Dimension puzzle game review

Not all board games we play have to be drenched with an engaging theme to be fun.

Many times, a cool abstract game can offer even more fun for our family to enjoy together.

Dimension is one of those games.

In Dimension, players must build their own pyramid using colored spheres before the timer runs out. It isn’t a race to see who can build their pyramid the fastest.

Instead, the crux of the game is making sure your pyramid complies with the 6 placement rules each round.

It can be a bit tricky. But each round goes by so quickly, it’s easy to play over and over while enjoying one another’s company.

Check out how to play Dimension in Brooke’s short video review.

Can the whole family enjoy Dimension?

Dimension is absolutely a game the whole family can enjoy together!

Even though the box may say ages 8+, kids younger than 8 can definitely join in the fun.

As Brooke shows in her video review, stacking the spheres to build a pyramid is something anyone can do – young or old. The catch is constructing your pyramid in such a way that it’s in compliance with the 6 rules for the round.

So as long as those playing can keep those 6 rules in mind, they’ll be all set.

Of course, that doesn’t mean players (young or old) won’t be scratching their head on how to make it all work. But it’s a fun mental exercise to figure it out.

And if your youngsters have a hard time keeping track of 6 rules and feel the pressure of the timer, go ahead and scale back the number of rules they have to follow.

Maybe set out 6 rules for the older players and designate just 4 of those rules as ones for the younger kids to work with.

The only downside we’ve found is that only 4 people can play at a time. So with more than 4 in our family, not all of us can play at once. Darn.

 

Why we love Dimension

There are a lot of reasons why we love Dimension.

For starters, it’s a very engaging game because of the components. The large, colorful spheres are simply fun to play with. And the player boards are great for holding the spheres in place – both those in reserve as well as for the base of the pyramid.

The game comes with rubber feet that you attach to the bottom of the player boards before your first game. These feet make the board stand up a bit off the table so the spheres can rest in them easily. Very cool.

Dimension is also very easy to jump into and start playing. Explaining the game is simple and set up takes just a minute. Everyone just needs a player board, 3 spheres of each color, and 10 starting points. Shuffle the rule cards and you’re ready to go.

One of the things we love most about Dimension is the simultaneous play. There isn’t any waiting around to take turns. Everyone builds their pyramid at the same time.

No waiting, just playing. The zero downtime is fantastic!

The game is played over the course of 6 quick game rounds. Each round only lasts as long as the timer. And scoring at the end of each round goes very quickly as well. Then players clear their pyramids, 6 new rule cards are revealed, and everyone is off and stacking.

Another big plus of Dimension is something we’ve referred to before – the mental engagement.

This puzzle game is great for developing young brains. (It’s not so bad for older brains either.)

The 3D nature of Dimension is great for working those spacial reasoning faculties.

And even though players are technically competing against each other for the highest score, the nature of Dimension feels more like competing against yourself.

It’s a game where we don’t really get caught up in the final score. Instead the fun of the game is the mental challenge itself. All players can walk away feeling good about themselves for mastering the challenge.

The last reason we’ll mention about what we love about Dimension is that it allows for plenty of conversation around the table.

Not all games allow for casual conversation during game play. For example, a lot of deduction or strategy board games fall into this category — where players quietly sit and think through things while waiting for their turn. But in Dimension, even though players are figuring out the best structure while building. Once complete, there’s plenty of talking around the table between rounds.

Dimension is a great puzzle game for family play!

 

How does Dimension score on our “Let’s Play Again” game meter?

As you’ve probably guessed, Dimension scores high on our “let’s play again” game meter — for all those reasons mentioned above.

It’s simple to play. It’s engaging. It’s a fun challenge. And once out, it’s so easy (and tempting) to play multiple times in a row.

There’s a lot of fun in it for families.

Thanks Kosmos for a great family puzzle game!

(Another great family puzzle game from Kosmos is Ubongo – check it out too.)