I confess that I like "kids' party games" in my pocket, which you can just take out on the table, explain the rules in a minute and get right down to business. And Safari Splash is just such a game! Although you wouldn't expect it, it even has a story behind it - you go on a river safari and you and your friends race to see who can take the most pictures of their favourite animal.
And that's what the mechanics of the game are built on. You compose your "path" from the squares of rivers that have pictures of animals on the banks. Depending on the difficulty of the game (there are four in total), you need to arrange the river in such a way that your favourite animals meet at it, and in the hardest version you can even solve their combinations.
At the same time, you have to be careful not to let an animal you don't like wander in front of the camera, because you will lose points. In addition to that, you have to think about modifiers for pairs, trios and quads of the same animal next to each other and... that's it.
The game only lasts 90 seconds, during which time you assemble your river from the pile of available cards in the center of the table (on the back of which you see 3 of the possible 2 animals that will be on the face), and after the timer runs out you just add up the points for "your" animals, subtract the points for the unliked animal, and check the pairs/triples/fours, and you're done. You can ride the river again!
In addition to the classic river and animal cards, there are also so-called splash cards, which mean that you have to shout "Splash!" and everyone at the table exchanges cards from their hand with their opponents. And that's really it. No more tricks or complexities.
Safari Splash is a quick family game where you just can't manage to get bored in a minute and a half. And the more games you play in a row, the more you even then get confused as to which animal you love and hate this round, which adds even more fun to the game. In half an hour you've played 10+ games and can move on to another game, so this is the perfect filler or fine choice for when you don't even have that half hour.
The game has really cute graphics, where the animals are tasteful, adorable and simply a joy to look at. Aside from the rules themselves (which I've already managed to explain in all their (in)complexity), the game is completely textless, with just pictures, so the recommended age of 6+ fits and there's no problem playing the game with kids who can't read much. For its price, it's quality fun that will entertain.
Verdict:
All in all, Safari Splash offers quality entertainment at an affordable price, both for kids and adults looking for quick and instantly accessible games. With simple rules and short games, the game is suitable for children's parties as well as among adults who need to stave off boredom.
Also, if you find this article helpful, you can just buy me coffee. :)
Originally published in Czech on the ZeStolu portal.
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