King of Tokyo review — Only one can take the throne

King of Tokyo is a game where 2 to 6 players take control of huge mutant monsters and go head-to-head in battle for the title of King of Tokyo. The goal of the game is to be the first to gain 20 Victory Points. You’re fighting to be the last one standing. Each game takes roughly 30 minutes. I am completely addicted to this game.

What's in the Box

Before diving into the contents of King of Tokyo, I can’t stress enough how great the packaging is for this game. Everything, including the box, is so fresh and looks great. Seriously, the theming is nailed. 

This box includes: 

• 6 Monster Boards.
• 1 Tokyo Board.
• 6 Black Dice. 
• 66 Power Cards. 
• 6 Cardboard Figures. 
• Energy Cubes. 
• 28 tokens and 2 green dice. 
• Instruction booklet.

I was impressed the moment I opened the box. The cardboard cutouts are awesome and are high quality. The cards are another impressive element and like the cutouts; they don’t bend easily. I have no complaints about anything in the box. I appreciate the craftsmanship of the rulebook. I have gone through quite a few games and the stables are holding strong. The quality shines through.

The game board is small, so you’ll only use one part unless you play with more than four players. The board itself is fine; it doesn’t warp or bend, and its small size makes it easy to fit on any table. King of Tokyo is easy to play on just about any surface, and that’s something I appreciate. It’s more meaty than a lighter travel game but isn’t overly complicated. It also doesn’t overdo it with the components. As a quick note, on the back of the rulebook, you’ll find a plethora of King of Tokyo products. Be aware that you don’t need to buy anything else to enjoy this box. 

Gameplay 

Before diving into this, the sweet spot for this game for me and my friends was playing with 2 players, but we did try with 6 players, and it was honestly a horrible experience. Everything felt too slow, and the game became too hectic to pay attention during your turn. 

The game is broken down like this: 

• Roll Dice 
• Resolve Dice
• Enter Tokyo 
• Buy Power cards 
• End turn 

King of Tokyo is extremely fast because everything you’re doing revolves around rolling the dice. The dice allow you to score Victory Points if you roll three-of-a-kind. They also give you Energy that you place in a reserve for yourself. Dice also allows you to Smash, if you do this monsters that are not in the same place as you lose 1 HP for each of the Smash dice you rolled. When you roll a Heart, it allows you to heal if you are outside of Tokyo. 

There are a couple of issues with the gameplay that you won’t find in the rulebook. As the game goes on, around the 20 to 25 minute mark you can predict who is going to win with a degree of accuracy that honestly gets annoying. Teaching new players can become disheartening because in King of Tokyo, it can be hard if not completely impossible to come back if you’re losing.

Final Thoughts 

King of Tokyo needs to be played with people who are all on the same skill level to have the most fun. For my friend and I, this wasn’t an issue because we learned the game at the same time. We ran into an issue once we got started where we could almost always call the winner before the end of the game. 

I like that this game feels like you’re fighting the other player, it makes things fast and fun and also adds an air of competitive gameplay. There is also plenty of strategy to be had here because you’re constantly deciding if you want to get VP or eliminate the other monster.