Your thieving deeds have finally caught up with you, and your group of cooperating kleptos find themselves imprisoned in a labyrinthian tower. Can the team work together, utilizing their unique abilities and moving in silence, to escape their captors?
Magic Maze Tower is a standalone co-op game in the Magic Maze family, for 1-4 players with a playtime of 30 minutes.
Gameplay Overview:
The box includes large quest cards (tiles) for 15 different quests. Each quest consists of working your way through several floors. You begin by retrieving the cards for your chosen level and stacking them on top of each other, blue side facing up. Each player is given a directional tile, indicating which of the four directions they can move the pawns in. Note that any player can move any pawn on the board, but only in their assigned direction.
Players can also choose their difficulty level. In Beginner mode, everyone may communicate freely; In Enlightened mode, players do their best to communicate as little as possible; and in Expert mode the only allowed communications are staring at a player and pointing your finger at an icon on the help tile, indicating the move you’d like the player to make.
Not every level will use all pawns, some may use as little as one, and others include all five. Players will work to solve the maze-like puzzle by getting the pawns to where they need to go in order to pick up gear, unlock doors, and utilize other unique abilities before finally reaching the exit. The character that is new to this set, the Little Sister, has the ability to teleport orthogonally, but she’s clingy and must end her movement beside another pawn. Note that Little Sister can also be added as a mini-expansion to the original Magic Maze.
When one floor is completed, players move on to the next tile, until they’ve completed all four- or eight, in the bigger levels- quest cards on the first side. The tiles are then flipped and placed next to each other in a square layout, forming one final, bigger level. Once players escape this final level, they win. If they’re unable to solve a level, solutions can be found online.
Gameplay Experience:
Those who have played Magic Maze will notice I did not mention the use of a timer. That’s because this implementation of the game doesn’t use one. Also, absent is the dreaded “Do something” pawn. The game instead uses Help Tiles which give a bit more direction to players whose minds have started to wander during the game. This, according to the rulebook, is to eliminate stress from the game.
It turns out, stress might be what made Magic Maze fun. Without the timer to add that element of pressure, I found it all too easy for players’—especially kids’—minds to wander and this game depends on everyone paying close attention. Without the timer, the tension tends to feel contrived, rather than organic. I can’t deny that the experience is probably more approachable than the original Magic Maze, but I’m not sure that the trade-off is without sacrifice.
The game length feels appropriate for what it is, and the rule that allows for simpler play via free communication is greatly appreciated while playing with kids. The game is suggested for ages 9+, but my 6-year-old was able to grasp it pretty well. Do be aware that the artwork depicts some—albeit cartoony—violence and darker themes, so bear that in mind if playing with younger ages.
The mazes range from too simple to frustratingly difficult, but many are a happy medium. With fifteen quests to play, each with five levels, it feels like there is a lot of content in the box and I think you could go back and replay most mazes without remembering the solution. There is some satisfaction in working together to solve the puzzles, and some levels are more engaging than others. I think this game will really shine for players who like solving puzzles for the sake of it. As a solo experience, it can even be relaxing, with one player in charge of all directions and able to move the pieces freely. Little Sister’s ability, which restricts her movement to only teleporting next to other pawns, was both amusing and, at times, frustrating, but overall, I think her unique function makes for an engaging challenge to the levels that include her.
Final Thoughts:
Without pressure from the timer, I felt the game lost some of its edge and excitement, though it does make it more accessible, particularly for kids. The puzzle-solving was still decent, but some levels felt tedious. Even though the solutions to the mazes don’t change, I think there is enough content in the box for many plays. Not a bad game, and my kids enjoy it, but I don’t think it improves on the original Magic Maze. For some who find the original too stressful, however, Magic Maze Tower might be a good alternative.
