Periodic: A Game of The Elements – Genius Games – Review

April 28, 2020

This game is great. I love how it could encourage children to learn about the Periodic table and know what they may learn more in depth in high school or college. It encourages many things outside of science. We found ourselves looking up the pronunciation of some elements we were not familiar with. It is nice to know that educational can be incorporated in with strategy games.

Mary Crabtree

MeepleGamers

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Publisher: Genius Games

Designer: John Coveyou

Designer: Paul Salomon

Artist: Tomasz Bogusz

Game Type: Educational

Game Type: Set Collection

Game Type: Grid Movement

Initial Year of Release: 2019

Age Range: 10+

Expected Playtime: 40 minutes

Number of Players: 2-5

Theme and What is it?

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Periodic: A Game of The Elements is a strategy board game designed around the periodic table of elements, as well as some of the most fundamental principles in chemistry that can be derived from the structure and function of the periodic table.

Gameplay Mechanics

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In Periodic, you will move your flask around the board to research elements that are on goal cards. Every player can research goal cards, but can you be the first to complete one? Each player receives points for helping the research, but the player that completes all the research will receive the goal card.

While doing your research, you will also want to advance on your academic track by moving your microscope to all the different element groups. This will grant you end of game points based on your academic achievements.

Each game, you will have your own agenda, which will grant you additional points for specific achievements throughout the game.

Initial Impressions

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I was very excited about giving this one a try. I will be honest, I don’t know a lot about the Periodic Table. Science was not one of my strong subjects growing up. I enjoy games with an educational direction.

Game Build Quality

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All the components are well made. The rulebook was very easy to follow and allowed us to jump right into the game.

Artistic Direction

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I would not say there is much art. It is more graphic design. The board is the periodic table, and it is very colorful. I love the color selections used throughout the game. It is all very well done.

Fun Factor

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This game was fun. It was easy to grasp a strategy, and it moves quickly. The theme is different, and it brings a couple of different mechanics to the table I have not seen before mixed with some favorites. All in all, this was a win for us.

Age Range & Weight

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The publisher, Genius Games, suggests this game for players 10+. I agree with this. There is a mild strategy to the game that players of different ages over 10+ could adopt and blend well together. I would not think this game is limited to a group of players with a specific age range. It could easily be a family game.

Conclusions

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I love the colors. It looks so good on the table. I cannot wait to play this one again. I look forward to the future of Genius Games. My friend backed their newest game, Genotype, on Kickstarter. It should be a good one.