When a game promises strikes, spares, and plenty of wonder, it's hard not to roll with it. But did Itten Wonder Bowling bowl me over, or did it end up being a bit of a gutter ball?
Upon opening Itten Wonder Bowling, the components are about as simple and straightforward as the rules themselves. Inside the box you'll find strike and scoring tiles, ten small plastic pins, and the "bowling ball" – a larger and smaller ball attached to either end of a stick. The box itself doubles as the bowling alley. Setup is just as easy: place the pins on the box, take two strike tiles and two scoring tiles, and you're ready to play.
As already mentioned, the rules are incredibly simple to learn. Each player takes two strike tiles and two scoring tiles (numbered 2–9) at random. Players then take turns striking the box with the ball-on-a-stick contraption, aiming to knock over pins while leaving exactly the number shown on one of their scoring tiles still standing. Alternatively, players can attempt to score a strike, which in Wonder Bowling means leaving a single pin standing. If they do, they may either flip over both scoring tiles or one strike tile. The first player to flip over all of their tiles wins.
However, there's a catch (you didn't think it would be that simple, did you?). If a player knocks over all ten pins, they must take an additional scoring tile to complete. Likewise, if a player fails to knock over any pins, they get one more attempt before also taking an extra scoring tile. If there are no scoring tiles left to take, that player is immediately eliminated. And that's Wonder Bowling in a nutshell.
Look and Feel
The components are simple, but they feel surprisingly satisfying. The bowling-ball stick has a pleasant weight to it, while the pins, though small, feel sturdy and are weighted just enough to topple convincingly. The compact travel-sized box, which also serves as the bowling alley, is particularly clever. Everything fits neatly into the package, with no wasted space – a nice example of efficient Japanese design.
Gameplay
Wonder Bowling isn't going to win awards for complexity, and there are certainly more demanding dexterity games available. However, as a light, accessible family game, it scores a strike.
There are a couple of minor issues with the gameplay, though. Because the pins are only reset when someone scores a strike or knocks down all ten pins, players later in the turn order can sometimes find themselves at a disadvantage. For example, if your scoring tiles are 8 and 9, while earlier players are aiming for lower numbers, they're likely to be hitting the alley harder and removing more pins. By the time your turn comes around, your only realistic option may be to go for a strike.
There was also one memorable situation where the worst player somehow managed to win through failure – which sounds ridiculous, but bear with me. I had failed on almost every turn and exhausted the central pool of penalty scoring tiles, leaving me with around six incomplete tiles. This triggered a sudden-death situation in which knocking down no pins or all ten pins would immediately eliminate a player.
After repeatedly failing to knock down anything and generally performing terribly throughout the game, I then sat back and watched the other players eliminate themselves one by one.
Somehow, despite being arguably the worst player at the table, I ended up as the last player standing. Unsurprisingly, this outcome wasn't particularly popular with some of the other players!
Would I Recommend It?
If you're looking for a quick, easy-to-learn, fun, and compact travel game for families, absolutely.
If you're looking for something highly replayable, tactical, or skill-based, probably not.
Wonder Bowling is best enjoyed as a light-hearted filler game: simple, portable, and entertaining for a few rounds, even if it occasionally rewards failure more than success.
