LUDO Blitz! is an enjoyable, online, multiplayer board game from the creative souls at Game Troopers that takes the game of Ludo and condenses it into a six-minute game. The Windows 10 game has bright and colorful graphics to set the board game mood. While gameplay does rely on the luck of the dice, there is a bit of strategy in choosing your moves wisely.
If you aren't familiar with the game of Ludo, it is very similar to the board game Trouble but maybe a wee bit more intense. LUDO Blitz! is available for both Windows 10 PC and Mobile, as well as Windows Phone 8.1 (including low-memory devices). While LUDO Blitz does have a casual gaming feel, the free title is a great way for those times you have just a few minutes of down time to pass.
When you first launch LUDO Blitz the option to log into the game with your Facebook account or play as a guest pops up. Logging into the game with your Facebook game does give you the ability to synchronize your gaming progress across multiple devices.
LUDO Blitz greets you with a modest primary menu that is bright, colorful and a little scattered (not in a bad way). The primary menu has options to play the game, place your gaming bets, visit the game's store to purchase boosters and an option to buy more coins via in-app purchase. The primary menu also displays your current coin count and an option to enter any promo codes you may receive.
The goal of LUDO Blitz! is to work your gaming pieces from a staging area, around the board and reach a safe harbor in the center of the gaming board. Games are six minutes in length and as you progress around the board, you earn points that ultimately determines the game's winner.
Prior to the start of the game, you will set your bet on winning the game and choose your boosters. There are six boosters available that range from a shield that protects your gaming piece to a bomb that blasts your opponent's gaming piece back to the staging area. LUDO Blitz starts you out with a modest supply of boosters and additional items can be picked up from the gaming store with the coins you earn.
LUDO Blitz accommodates up to four players and each aspect of the game is time sensitive. This is a fantastic feature of the game to avoid lengthy delays in gameplay when players become distracted. For example, you only have a few seconds to roll the dice, select which game piece to move, etc.
The rules of Ludo aren't very difficult to learn. The starting player is chosen at random and turns then move counterclockwise around the board. Gaming pieces start in staging areas along the outer edge of the board, and moving from their requires a roll of a six (you have three chances to get it). After moving a gaming piece out of the staging area you then get a second roll to move that piece around the gaming board.
If you only have one gaming piece on the board, movement is automatic. If you have more than one gaming piece in play, you have the option to choose which piece to move. The game board has spaces where you earn a free roll and spaces where the direction of travel changes. If you game piece is moved to a space that is already occupied by a gaming piece, that gaming piece is bumped back to the staging aspect.
For each roll of the dice, you earn points and if you get bumped back to the staging area you lose points. The winner is awarded the bet earnings that were placed prior to gameplay. Every player gets to play a roulette wheel for a chance at bonus prizes (boosts, coins, etc.), regardless of their placement at the end of the game.
Ludo Blitz is an entertaining game to kill a little time with and covers the basics nicely. Graphics are bright and colorful with animations that help bring the game to life. Gameplay does rely on the luck of the roll, but there is a strategy element present in choosing which piece to move or whether or not to use a booster.
I really liked the gameplay controls. One of the challenges of any online game is keeping players involved to avoid lengthy delays in between turns. Ludo Blitz does a good job of keeping the flow of gameplay going by putting timers on just about every aspect of the game.
The free gaming title is available for both Windows 10 PC and Mobile, along with Windows Phone 8.1, and is a solid game to have in your library for when you have a few minutes to waste.
Download Ludo Blitz for Windows 10 PC and Mobile
