Adventure and strategy on the game board with Stratego Lost Island

One Friday night, we decided to venture into Jumbo Play’s new board game Stratego Lost Island. With four adult players, all fairly experienced in the world of board games, we dove into this new twist on classic Stratego. It was fun to see the familiar elements return in the confrontations between the players. The strategic aspect came out well, especially when deploying scouts with certain scores at the right time.

Colorful details and a smooth start

The design of the game is clean and the setup is nice and simple, which makes for a smooth start. The game board and pieces are quality, and the colorful scouts and boats really add to the gaming experience. The setup of the island slowly disappearing ensures that the game has a nice pace and can be played in about half an hour. The rulebook seems large, but that’s because it contains multiple languages. You can easily flip through it, making the game suitable even for the less patient players among us.

Quick and easy to understand with fewer roles

One notable difference from regular Stratego is the number of roles: where the classic version has many roles, Lost Island has only six. The higher the number, the stronger the role. This makes the game easier and faster to understand, making it accessible to a wider audience. One critical note: The “advanced” rules did not offer the complexity we expected. They felt more like minor tweaks than a real deepening of the game. So for true game nerds, it may not be complex enough, but it’s really nice that you can easily play it with less experienced players.

Getting far with good strategy, but it ends with luck

What really made the game fun for us was the interaction between the players. We had a lot of laughs and managed to tease each other well at times. It’s a game that can be approached strategically, but also sometimes involves a good dose of luck. For example, turning over a bomb tile that blows up the environment, or finding treasure. The ability to have the flag change hands before you win adds an extra layer of excitement. For me in particular, this was fun because I still came away with the win at the last minute!

Ideal for a fun game night

In short, Stratego Lost Island is highly recommended for an entertaining evening of smooth play. It offers enough entertainment for experienced players, while remaining accessible to less experienced players. A good choice for a fun, approachable game night with the whole family.

Credits photos: OpstapmetLisa