Itzi, By Carma Games - REVIEW

Nature/ Type:            Board game/ card game 

Rating:                       ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ 

Recommended age:   8 year-old ++ 

Who would love this: Kids + grown-ups that enjoy quick, fast-paced word games 

Our family loves Slapzi, Buildzi, Tenzi, and we are super excited to add Itzi into our “zi-series”game collection, all from the spectacular Carma Games. Thank you Divisible by Zero for providing a copy! 

Why I love ❤️ this game: 

(1) Fast-Paced Word Game - Match Your Itzi Card With Letter Card! 

As per Carma Games usual style, Itzi is easy to play, with no fancy gadgets, fast-paced, and keeps things exciting. The set includes 120 Itzi cards (double-sided, each side contains a theme or feature of an object), and 75 letters cards (double-sided, 4 letters on each side). Each player starts with 5 letter cards. Next, flip over an Itzi card that defines a category to be matched (eg “it’z a board game”, or “it’z noisy”). Be the quickest player to slap your letter card on top of the Itzi card, and shout out an answer that starts with a letter from your letter cards (eg “m” for “monopoly” board game, and “n” for the noisy “monkey”). The first player to use up (and get rid of) all 5 letter cards, wins the game! The game is straightforward, takes (literally) a few seconds to learn, and has no downtime. 

(2) BIG Playability - Wide & Interesting Categories of Themes! 

 The Itzi cards cover a range of categories - from the no-brainer (eg “it’z a number between 3 and 13”), a slightly trickier type (eg “it’z a kitchen appliance”), and those with potential for a great laugh (eg “something you wouldn’t want to hold in your hand”, or “another way to say Hi”). The letter cards are double-sided - which really adds on to the fun! Players have to frantically flip our letters cards around -checking them from front to back, whilst squeezing our brain searching for the right word. 

(3) More Than One Way To Play 

There is more than one way to play Itzi! There is “Colour Itzi” (use only letters that match the Itzi cards), Icon Itzi” (use only letter cards that have the same icon as the one on Itzi card), and more variants! 

(4) Great Design & Detail 

The words on the Itzi cards are printed twice on each card, facing two directions. In other words, you can have multiple players sitting around the table / or opposite of each other, and no one would have a disadvantage because the words are easily readable by all. I LOVE this thoughtful detail! I also love the unique long rectangular game box. 

# gifted in exchange for review 

Where to buy this: 

https://www.colourfullearning.com.au/products/itzi (Australia) 

https://www.m-g.com.au/product/itzi/ (Australia) 

https://www.laughandlearn.com.au/product/itzi/ (Australia) 

Check out my other reviews of Carma Games: 

• Slapzi, by Carma Games 
• Buildzi, by Carma Games

Enjoy the video! 

Slapzi, By Carma Games - REVIEW

Nature/ Type:          Matching card games for kids + adults 

Rating:                     ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ 

Recommended age:  8 year-old ++   

Who would love this: Kids (who can read) + adults that love fast-paced games

The school holiday has started, which means: it’s time for games (and more games!). We tested out “Slapzi” from Carma Games (kindly gifted by Divisible by Zero), and we are loving this fantastic recommendation! 

Why I love ❤️ it: 

(1) Fast-Paced Matching Game - The set comes with 120 unique picture cards and 65 clue cards. The rules are simple. First, each player gets 5 picture cards. Flip over a clue card and places it at the centre. Players rush to be the first person to “slap down” a picture card that matches the clue card. For example, a “doughnut” would fit the description of “Meant to go in your mouth”; “Leaning Tower of Pisa” would meet the “Taller than you” condition. The first player to get rid of all 5 picture cards wins the game. Our 6-year-old loves this game and wanted to play with this over and over. Sometimes, we need to justify our disputable pair, and that’s when it becomes funny! For example, Do we REALLY own more than 5 pairs of scissors? Does a rocking horse have legs? Can a “welcome mat” fits down a chimney? We love the fast-paced, quick thinking game with a hint of silliness! 

(2) Clue Cards - The descriptive clue is printed twice on each clue card, facing two directions (the “normal” and “upside down” ways). In other words, you can have multiple players sitting all around the table / or opposite of each other, and no one would have a disadvantage because the clues are easily readable by all. LOVE this thoughtful detail. 

(3) Double-Sided Picture Cards - The picture cards are double-sided, which adds on to a fun twist. All players would have to frantically flip their pictures cards, checking both front and back to grab the right match. The sheer variety (and randomness) of the pictures (from “eagle”, “sandwich”, to “vacuum cleaner”) means there are bound to be plenty of matching possibilities (and odd choices!). 

(4) Different Game Variants - Slapzi has more than one way to play. The instruction has 7 other variants, e.g. matching two clue cards at the same time, matching “either-or”, or having players race to match spread-out clue cards to pictures simultaneously. (5) I love the quirky long rectangular storage box with 3 compartments - it’s convenient and organised! 

# gifted in exchange for review 

Where to buy this: 

https://www.thetherapystore.com.au/product/slapzi/

Enjoy the video! 

Buildzi, By Carma Games - REVIEW

Nature/ Type:          Colourful Tower-Building Game 

Rating:                     ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ 

Recommended age:  6 year-old ++ 

Who would love this: All ages board game lovers! 

Some games need no explanation: You know instantly it’s going to capture your heart and keep you engaged for hours! Buildzi is exactly that sort of game - it’s creative, colourful, and addictively fun. Thank you Divisible by Zero for providing this really awesome game! 

Why I love ❤️ it: 

(1) Super Fun Building Game - Once you start stacking these blocks into various incredible and almost “gravity-defying” vertical structures, it’s impossible to stop! Buildzi comes with 32 blocks (4 sets of 8), 32 double-sided Tower Cards, and 32 Block Cards. To do the “Tower Cards” version, simply select a challenge, and replicate the structure on the card using a set of 8 pentomino blocks. Some challenges are straightforward and easy to accomplish. Some require certain sequence to be complied with in order to achieve the symmetrical balance to hold up the structures. This is an amazing game that teaches engineering concepts and structural integrity in an entertaining way! There are loads of surprise elements in this game, loads of “wow, I can’t believe I built this!”, and excited exclamations of “woah, it actually stands!”. One side of the cards display the complete colours and arrangements of all 8 blocks. The reverse side of the cards show the silhouette of towers in black, which makes it a tad trickier for kids. 

(2) Different Ways To Play - There are SO MANY ways to play with these blocks: solitarily, competitively, or cooperatively. This is a game for all ages and skill levels. In the “Block Cards” version,  players race to build the most epic tower following the order of the shuffled Block Cards. There is also a “solo game” version where player can build towers at their own pace without pressure of beating the time. 

(3) Colours! - The colours are SO visually attractive; they are BRIGHT, appealing, in rainbow-colours range, and loved by all kids almost immediately! 

(4) Light Weight + Durable Box - Material wise, the blocks are made of light weight plastic, which is a “less scary” option compared to the heavy wooden type. They don’t make deafening loud noises when the block towers collapse (which is great). I also love the sturdy box, with illustrative hints on how to re-arrange the blocks properly back into the box for quick and easy pack-up. 

# gifted in exchange for review 

Where to buy this: 

https://www.thetherapystore.com.au/buildzi (Australia) 

Enjoy the video!