Get up and grow
Sometimes it’s nice to slow down and watch the flowers. And thwart your opponents’ attempt to grow things. And in Bloomchasers you get to do just that. Groovy.
Bloomchasers is a lightweight strategy game for 1-6 players, with a playing time of 30-60 minutes. Setup is quick and the rules are few, making this accessible to casual and new boardgamers, children, and crafty adults. The default game is competitive, but solo and co-op variants are additionally built in. There is also a Birds and Bees expansion.
3D tree, you say?
Who doesn’t like a 3D board game? Done well, it is inviting and of course, has the novelty factor. And at the centre of Bloomchasers is a tree trunk that develops into a colourful tree during play. Players place branches, and grow flowers of their colour, leading to a satisfying 3D model that doesn’t hog the table.
Bud, bloom, block
Place buds on a tree, watch them bloom into flowers and count your points. Oh, and block your opponents’ growing efforts. That’s it. More or less. This is how it works:
Set up:
- Place the tree trunk in the middle of your playing space
- Place three random weather cards face up on the table
- Shuffle another six weather cards with two Bloom cards and place in a pile face-down. Place remaining cards in the box
- Select your colour
On your turn:
- Place a branch on the tree trunk
- Add a weather card to the two already available (except on the first turn, when there are already three)
- Choose one of the three cards and place a bud accordingly (don’t forget opportunities to play multiple buds if you have the flower type specified on the card already on the tree!)
Play passes to the next player…and the next…until…
Someone draws a BLOOM card.
Starting with that player, place a group of 3 flowers. If you can. Use three of your buds in the right configuration to place your flower. Or if you’re feeling feisty, use two of your buds and one of an opponent’s colour. Congratulations, you’ve just stolen your first bud and made your first enemy. You devious devil, you.
Players continue to place flowers in turn, until they cannot (players who play no flowers wait until the end of the round, and then place a bud instead).
The player who drew the Bloom card places it to one side and resumes their turn as normal.
After both Bloom cards are played, they are re-shuffled into the draw pile.
When all branches have been played, it’s time to count those flowers, with rarer flower types scoring higher than others. Boom! Or…er...bloom…game over.
Components
The component quality is reasonable, although tree and flower parts could be more refined. Colours are distinct, and group types obvious. The daisy-like design is pleasing and the blooms robust. More care was needed when designing the buds, as these can launch themselves off of the tree when the table is jolted or when players try to place their flowers.
The cards are simple and contain all of the information required. Iconography is well used. The instruction booklet is clear and simple, with a small FAQ. This covers most questions, although we were divided on whether buds above another counted as being next to those below.
The inserts hold everything well in the nicely-finished box, although it can take a minute to orient the tree trunk just right. There is even space for the expansion. The original bagging of the parts is unhelpful, but once the branches are in the bag and the buds and blooms organised by colour, setup becomes quick.
A blooming good time
Very Special Games have designed an inviting 3D puzzle which is accessible to a range of abilities. Its fast setup and low table space requirement make Bloomchasers easy to get to the table, and its clarity in design makes it simple to play.
A complicated game this is not, although there is an opportunity for tactical bud-placing and blooming. For the beginner, it is unintimidating and welcoming. For the heavyweight gamers, it is a nice palette-cleanser.
So if you want to add something a little different to your collection, there’s nothing more to say than ready…set…grow!
