Boomerang: Australia Review

G’day mate! Crikey! Kangaroos! And all those Australian stereotypes, bundled into a small box with a few pencils to form a roll and write upgrade from its predecessor: Boomerang. The premise is that you’re travelling around Australia, trying to see as many sights and snippets of culture as you can – whilst actually of course, vying to score the most points. On first impressions, Boomerang: Australia is just a little bit lovely. There are multiple language instruction books, folded and designed in such a way they’re reminiscent of little passports. The scoring card is pretty straightforward to get your head around, and the artwork is clear and bright from the box itself to the cards and instructions. Down (under – couldn’t resist) from there is the cards, which are perfectly fine. Not a standout for either good or bad, which means they’ll do well enough. Four pencils, and you’re ready to go off backpacking.

You’ll be juggling cards you want to keep, handing those you don’t around to the next player, whilst trying to collect the right ones to make a set. Gaining specific sets is recorded on your score card, and it’s a combination of this over a few rounds that see the highest score as the win condition. There’s a lot going on for what is really a quite small roll and write, which is likely why it’s been so popular. The difficulty is, it does take a little longer for the fun to start – you know, that gap between when you’re learning how to play and when it actually becomes play and enjoyment – but it’s a pleasant, if not hugely exciting, enough game afterwards. 

Charlie Pettit

PLAY IT? MAYBE

Designer: Scott Almes

Publisher: Grail Games

Time: 15-30 minutes

Players: 2-4

Ages: 8+

Price: £15

This article originally appeared in issue 48 of Tabletop Gaming. Pick up the latest issue of the UK's fastest-growing gaming magazine in print or digital here or subscribe to make sure you never miss another issue.

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