came on time (when they said it would be here) and that it was in perfect condition.

I bought this for my son's 7th birthday. He tries to play chess but is just not capable of playing with that much strategy. As we have learned to play this together, he has legitimately beaten me several times. He usually stumbles onto a new strategy and repeats it until I find a new strategy that defeats it. If I don't stay on my toes, he will win.

My daughter, who is almost 10, loves the game as well. I enjoy the thought process and that it is very portable and doesn't take up much storage space.

My daughter played with her grandfather, an avid chess player. I asked her if she enjoyed it but she said no because it was too easy to beat him. So, it does take a little practice even for adults to win.

This game probably isn't right for every 7 year old. My son is a bit advanced. 8 and up is probably pretty accurate.