Toy Review: Bumparena

Bumparena by Cranium

Ages 6 and up

A fun game that teaches physics? In this game, you can actually watch your kids developing important intuitions about balls, ramps, and bumpers.

The game board is a wide ramp, with a row of starting blocks that hold balls at the top and bays for balls to roll into at the bottom. Kids take turns adding plastic bumpers to the ramp, with the goal of getting released balls to roll into their bay. Whoever gets six balls first wins.

The game is fun! Players draw cards at each turn. Some cards allow you to add a bumper to the board, some allow you to add balls to your choice of the starting blocks at the top, and some allow you to change the direction of a bumper already on the board. Draw a "release card" and you get to throw the switch and release all the balls that have accumulated at the top and see whose bays they roll into.

My kids, when they're adding bumpers, try to predict the path balls will take with the new bumper in place. I can see them tracing with their fingers, testing out different scenarios. Sometimes, because the balls are bouncy, things don't go as they predicted but the surprises make the game fun too. The game says its for ages seven and up, but I think even younger kids would enjoy it too.