Blinks System Review

Our Blinks System review, what we have to say about the new gaming system straight from the future. This is a board game that is not one but an infinite number of board games. Blinks are tiny little robotic devices that link together through magnets and speak to one another. They each hold a game and they teach it to it each, as needed, at will. These hexagon discs are made up of a pie of six triangles that can shine all different color lights. This mechanism mixed with you being able to interact with them in different ways gives the game maker tons of options and has resulted in some great choices.

We need to do this one a little differently. The main Blinks system and expansion launched with 12 games but there are many more to come. When thinking about our normal categories we will try to highlight some different titles to show the broad range of these tiny robotic devices.

We took a look across fun, replayability, player interaction, quality and art & style to come up with the overall score for our Blinks System review. See the breakdown by category below.

FOR MORE: Buy Blinks

– CATEGORY BREAKDOWN –

Fun (8 out of 10)

For the fun section of the Blinks System review, we award a great 8 out of 10. First and foremost, there is absolutely something for everyone, so you are going to have fun. From racing, to puzzle, to gambling games of chance, the options are boutiful. Games are not going to have huge sets of components or big elaborate events that play out, but that is not why you get these. You get these because they have options, and are perfect to pull out of your pocket for a good time with friends wherever you are.

WHAM – This is your classic whack-a-mole game that is incredibly customizable. Say you play with an initial set of 12 Blinks – you could have 3 players each with 4 pods or you could have 2 players each with 6, or you could play with 24 Blinks there are other options and so on and so on. The number of Blinks you have in your group goes off randomly and it is up to you to tap them before time runs out.

MORTALS – This is your post-apocalyptic action game where you need to survive and defeat zombies. There are two different teams and when enemies arrive you need to eat them or they will drain your life. Your “mortal” is the piece you need to move around and you need to infiltrate and destroy the enemy before they do the same to you.

Replayability (9 out of 10)

For the replayability section of the Blinks System review, we award a fantastic 9 out of 10. Every game in their repertoire, as well as what is to come, is built for replayability. These are supposed to be simple yet clever games, that make it a challenge you want to take over and over again. Whether it is built to be a showdown with others or just one of you with yourself, these quick games are ones you will want to continue to take on many times.

HONEY – The creativity in this one is outrageous. It is a simple thing, but there are all these different elements that come into play. It is such a quick mash-up of puzzle and strategy that you want to do it game after game. You need to make the most impressive beehive and to do so you will need to manage all the flowers, workers and brudes to keep the queen happy. There are four different types of cells that each produce a different resource needed by the hive, your job is to produce and connect them.

Player Interaction (8 out of 10)

For the player interaction section of the Blinks System review, we award a great 8 out of 10. With all the options here, there is plenty of interaction to go around for any number of players at all levels of intensity. There is never going to be big elaborate schemes like you see in games built to be a specific thing, but sometimes the simple game challenges can make for the best experiences.

ASTRO – This is a game that will really get the elbows throwing with a big group playing. Each person gets one Blink to be their “ship” and the rest of the Blinks are arranged in the center to be space asteroids filled with fuel. When each round starts, your color will light up with segments of a color you need to refuel with that color. The asteroids have these and you need to link up before other players beat you to it.

FRACTURE – This is a territory control game where each turn, the active player breaks apart the entire configuration of Blinks and then puts them back together in another way. The idea is that certain configurations will give you more colored lights while also hurting your opponents if you can be clever. It is kind of like Go meets Hive, where the most subtle move conducted while mastering the line of offensive and defense is how a master brings home victory.

Quality (10 out of 10)

For the quality section of the Blinks System review, we award a perfect 10 out of 10. Blinks should not be sold short, they are little robots. To play any game, you hold down on that Blink for a few seconds while it is connected to the others. Right in front of your eyes, you see the blue spinning lights move along each one as they learn the game. And then its done, they all get set up with the complex rules and procedures to speak to one another as needed. They move independently and connect together with magnets when needed. The open-source manner in the way games game be developed is revolutionary and this could easily start a brand new thing.

PUZZLE 101 – This is a solo game to test if you can put together a puzzle under the time limit. All the blinks you include pop up a different configuration of colored wedges on top of them. Like Sudoku or a Crossword, there is only one configuration of putting all the Blinks together to solve the puzzle. You need to take in the clues, that colors need to connect, and you need to move around to get all the pieces to fit together.

FLIC FLOP – This is another game that speaks to overall quality and shows the great range of these devices, in more ways than one. Flic Flop is basically shuffleboard. Make sure you have room to slide because you are going to be doing that with these sleek little robots. Players take turns sliding their piece towards the end stack, converting pieces and matching colors. Different hurdles and scoring configurations make for the most dynamic shuffleboard game you will ever play.

Art & Style (10 out of 10)

For the art & style section of the Blinks System review, we award a perfect 10 out of 10. For as much machine and gaming power that is crammed into each of these little robots, they are incredibly sleak and beautiful with their minimalistic shape and elegantly rounded corners. Under the hood, a barrage of lights of any color go off in elaborate patterns that are both independent of and in unison of all the other blinks.

SPEED RACER – This is a racing game in the style of the classic cartoon it is named after. You put out as many Blinks as you want into a straight line and this forms your track. When you start, a red light (the racer) moves along the “track”. You need to move the end of the track to the front, matching key pieces of the route, to keep the track going before the “racer” gets to the end. It is part puzzle and part adrenaline shot.

– IN CLOSING –

See the full explanation of the judging criteria here.

What would you put in your Blinks System Review? Let us know in the comments below or on our BGH Facebook Page.