Othello Review

Othello is a game that I remember playing a toooooooooon when I was a kid. I don’t remember how I was introduced to it, but for some reason, I became obsessed. I was always wanting to play, and my family probably got annoyed with my constant requests to play. Admittedly, Othello has moved down my list and doesn’t get much table time anymore. But how does this older game hold up with my current gaming tastes? Keep reading to find out.

Othello is an abstract game of tile placement and area majority in which players are trying to have the largest presence on the board by the end of the game. Played on an 8×8 grid, players will take turns placing/flipping discs in order to cover the board in their color. Setup is simple – each player chooses to play as either black or white. In the center of the board, 2 discs of each color are placed in a square, pictured below, and the game is ready to begin. Black always moves first.

On your turn, you will place one of your discs onto the grid. When placing your disc, you must entrap a row/column of the opposing color between 2 discs of your own color. After placing your disc, you will then flip the trapped opposing discs to your color, thus adding to your color majority. Strategize carefully, because you may be able to entrap multiple rows/columns with a single disc placement! The game continues in this manner, with players alternating turns placing/entrapping/flipping discs, until either the board is completely full or neither player can make a legal move. Players count the number of discs in their color on the board, and the player with the higher number is declared the winner!

So I know that doesn’t necessarily sound like the most exciting game in existence, but it is definitely a game of decent strategy. The gameplay itself is really simple – place and flip discs – but it requires more thought than just simple tile placement. You need to decide where is the best place for your disc now, and how could this placement affect your opponent’s next move. You have to be thinking ahead instead of just in the current turn if you want to have a chance at victory. That being said, the gameplay itself feels pretty meh to me. There is no real theme to the game, and that abstract element makes it hard for me to really get into the gameplay.

Components. So my copy of Othello is probably at least 15 years old, but it has held up well. The little grid board is nice, covered with felt. I like that the grid is raised to help keep discs in their exact squares. The discs themselves are nice little plastic discs. No complaints from me about the quality, and it’s obviously built to last.

As a kid, I was so into Othello. It was a nice strategic and abstract challenge that kept me thinking the whole time. As an adult now, though, the gameplay feels underwhelming to me. I’m not saying the game itself is bad – just saying that I have other 2 player games I would rather play that accomplish the same thing. Although Othello doesn’t make it to my table nearly as often now as it used to, it’s a game that I would still use for beginning gamers or as an introduction into this type of 2-player game. The nostalgia is real, but unfortunately that’s kind of it for me these days. Purple Phoenix Games gives this one a lackluster 5 / 12.