Takenoko - Shut Up & Sit Down Review 

My wife and I love this game. Simple, not too long. Not a brain burner. Nice after a long day of work. My wife isn't one for complex, long games. She loves this one and I love playing it with her.

I will forever be thankful for this game, it's the game that finally got my girlfriend to start playing board games with me and has led to so many more. And we still find it fun for what it is, so I'll have to respectfully disagree with you on this one. Cheers!

In future Nopeners, I'd love to see you talk about a handful of games that you think do the same sort of thing as the game in question, but better! Cosmic Encounter seems like a bit of an orange to Takenoko's . . . bamboo.

I respectfully disagree with 2014 Matt Lees. Takenoko is a great gateway game that's fun and cute! I've also found that when playing with experienced players it's actually pretty easy to figure out what objectives the other players are working on. To each their own but I love Takenoko!

I miss Matt's big-hair days.

My wife and I also love this game - it’s one of her favourites - this and Viticulture - and we’ve never found it boring at all. Quite the opposite. Maybe it helps that I’m forced to go “num num num in my tummy” every time the panda eats some bamboo.. We recently got the chibis expansion with the Lady Panda (pandas are very formal and rarely use their first names) which adds some nice elements and fixes a few balance issues. But it’s a solid fun game, and provides hours of entertainment. My wife asked if we can play TI3 next week as it has cool ships. I’m concerned about what sound effects I’ll have to make for the Lion..

Nice review. I love a bit of solo Matt action and I appreciate that you guys aren't afraid to criticize. Some other board game channels just praise everything and it becomes hard to know what they really like/dislike.

わかりません　= "I don't understand" やめて = "Stop it" なに = "what?" 死にそう = "I am going to die" 危ない = "Dangerous" That was fun stuff. Hehe. :P

So this might be an unpoppular oppinion or just something that happened to us . We played Takenoko in a public cafe for the first time and we bought it for the wooden pieces and the genral feel of cuteness. We played it with several group of people most of them new to board games and they all loved it . The feeeling of building something of changing the board and in small ocasions in realising what other people are trying to do and locking in their eyes while you ruin their last 4 turns was priceless and always fun . Anddd there is the 2nd part of this the fact that me and my girlfriend have played so much of it only us two and we know most of the cards and moves . With all that knoledge it turned in to a really complexe strategy game where you need to prevent the other person from completing their tasks. We tried a 4 player game where you can se the cards of other players with some of out veteran board game friends and it was a whole new beast. I think this review is fair that the game does not offer much but in comparison to other games it is a much more powerful tool in making people like boardgames . You just need to know how to set up the game and make people interact give them hints and have fun bulling up on people that have completed more cards thay the rest of you.

The review boils down to the reviewer not being able to read his opponents. When I first got the game in 2013, each time I thought the game to a new player, they bought a copy. Years later, folks still want to play it with me. It’s an evergreen game for my play groups, and a go to gateway.

Thanks for uploading all of these older videos! I know you get a LOT of crap when you criticize something that many love, but I really value your opinion and LOVE hearing different viewpoints on games. No game will be loved by everyone and it's important to hear about the aspects people may potentially dislike. This is a subjective endeavor and the best you can do is be entirely honest about your experience - and you always do that with such flair and kindness!

This is one of my favorite games to teach people new to gaming. Then again, there are other games that I do consider better for new players. That being said...while I disagree with some of your points, I hold nothing against you. Keep up the great videos. Looking forward to the next one as always!

I love takenoko. Its a great game. I dont think its a gateway game more of an intro medium weight game. Its easy enough to know what ur opponents objectives are just by looking at how they move their panda and farmer or how they place their tiles.

"no way of impacting other players"?! the missions in this game are VERY simple to figure out, and therefor thwart. We love this game, and enjoy it every time

Years after first playing, someone told me about the variants included in the expansion that can be used in the base game: 1) The Panda can't eat the bottom stump, only the upper sections, Pandas aren't stump removers. 2) For each set of 3 different objective types completed, earn an additional 3 points. Using this variant made the game much more enjoyable and secured it a spot in my collection.

I can only disagree. Great game to play with my kids and I don't ever feel bored playing it. It's a fast game when everyone know the rules and it's not that difficult to figure out what other players are trying to do and block them or take advantage of that for yourself. I guess it's one of those "If everyone liked blue, what would happen to yellow?"

Just yesterday, I played this game with my cousin.. & Oh My God, that was the 1st time I found someone who desperately wants to play the same game over & over again (Yeah, we spent 2 hours playing it 3 times, won't mind the 4th, but the clock did mind).. I just love this game.. Love the artwork, love the mechanic, love how smooth it is to teach to newbies.. My Top1 Gateway Board Game ever..

I admire the honesty of this review. Thanks SU&SD

Weird choice for a "nopener". There's a reason Takenoko is popular and it's not that people enjoy being bored. It's that, yes, it's pleasant to play with, but also it does give you lots of little strategic choices, and there is plenty of interaction bc you do get an idea of what people are trying to do *by watching what they do*. Not sure why players having hidden objectives is inherently boring? Look I do love SU&SD and if it didn't click with you it didn't click with you. Just think the reasoning for why you didn't like Takenoko was itself... a bit thin.

I felt like one of the pleasures of this game was the kind of character that you could project onto it - like, with each of the weather rolls, you could say something about the character of the panda with how he scuttles away in terrified fear and comfort-eats some bamboo to calm himself down every time lightning strikes, or how the gardener is living in an absurdist nightmare where he just wants to make his nice garden bigger and more efficient even though he viciously hates the panda that keeps destroying his work and he can't get rid of it, or how the emperor is basically Prince George in Blackadder the Third in how he clearly has no idea how to actually be an emperor yet is unreasonably happy anyway. I think Takenoko is one of those games where people enjoy playing it not because it's strategically deep but because they enjoy spending time in that world and just playing around with those characters. Kind of like Life Is Strange - for all its flaws, that game is really popular because their characters resonate with players. They certainly do with me. It's just nice. I like nice things.

Takenoko has been one of my favourite games since I first played it. It's very simple and very calming. It's a fast game to play and it looks beautiful. It definitely earned a permanent place in my collection.

"Hot Toddy - I don't understand!" Nice ;)

Way to improve on the hot toddy, simmer a chunk of ginger in some water for 15 minutes (and longer for a really firey flavour), and use this instead of the plain hot water. This makes a ginger tea, really gives a kick to the toddy.

This was my gf's first board game I bought her in 2015. Tho she has moved on to other more complicated games now. She still says it's her favorite mostly due to nostalgia, as it showed her that boardgames don't have to be competitive. (Which was the main reason she wasn't interested in board games in the first place). But I agree, I dread having to play this game more then once every few months. But I will say it is great for kids, and new players looking for something simple.

As someone who can read Japanese, thanks for the laugh.

Takenoko was one of the first games I bought. I absolutely love it. We've got it to the table a few times and it's been well received. It's good to just have a bit of a chill out between more intense longer games, as it's so light and playful. :]

I'm in a weird position. Just bought Terraforming Mars and Takenoko for my birthday today. I also love your reviews. So I started the Terraforming Mars video review for my fiance and you guys couldn't recommend it. But we played it and she was like "huh they were wrong" And now I watched this and she goes "babe maybe they just suck at reviews, because they said Mars sucked too but it's a great game and I had fun" So now I can't watch your videos around her because she thinks you guys have bad taste in games lmao

Hot Toddy... add the whiskey...ALL of the whiskey! LOL

I've played this game once and enjoy it, but that was with the expansions and everyone else said it's usually quite a passive polite game but that time it was quite aggressive. But a game should not need an expansion to be good. Good little review and glad to see you back Matt 😁

for a family game its ok, wife and daughter, its fun and beautiful

Loved the channel, you guys are adorable! The sincere review is always welcome, it is really hard to find trustworthy reviews.

Funnily enough this was my first boardgame purchase after discovering modern boardgames and it lasted exactly one go before I exchanged it...agree with everything said!

aw :( my heart cried a little bit, I love this game - still love your reviews though!

What if you keep your objectives cards face up? would it make the game better, more fun?

A friend of mine bought the game while we were hanging out together along with my little sister (who doesn't play games that much). My friend found it fun, but My sis and I really didn't want to play again. It was pretty boring, even for a chill day. I think we switched up to Ascension afterwards. - J

Have to disagree with you. I played it with my 3 kids, and didn't enjoy that first game much, so it sat on the shelf for months. My 8y old son and I played again, and we REALLY enjoyed it - quick, simple decisions but with some strategy too. Our first game, he stomped on me with a panda strategy. Which led to look on bgg forums about whether that is broken or not. Found out expansion fixed it with 2 simple rules: 1. Panda cannot eat first bamboo on any plot (so makes panda objectives a bit harder) 2. At end of game, every set of completed objectives (ie panda + plot + gardener) is worth 3 bonus points - this encourages variation in play + strategy. Played my son again, and had N epic game with both of us figuring out each others objectives + me winning 41 vs 40 (even though he got emperor card with 2 points). Fantastic fix to that issue + really fun game! I think the reason the very first game went flat was my daughters were not interested.

I played this with some friends and felt that I must have missed something, the pieces all seemed in place, I may have even won (shows how memorable it was for me), but I didn't want to play again.

We love this as a 2-player game, which makes it a lot easier to figure out what the other one is aiming for and screw them over in the process. The online version on BGA is really good, too.

I disagree. I've had a lot of fun with Takenoko since I've owned it. I think it's fair to say that there isn't a lot of direct player interaction because you cannot see other players objectives, but it doesn't feel like I'm playing solitaire. Every time someone moves the Panda, the Gardener, or makes bamboo grow, it's affecting everyone. It's a light game, but a great one for the family or more casual gamers.

The core element that thus review hinges on is not knowing others objectives. After a few games everyone knows there are only like 3 of each type of objective, just the coloure change, so you can figure out what people are going for and ruin their plans, its best to play the first 2-3 games with new players with face up objectives, then you can learn the cards while playing. Also you are limited to a hand of 5.

was waited for this video, you killed me when you said "incredible boring" no need to continue :) thank you very much for telling the absolutely true ....horribly devious :))) Just love your review ! keep the good work, an fantastic review deserve a huge like.

Love you guys. You are my go-to reviewers. But....you are wrong(ish) on this one. Sure, it's simple. But, I do believe you can spot what your opponent is doing and thwart them. It's fun. Great? No. But, fun. Thanks either way. (Did you ever review the expansion)?

Here’s a drinking game; have a swig every time Matt says either “game” or “games”. XD

I don’t normally disagree with these guys cos I think they’re awesome. But this is a hard disagree. Takenoko literally got me into board games, we always want to play it again and again

idk i had fun with this game, well mostly because I would make a game for myself of figuring out what is everyone working towards. After a few plays its quite easy to see patterns in their moves and knowing what cards score most react to those actions. You see a player laying pink tiles together - cock block them with another colour tile, you see player focusing more on moving their gardener to grow three tile high pink bamboo - time for panda to chomp. Its also quite nice that you get to choose your objectives especially with decisions of do you mirror your opponents and ride on their back completing same objectives, or do you do something opposite to what they are so you can score points while denying them theirs.

Get better, Matt! Thanks for the review! =)

Have you tried playing it with the player objectives open? Or all open but one? I wonder if that would be more interesting?

I like this game, but I think there's a problem with the scoring. The "eating bamboo" objectives are the easiest, but they'll give you the same amount of points as the more difficult "growing bamboo" and "laying tiles" objectives. In fact, the eating bamboo objectives can't be blocked by the other players, because the bamboo will stay in your own belly forever, until you use them to complete an objective. Just keep eating bamboo, and you will complete the objectives automatically, finish the game first, get the emperor's extra points and with that win the game, I think... You can prevent this by saying that everyone has to reach at least 2 objectives of every kind, and the game is fun again!

Amazing most of the comments disagree with this

Matt's reviews are often hit and miss, and in this instance he took up the bat, swung at the ball, and not only missed but swung the bat so far around himself that he clubbed himself on the face. To outright say this is bad game when so many love and adore it is just misguided. Sure, people are welcome to their opinions and preferences when it comes to board gaming, but the fact that this review is trying to convince people that the game is just bad and not worth buying, is frankly disappointing.

its a game about open source. It teaches kids that while you chase your own goals the open source resource can grow.

I've lived off of hot toddies this winter... I've found a blended scotch to work phenomenally well, and I stir it with a cinnamon stick.

I agree. Takenoko is a game that we never go back to. It's boring with little opportunity for interaction.

Well, I disagree, but that's ok.

I came for Matt in a giant panda bear costume.......... I was disappointed.

i watched the review and read the comments , it is interesting to see different opinion but given in a good way

I've played this game a few times and had little trouble in judging broadly what my opponents were attempting to do and stymieing their actions by tactical movement of the panda or the gardener. It's really not all that complicated: If someone's trying to build pink bamboo in a square, then you send the panda in to eat it. If they look like they're trying to set up a particular shape (like three tiles in a row), then send the gardener somewhere such that they won't be able to reach the tile they want on their turn.

I think this is a case where the game isn't a deep tabletop game, but it's an excellent board game for kids that teaches some math and basic strategy. It's really not a deep and interactive game. I played this with my girlfriend a long time back and we enjoyed it as a diversion at the tabletop coffee shop. As you mention, it's a really smooth introduction to the world of tabletopping. It's not a crunchy or social one though.

You are so funny and so british and I wanna say thankyou for making me smile. 😘

Well, for me its boring too, but I have it because I have a lot of friends and family members who dont like screwing anyone over but they dont want to play cooperative either. I think this game is a good family weight game. Dont get me wrong I wont ever play it if I can play something better but there are people who will want to play this and then I will play with them.

Is it possible that the game is supposed to be a bit of a Zen experience? Whether it succeeds or not is another matter, but your critique may in face be the way the game is designed to be played? Shrug.

Certainly a well presented review that is spot on. I own and indeed enjoy Takenoko (for what it is). As much as I've tried to play this with my 8 yr old daughter, she just never got into it. All that being said, I still like the game and it looks really pretty so it'll stay on my shelf a while longer.

I nearly bought this game a few months ago, but Matt's review made me hesitant. Last night I finally got round to playing it and . . . I liked it. A lot. So much so, I'll be picking up my own copy later this week. I see Matt's points, but my collection needs a nice relaxing game that can be used to bring others to the hobby, and this should do the trick. While reviews are great (and I mostly match SU&SD's thoughts like 95% of the time on everything else I play) you can't beat a bit of "try before you buy".

Honestly, for me the fact that objectives are hidden adds something quite nice to the game. Not only are you trying to look for the patterns that others are making, but at the same time it's also about using the moves from other players for your personal objectives. Last game I played, I prevented my brother for about 4 or 5 turns to finish up on one of his objectives. He was always really close and eventually he got it. Not because I couldn't do anything about it but because his last move aided me in finishing my objective. That's what I love about Takenoko. It's a relatively simple puzzle with at the same time the element of trying to assess what the other players are up to. And using their moves for your own gain. I feel like it's quite a bit more aggressive and devious than some other gateway strategy games simply because it isn't necessarily about blocking a player immediately. But rather using their moves in combination with your own to gain as many points as possible. Call it a COOP game where the others are unwillingly helping you to achieve your objective. The fact that you can subtely influence their aid is excellent imo.

I was searching for tokaido. I found this. What if you just play the game pretending that the rule is that you need to keep your tasks open for everyone to see?

I help run a public games event in at Heffers Bookshop Cambridge and if people are looking around in awe at the fact that boardgames arent just Monopoly anymore I generally sit them down and play Takenoko. It has that easy on ramp of foundational rules, its quick, non-confrontational, its super cute! Once they are done they have all our other games to play and might even pick those rules up easier and have found some people to play with. NOPENER you will not deter me!!! But you’re right, I’ll almost never play it apart from with some newbies. Takenoko, its fantastic (with caveats).

Disagree this time: I love this game. I think the chance element makes it interesting. But disagreeing isn't a bad thing at all: great review as always!

We love this game!

Can you guys create an opener playlist? Since you don't put it in the title it's kinda hard to find em all! They're my favorite

Cute - agree, boring - disagree. You can interact by limiting options for players by moving panda in places where move will not give them anything. Playing more will allow you to learn garden missions and gardner tasks that gives many points so you may act to do what you need and prevent someone from completing their tasks. I understand it may not be your style, but it is not fully accurate review :)

I feel like they picked the wrong person to do this review, Takenoko is a fine game.

The game is charming and is a family favorite! Love you guys, but obviously this one is just a difference of opinion 🤔

I want a hot toddy now. I love how you put more whisky than water in.

Me, my family, my friends, basically everyone I played it with must respectfully disagree with your review. It is a semicompetitive game with a zen feeling. Very relaxing. Does it's job of relaxing and amusing time very well.

Completely disagree with mostly everything in the review, still entertaining though so keep it up.

This one is interesting. My (casual) board games group have played both Cosmic Encounter and Takenoko. Takenoko *is* a very simple game. We play it with the objective cards face up, though, so perhaps that fixes your issues with it. The general consensus has been that Takenoko was fun, relaxed, and sociable, while Cosmic Encounter required a lot of stopping and checking the conditions of other players, more time spent explaining rules and sorting out components. Certainly not the worst game ever, and also not the most hard core group (they love Talisman, for example) but I think something I'm finding with SUSD reviews is that they are aimed at more of a core market for gaming than I am part of. Mostly this comes up whenever they delight in the density of the rulebook :P

I love this game. One of the strategic factors you haven't really discussed is you have to choose between trying to finish the low value, quick missions and get the extra points for finishing first (but risk a lower score) vs going for the higher value missions which risk falling behind and completing less missions.

I like Takenoko for what it is. And specifically for what it is. Kids and Casual Gamers can enjoy the game because of its cuteness and heavy dose of luck instead of strategy. Even though you can still increase your chance to win by applying strategy. Either way, we like it as a family and when in-laws come in for the cute board games. I agree that you don't want to request for another game but I can play it with the kids right before bed or use it for a relaxing filler game in between brain heavy strategy games (for the casual). I would have liked to hear your recommendation for alternatives instead of saying it's not as good and leave us without an idea of a replacement. I still really enjoy the vids and I'm glad to see more of these! Thanks!

It's funny that I see exactly where you're coming from on all those points...but this was one of the games that got me and my friend group into BGs. Mostly, like you said, because it introduced to a lot of mechanics we didn't think could be in board games and the aesthetic. We don't play it that often but we still bust it out sometimes and got an expansion recently. Recently played Cosmic Encounter for the first time after a few years of playing board games. Absolutely hated it haha (might've had to do with the group not being a good mix). I was disappointed in myself for hating such a classic. But there's a game for everybody out there.

Takenoko is an outstanding and entertaining game that I've played with dozens and dozens of people. They've all enjoyed it quite a bit. Is it a super deep and detailed and full of conflict? No. Is it a great quick game that you can play with friends when you don't have hours to give and just want to get through a few games after dinner? Yes, of course. It's a game that should be in everyone's collection. It's not completely random. Once you've played it a few times, you start to catch on quite quickly to what other players are trying to do and it's quite easy to mess up what they're doing and impact the game. Go get the game, you'll enjoy it. This guy is the first person I've ever met who didn't enjoy it.

How is it if the objectives aren't hidden? Does that even work?

Wish I had seen this earlier. I did pick it up and my kids found it really boring. They prefer Survive and Pompei.

I've got a cubby hole consisting of games I'd have sold long ago but my girlfriend wont let me and that's where my copy of Takenoko sits

Man, Takenoko is my favorite game - I definitely disagree with this. I much prefer low-to-mid complexity games than the most of the games you guys have recommended. Love your channel, respectfully disagree on this video.

I have to agree. I bought this game when I was new to the hobby after watching the Tabletop episode. I thought it looked really appealing and that the cute design might appeal to my non-gamer roommates at the time, too. We played it once and I thought it was dull as hell. Ended up trading it away after that; we never wanted to play it again.

Old Matt, what a wonderful Matt

i love this game and it plays very well on board game arena

It would be cool to see a 2 player version of this where the gardener is trying to keep up with the hungry panda. Hidden info would make more sense there, co-op?

I respectfully disagree, though I do see your point(s). I love big games like xia, star wars: rebellion, fields of arsle, eclipse, mage wars or one of my favorites, caverna, you get the idea. But sometimes I love turning off my brain (apart from some very light puzzling) and just watching a cute panda eating some cute little bamboo pieces. I understand why you wouldn't recommend this game, But it seems like you're implying this game should never hit the table and that I disagree with. But I am glad you recognize this as a possible gateway game, especially for children. I'm not starting my kids off with any of those other games but I am going to try this with them.

This was a good assessment. I played the game, and thought it was beautiful, but dull. This review puts into words what I couldn't figure out for myself. I have a better grasp now of why it doesn't work for me.

I'm gonna defend Takenoko as good introduction to stategy boardgames (learning to manage resources and multiple objectives) for non-strategy boardgamers. I had a lot of fun teaching it to wife/coworkers/non-boardgaming friends etc, and everyone seemed to enjoy it as a fun lunchtime game. It is not too competitive, not an objectionable theme, and there is a little messing with people, as with some experience you can determine what they are chasing by their actions. Negatives for us was the "hold a bunch of points back till the end" and if you allowing top-decking points from the objectives pile, can result in massive power shifts in the last turn (though everyone can do it) that seem a bit unearned. Not saying there isn't better games, but am saying I found about 6 people who have all enjoyed it enough to play it a few times.

Love this review. I feel like Takenoko isn't that great of a game, but few people want to come out and say it. It's very pretty, it's cute, it feels pretty fun to play for a few games. It's good for casual gaming. But examining the actual game design makes it fall apart. It's really just a race in the end. I've basically never seen anyone win unless they were the first to finish their objectives. And if you're just going to play a casual, not-that-competitive nice looking game, I think Tokaido fills that much better.

What do i do with the 2 big panda plates? Are they decoration only next to the green/pink/yellow plates? And i got only 10 of 11 green plates, are all needed for balance?

Twilight Imperium is the best game for children. If it's boring for adults, it'll be boring for kids too.

I like many of the people in the comments have to disagree. The main complaint that I saw was that you can't see what other people are trying to accomplish. That is incredibly easy to solve. Just have everyone show their goal cards. If you are looking for more conflict which sounds like is the complaint than that should solve your issue.

They fewer points than has the Green Card at end is a little bit frustrating for me. 2 points doesn't count much to mark a real diference.

Poor Brendan.

Bought Takenoko for my girlfriend as the first game in our collection, and she is IN LOVE with it. She keeps asking to play over and over again. Now we want to find new games to add some variety to our weekends, but I'm struggling to find any other that might live up to expectations. I cannot find anything close to the combination of gameplay simplicity, strategy variety, component quality and, of course, cuteness that this game provides. That's how much we (respectfully) disagree with the review ;) Any ideas welcome hehe

So I have a quick question... would there be any value to not hiding one’s hand? Playing with the cards turned up on the table for the rest of the group to see? I feel like that was a big part of why the game came across as a bit broken in the review. Could that help fix it in anyway or does it still fail? Love the show!!!

Takenoko is the first game I ever bought. I play it with my partner and we both love it. If you like the art style but want something a little more challenging try Tokaido. Its another great game and is very pretty to look at :)