Loco Momo Review

Loco Momo proceeds from the – obvious if you think about it – premise that the animals of an enchanted forest find an abandoned camera and stage a photography contest to see who gets to keep it. Players do this by drafting tiles representing different animals, and placing those animals in a frame, trying to compose the perfect shot. It’s a bit like being a wedding photographer for leopards.

Straight out the box, Loco Momo looks delightful. The animal art is adorable, but funny enough that it doesn’t feel nauseating. The soft palette of greens and browns gives off a relaxing vibe and the tiles and player boards are easy to read at a glance.

The game combines two simple versions of popular mechanics. First, you take tiles each turn, through a mancala-like system. You pick a tile, then it moves according to the special rules of the animal printed on it: rabbits, for example, move one area clockwise, leopards move anticlockwise, and eagles jump diagonally. Wherever it lands, you take it and all tiles of the same colour in the same area. 

The second part involves arranging the animals you collect on your picture board. The board is arranged in a grid, with different scoring conditions for each row. For example, the bottom row gives you points for each different type of animal. The second row gives you points for groups of the same animal. You can also get bonus points for filling a column or row with tiles of the same colour. Your main restriction is that you can only fill up from the left, so you have to stack animals to get to the columns on the right.

This game is quite something. Despite being an easy teach with a quick play time (the box’s estimate of twenty minutes is, for once, bang on, at least at lower player counts) you’re presented with not one, but two neat puzzles and some interesting decisions. Often you’re presented with a choice between grabbing the most animals, and grabbing the ones you actually want. Filling as many rows and columns as you can with tiles of the same colour scores you big points, but you can score more with fewer tiles if you slot the right animals into the right gaps.

The box suggests Loco Momo is suitable for ages 8 and up, but to give you an idea of just how welcoming it is, I played it without issue with my 5-year-old. We both spontaneously came up with different strategies, I didn’t go easy on her, and in the end there were only three points in it. The fact that we could both try our hardest, and it felt interesting and fair, speaks volumes about the quality of the game design.

If, after a couple of plays, you want to mix things up, there are some little additional rules and components that add restrictions, forcing you to change up your strategy. The first picks a type of animal and tile colour and places them on the endangered list – now, whoever has the fewest tiles matching that animal and colour at the end of the game, gets bonus points. The second gives you a bonus if you manage to place the target animal in the upper-right square, rewarding players who fill out their grid.

These are minor, welcome variants on the base game that add diversity without changing anything fundamental. Which is good, because at its core this is a rewarding gateway game with a lot of appeal for mixed-age groups, or just cool grown-ups who like animals and fancy something relaxing. Like a paddle in a forest stream, it’s quick, easy and refreshing, without being boring.

Tim Clare

PLAY IT? YES

TRY THIS IF YOU LIKED Azul

The whole ‘pick a group of tiles and fill your grid from the left’ vibe might appeal to fans of Azul, though this is slightly simpler. Similarly, if you’re looking for a game with a ‘My First Sagrada’ feel, this is it.

Designer: Lenny Liu & Leon Liu

Publisher: Blam!

Time: 20 minutes

Players: 1-4

Ages: 8+

Price: £20

What’s in the box?

• Double-sided forest board
• 4 Double-sided picture boards
• 105 Animal tokens
• Sun token
• 8 Hexagonal Tokens
• First players token
• 5 Flower-shaped animal tokens

Looking for more?

This review came from Tabletop Gaming Magazine, which is home to all of the latest and greatest tabletop goodness. Whether you're a board gamer, card gamer, wargamer, RPG player or all of the above, find your copy here.

Get your magazine here

Read More... 

If you like party games, this is the one to read – a feature straight from our special issue of Tabletop Gaming Magazine giving you the top 50 party games ever. You'll have to let us know which one would be your number one!

Grab your party hat!

Join us in person

We can't wait for Tabletop Gaming Live 2022! An epic weekend in Manchester full of board games, card games, roleplaying games, wargames and more, with amazing exhibitors, great games, and an opportunity to game together in person.

See you there!

Treat Yourself! 

Have you visited our game store? We have everything from mystery boxes, to games and accessories – including the above Power Rangers: Heroes of the Grid, with a great discount! Head over to find your new favourite game.

Visit the Game Store

Sometimes we may include links to online retailers, from which we might receive a commission if you make a purchase. Affiliate links do not influence editorial coverage and will only be used when covering relevant products