Katamino | The Original Wooden Color Shape Pattern Puzzle Game for Ages 6+ | 1 to 2 Players | 10 Minutes

I am an adult who likes brain teaser puzzle games. I was not particularly good at Tetris, but I am good at IQ XOXO travel game that resembles Tetris. When I saw Katamino being played, I immediately wanted this game as it had brightly painted puzzle blocks that were large & easy to hold, a wooden playing board that was sturdy & well made, & a large playing book full of so many challenges at all playing levels. The book does not provide solutions. I was able to make it through to the 5th level using 5 puzzle blocks per game. I then had to go to the Katamino Problem Solver Channel on youtube for a little help just to get started on higher levels & for solutions if & when needed. This channel offers 250 solutions on pages 6-9 via a computer that are nicely done, but is not interactive.I also found another channel on youtube, AVPVP, that provides solutions for pages numbered 10-11 to include the Super Slam on page 10 & 160 of the Pentas Challenge on page 11 in the form of slide shows. This channel has not been updated in 7 years. You can possibly find this channel by typing: Katamino The Super Slam A5-A11 Solutions for example.I would not have purchased this game were it not for the Katamino Solver on youtube showing me how to play & in providing solutions.This is really a fun game that can easily fill an afternoon. I think that this game would be appreciated by older children & adults as a solo game. I would highly recommend this game.Update: When I was working with The Katamino Problem Solver Channel, I discovered that there was more than 1 solution when I was working the 6s & 7s on the Small Slam. I am finding creative solutions, thinking for myself, growing more skilled & confident. There is an addictive thrill when I am successful in completing a puzzle.Great game!!!!

Beautiful delivery and storage box. All pieces are made of wood. They are carefully prepared, sanded, painted, oiled, stained. They game of puzzles is ingenious, creating hundreds of individual challenging puzzles. Solve one, the next one is incrementally more difficult.

These puzzles are fun and challenging.

Bought this for my 5 year old daughter. This game is freaking awesome. Hundreds of different puzzles to try from easy to super hard. The first time we sat down to play it she had so much fun.

We all love this game. You can play it by yourself, or against one person. My son (5) loves it and currently prefers to play this game than read night time stories! My husband, who is not big puzzler, is captivated by the game. Friends come over of all ages and they want to play the game. There are many variations in game playing. The blocks, called pentaminos - as they are each 5 units in size, can be laid out to make up a pattern as shown in the book. They can be stacked into towers as shown in the book. The board has a dividing bar that is placed to make the playing rectangle space on the board smaller or larger. The larger the playing space the harder the puzzle. With the bar in the 3 position, there are 3 rows of 5 squares, or 15 units, to arrange 3 pentaminos in to cover the rectangle. Move the bar over one and there are 4 rows of 5 squares, or 20 units to place 4 pentaminos in. And so on until the entire board and all the pentaminos are used. There are also some unit size blocks that can be used to fill the board for younger children. The blocks and board of make of solid wood and the paints are bright fun colors. This game feels good in your hands and is super fun to both play and challenge yourself.

Certainly if you (or the person you give this to) enjoys a puzzle challenge and has the patience, Katamino should keep you occupied for a good long time. The progressive concept works nice - I completed the first few challenges pretty easily, then when I got to a puzzle involving six pieces, it got to be a good brain teaser. It's also nice that this game can be played solo, or as a team effort.For the money, the wooden version of this game is decent, but it's nothing to write home about. If you just want the game and the board size/material is less important to you, note that there is a "travel" version of this game that's about $15 less expensive, as of this review.Where they really kinda skimped though is the manual, IMHOP. When this game first came out, the manual was spiral bound, and appears to have had more pages. The current included manual is printed on sturdy stock, but as the challenges progress, the 'set up' images get smaller and smaller. Perhaps more frustrating though, is that while there may be more than one solution to each challenge, there are NO solutions provided (other than a map for getting all of the pieces back on the board for storage). If you run into a puzzle you just can't solve, the lack of a solution to refer to could be really frustrating. :)***UPDATE***Good news! There's now at least one YouTube channel devoted to solving Katamino puzzles, and the presentations are very well done. Thanks to all who posted these solutions!!!

Great challenge for kids and adults

I absolutely love Katamino! It is fun! It makes your brain work! It makes a perfect intellegent gift!I first saw it at my sister's house and instantly was hooked. My 15 year-old nephew spent most of the weekend solving it and moving from level to level. Then my 60-year old mom got hooked too and my sister gave it to her for a birthday. Mom thought it was the best gift! then I bought it for my husband who also loved it. even my 5-year old daughter started solving easier levels! sinve then we have given it to two more people as a gift. I am pretty sure we will keep doing it. the pieces are very coloful, very well made! I would say look no further for a nice gift!