Black Hole Rainbows: Kickstarter Preview/Review

Black Hole Rainbows isn't a Dio song (I don't think it is at least) but from the moment you open the box, it looks and feels like a premium product. Between the neoprene galaxy mat, the metal coins, and the acrylic rainbow bits that look like something Walter White cooked up, it all looks and feels incredible.

In the game, you are attempting to erupt black holes (your player mat) using quantum rainbow particles (chunky acrylic bits) to get the most supernova coins at the end of the game. You can get these by completing a rainbow of each color bit or by rolling a special D-20 where you have a 3 in 20 chance to immediately get a free coin. Each turn, you roll the die and do what it says. It can range from either giving your opponents your stones or getting a free one from the middle. There is also a deck of cards that have powers that can be played to help shift the game back in your direction.

The Good: The overall quality of this game is unmatched. It's easily one of the most tactile games that I've had the chance to play. Even the dice feel nice in your hands. The player loop is also very nice with 3 quick phases, 4 if you roll the D-20. I also love that it scales to 6 players. There are not enough games like that that will do that.

The Okay: In the 2 player game that we played there didn’t always feel like there were a lot of crunchy decisions to be made beyond what piece should I give my opponent and what two should I take.

The Not So Good: I will never be a fan of round cards. They are difficult to truly shuffle and are a hassle to play with. This is not a dealbreaker by any means since what matters is what the cards can do. The box could be slimmed down with the number of components that it has. It should not be a dealbreaker for someone by any means but it's a bit of a shelf hog.

Final Score: 7/10 supernova rainbow quantum chunky bits.

This one surprised me a lot actually. It has some really nice core mechanics that led to a very fun game. It's simple enough to teach somebody in a short amount of time while being engaging the whole way through. I can't wait to play this with more players and with my girls when they get old enough to not eat the acrylic pieces.

If you want to check this one out yourself and back it on Kickstarter, click here!