The game China has gone out of print, which is why I hesitated to write a review. However, I learned a few things from it so maybe you can, too.
The first lesson is this: don't judge a game until you've played it.
I got China on a whim, a bargain too good to pass up. But when I received it and skimmed through the blurb on the box, I thought, meh, not my idea of a good time. The weirdly written text spoke of domination and territory take over and sounded too confrontational for my taste (and too much like Risk). So I shoved it into the closet and it stayed there, unplayed, for six months. Finally, we broke it out, figured it out, and found it surprisingly entertaining. It's more strategic than in-your-face confrontational and the drawing of cards adds a fun luck factor. At 45 minutes, it's a fast filler game that plays up to five.
And that leads to the second lesson: Good things can come in strange packages.
The box is slim, as if there's nothing in there, the name unhelpful, and the instructions translated by someone with only an academic knowledge of English. Despite all that, we recommend this game. The problem now will be finding it. If, by chance, you see it sitting in a bargain bin at a game store, snatch it up.
# Players . . . 3-5
Ages 12 and up (so says the box. I'd say 10)
Game time . . . . . . . .45 minutes
Ages 12 and up (so says the box. I'd say 10)
Game time . . . . . . . .45 minutes
Set up . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 minutes
Luck . . . . . . . . 7. . . Strategy
*Interplay . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Visual Appeal . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Component Quality . .. . . . . 7
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