Learn how to play Quixo, a tic tac toe type game with a twist. Rules and an alternate way to play the game.
Click to read also: Family Board Games for All Ages and Abilities
Timberdoodle offered us a review copy of Quixo, which is part of their 4th grade curriculum kit. All opinions are my own.
What Is Quixo?
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Quixo feels a lot like Connect 4 and Tic Tac Toe, but there’s a twist beyond connecting five Xs or Os instead of four or three.
Learn How to Play Quixo
Here’s the twist: instead of dropping a piece in from the top (Connect 4) or turning a block over where it is (Tic Tac Toe), you take any currently blank block from anywhere on the board.
You then slide that block in from one of the edges. This often means that you foil someone else’s plan. It also means that (if you’re me), you might accidentally give that other player five in a row! My kids were way better at avoiding that particular mistake than I was, much to their delight.
It takes the strategy of Tic Tac Toe and Connect 4 to another level, because you have to plan ahead for your own and the other player’s future slide-ins.
Alternate Quixo Rules
We added the ability to turn over a piece and leave it where it is instead of sliding it in from an edge. I think this makes it a little easier to win, but my kids prefer it that way. It’s a game, and I’m all for playing in whatever way you find the most engaging.
Do We Recommend Quixo as a Board Game?
We all enjoyed playing Quixo. It might be intimidating for younger children, but I think ages 8 and up are sure to enjoy it. And younger children who enjoy planning ahead and strategy can also enjoy playing this game.
My one complaint is that the pieces are hard to remove, because they sit flush against one another on the board (see photo above). I think they could eliminate this problem by adding thin barriers between each block on the board.
Have you ever played Quixo? What did you think? Do you have any other alternate rules that we should try the next time we play?
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