Smart Zone Games Hive- A Game Crawling With Possibilities, (5525890)

This maybe the most fun abstract strategy game I've ever played. It's a lot like chess in that each piece has a different movement, but it is also definitely one-of-a-kind. The strategy is deep, but the game is much simpler and plays faster than chess. If you want a more complex game, you can buy the expansions. The object of the game is to surround your opponent's queen bee (a hexagon stamped with a bee graphic). The other hexagonal tiles (with bugs imprinted on them) have unique movements. The pieces are really beautiful and are much improved from the original wood pieces. I'd recommend getting this version, NOT the carbon version. Sure you save a few dollars on the carbon version, but there are a few caveats with the carbon version. With the carbon version there are only 2 colors (black and white), which makes it harder to tell the playing pieces apart than the Original version of "Hive," where each playing piece (bug) is a different color, making it much easier to tell the difference between the pieces. Second, and this is just an opinion, the carbon version gives it a very serious look, like chess. Some people like that. I do not. The colors create a playful, easy-going flavor. One of the big benefits of the game is that it is much more accessible to people than chess. The serious look of the carbon version makes it look...like chess, decreasing the possibility that people will try out the game because they think they're playing the difficult, serious and complicated game of chess. My recommendation is get this set.

Its very great quality, the pieces are satisfying themselves lol. Gameplay is very simple to pick up and play, rules are very straightforward and i loved especially how they show pictures of how individual pieces move. So much more fun with the expansions as well. Perfect for someone who likes chess or someone who wants to get into those mechanics as well. Overall just a great simple and quick game to bring anywhere. Only objective is to surround the queen bee with the tiles...would 100% recommend and would buy again if needed.

The most fun game! I loved that it was easy to learn and great for two people. The tiles also have a great feel to them and it’s a fun concept!

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.

Big game player here, and really good 2-player games are not the easiest thing to come by if you're not really looking. This game was an incredible find. Easy to learn, for sure. Like chess, each piece has it's own movements, but movement is always in relation to other pieces, because there's no game board. Both players build the hive (the game board) that they are tied to and work within that ever evolving play field to try and capture the enemies Queen(bee). Absolutely fun, quick games can take as short as 5 min (one embarrassing evening for me) but they average about 20-30. Quick to pick up, but there is a lot to work with so it'll take time to really master it. We've had it for a few months now and we break it out a lot. One other thing I want to mention, the game comes with a pouch to carry the pieces in. We take it to restaurants and play while we wait for food, it's that easy to set up and a sweep of the arm to clean. Great game, consider me part of the hive!

Estaba indecisa entre este formato o el Pocket. La verdad que estoy muy contenta con el juego, llegó todo en perfecto estado. Lo que más me ha gustado es que te viene con un estuche que entiendo que o bien es para guardarlo y poder tirar la caja, o bien para llevarlo de viaje. Hay que tener en cuenta que las instrucciones no vienen es español, pero en internet se pueden encontrar fácilmente.

Es mag schon einige Rezensionen zu diesem Spiel geben, aber bei Hive bin ich sehr verführt, den bestehenden Bewertungen auch noch meine Beschreibung dieses 2-Personen Spiels hinzuzufügen. Obwohl der Vergleich als überstrapaziert gilt, ist Hive für mich ein Spiel wie Schach. Man hat fünf unterschiedliche Insekten-Spielfiguren, die bestimmte Züge ausführen können und verfolgt das Ziel die gegnerische Biene "matt" zu setzen. Allerdings wird bei Hive ein Spielstein nicht geschlagen, sondern man kann Figuren lediglich festsetzen bzw. die gegnerische Biene versuchen einzukreisen. Gelingt letzteres hat man gewonnen. Wie beim Schach ist jedes Spiel komplett anders, jeder Zug erfordert eine Planung wie man mit seinen Figuren an den Gegner herankommen kann und Angriffe auf die eigene Bienenkönigin abwehrt. Das Spiel ist dabei unwahrscheinlich herausfordernd. Allerdings hat Hive auch in den Bereichen Qualitäten, die Schach bei Vielen unattraktiv macht. Es gibt nur 5 Spielfiguren deren Züge sehr leicht zu erlernen sind und das selbst für Kinder. Eine Partie dauert in der Regel nur etwa 20 Minuten, nur bei sehr erfahrenen Hive-Spieler kann es auch schonmal länger dauern. Man muss gegenüber Schach deutlich weniger Figuren im Blick halten und dennoch sind Komplexität und Möglichkeiten ebenfalls unwahrscheinlich hoch. Genial ist zudem, dass Hive anders als Schach kein Spielbrett benötigt, da sich die Figuren immer am namensgebenden "Schwarm" (engl. Hive) bewegen. Der meines Erachtens einzige Nachteil von Hive ist ebenfalls ähnlich zu Schach. Bei geübten Spielern hat derjenige der angefängt einen leichten aber manchmal entscheidenden Vorteil. Hive ist ein phantastisches 2-Personen Spiel, dessen Tiefgründigkeit und Kurzweil mich immer wieder begeistert. Es gibt auch eine Erweiterung mit zwei "Moskito-Figuren", die laut anderen Rezensionen sehr empfehlenswert sein soll aber von Amazon leider nicht geführt wird. Natürlich muss man für Hive strategische Spiele mögen. Wer eher seichte und glücksabhängige Spiele wie das gute alte "Mensch Ärgere Dich Nicht" mag, für den könnte Hive zu anstrengend sein. Für alle anderen ist der Kauf es unbedingt wert.

By girlfriend normally gets sick of board games because I keep beating her at them. Not so with Hive! It's completely deterministic, all down to skill, and she is far better than me at it. Though obviously my pride is in tatters I do still admire the game greatly for being very accessible to anyone - especially with its big clunky pieces - and for really surprising with its depth of play. Lots of emergent tactics can come about, and a game that seems a foregone conclusion can quickly turn around with a clever move. Games are quick, over in about 10 minutes, and really satisfying with their density of decision making. Every action feels like it matters, and a move made at the start of the game can become a significant factor later on. I highly recommend this game. One of the best 2-player games I've ever played, and easy to pick up no matter how experienced you are.

A perfect game for the whole family. Simple but so much potential for strategy. Great for a travel game.

Fun and fast paced. I’d like to get the add on piece to add more complexity but it is a great game as is.