Sky Towers Game Review
You are a fellow Mayor, and it’s bestowed upon you to fill your city with beautiful towers from around the world- that and yellow kites! But you are not alone in this, for your competitors are doing the very same. Do you have what it takes to build the perfect city?
Card stacking + Captivating towers worldwide + Kites= Sky Towers!
While the gaming world has seen its fair share of card-stacking games, Sky Tower has certainly been a breath of fresh air to me. Designed by Charles Ward and published by Ex First Games, Sky Towers involves stacking cards to create towers that add up to exactly 21 (each card has numbers from 1 to 10). Completed towers earn you points based on the number of kites on the card, and the player with the most kites wins! And there’s more- be it effects that each card has, restriction via the top-card of your neighbor’s nearest tower, or the bonuses you can get from completing towers in a particular manner.
But does it make the game repeatable? What is the ideal number of players for this game? Can the game be played at different levels? Let’s find out!
All you need to play Sky Towers
Let’s start with the good news- the game features only beautifully illustrated cards. No extra components are required! Unless you count a flat surface as a component.
As for the challenging aspect- the game has a lot of cards! Sky Towers has 104 cards in total, so it might take a while to build the print-and-play version, especially if you are a noob at building games; in other words, if you fall into my category! I printed them out on cardstock paper and opted for card sleeves, business as usual.
Reverting to good news- the boxed version of the game is available for purchase at Ex First Games! And when I say available, I mean top-quality cards that do justice to the amazing artwork of Sky Towers. Think of the PnP version of the game as a litmus test to help you decide if it’s worth buying. By the end of this article, you might be able to make that decision!
With the cards sorted out (via building, or purchasing the game), it’s time to find a handy video tutorial for Sky Towers. Learn the game straight from the horse’s mouth, by checking out the video of Charles Ward, where he also tries out the solo variant of the game. Find the video at the end of the article.
My take on Sky Towers
A game of many layers
Playing Sky Towers multiple times made me realize how deep the gameplay can go. The game is much more than just completing towers; a lot depends on when you are taking the right moves. For example- it may not be ideal to go for the bonus cards at the early stages of the game, since your opponents may end up snatching it later.
You may also want to be mindful as to which cards you’re using to complete the towers. Using an 8,9 or 10 may help you complete a tower quickly, but they have no kites. In the meantime, using a 1, 2, or 3 to build a tower will grant you more kites, but it will take longer to complete the towers.
Every time a player uses a card to build a tower (except for 1 and 10), be prepared for an effect to take place! Be it swapping cards, peeking at the top card of the drawing deck, or revealing a card; it adds another dimension to the game. And to make things even more interesting, the top card of your neighbor’s nearest tower determines which cards you can’t use to build- and vice versa- which can be truly pivotal.
You’ll be pretty good at Sky Towers if you know:
When to (and not to) use the Bonus Cards
The right combination of numbers to build the towers
When it’s the right time to destroy a tower
When to use the 8 & 9 cards next to your opponent’s tower that’s blocking you
How to make the most of the effects of cards during the building phase
The more I’ve played Sky Towers, the better I am getting the hang of it. Despite winning the game a few times, I’m finding the game quite repeatable- kudos to its depth!
Gradual exposure can be rewarding!
If you’ve read my articles before, you know by now that I’m a huge fan of customizing games. As for Sky Towers, the only thing I tried altering and found to be quite rewarding is introducing a few levels to them.
Context- I am blessed with a big bunch of friends who play PNP/board games, but their skill levels/patience vary significantly.
Level 1
Removed: Effects of cards + Top-card effect of neighbor’s tower
Result: Fast-paced game, entertaining, but less interactive. The only couple of influences the opponents have over each other are snatching the bonus cards and the cards that are drawn by each player. The game typically lasts between 15 to 20 minutes on average.
Level 2
Same as the original game but the Top-card effect of the neighbor’s tower is removed
Result: A slow burn, but much more interactive. With effects and bonuses being a part of the gameplay, it got much more competitive.
But more than that, the gameplay became much more fluid with the Top-card effect being benched. While the Top-card effect adds versatility to the game, it was for some reason a head-scratcher for my group as they kept forgetting to check up on the opponent’s towers. Unintentionally, I hope! The game typically lasted between 30 to 40 minutes on average.
Suggesting multiple levels to a game goes on to show the depth that Sky Towers has achieved, and it’s remarkable!
Be it the levels that we informally introduced, or how the game is originally intended to be played- I feel Sky Towers is best experienced when 4 players are playing it.
The game also happens to have a Team and a Family Variant; I have yet to try these modes.
Captivating in ways more than one
Ex First Games is renowned for its captivating artwork, and Sky Towers is the perfect example of that. But what I appreciated were the towers that were featured in the game. Be it the Tokyo Skytree, Leaning Tower of Pisa, or the Elizabeth Tower- Ex First Games easily could have opted for imaginary towers, but they didn’t. And I love that!
What I found particularly captivating is how Ex First Games releases a few of their games each year as print-and-play, completely free, as part of their Forever Free movement. It’s for those who want to experience the creations of Ex First Games but can’t afford the boxed versions.
Where to get Sky Towers from
Are you ready to build some spectacular towers and claim your fame as the mayor? Then you better head over to the website of Ex First Games. The print-and-play files for Sky Towers are available on request, all you have to do is reach out to the publisher via email. If you’re interested in purchasing the boxed version at a great price, make sure to click the link I have provided in Handy Recommendations.
So, the boxed version or print-and-play?
My verdict- go for the boxed version. It will be a great addition to your collection of games and can be a part of game nights with friends and family. It’s visually stunning!
Handy Recommendations
Sky Towers (boxed version)
A handy printer
Card sleeves
Cardstock paper
Game Overview
Publisher: Ex First Games
Designer: Charles Ward
Artist: Charles Ward
Number of players: 2 to 4
Difficulty level: Medium
Rounds of gameplay needed to learn: 2 rounds
Game duration: 30-40 minutes
Available on: Ex First Games (Boxed version) | Email for print-and-play version
Theme: Card Stacking | Building towers
Number of pages and color (print-and-play): 24 (color-print, cardstock paper recommended)
Assembling difficulty level: Medium. Need to build 104 cards.
Lamination: Not recommended, use card sleeves instead.
Additional elements required: None
Time to learn: Within 20 minutes
Travel-friendly: 9/10
Shelving friendly: 9.5/10
Rating from PnP Time: 8.5/10
Tasliman is a board game developer based in Bangladesh, with the dream of exploring the world of games and introducing it to anyone new to it. He is the founder of Kraftz, a brand that develops board games commercially, as well as with reputed entities like BRAC and The Gates Foundation.
