Make ‘n’ Break is a fun family game from Ravensburger, suitable for older children of around 8+. The game involves racing against the clock to recreate wooden block structures, according to the patterns show on the card you pick.
The game concept is really interesting, and is very different to any other board games we already have. It can also be quite co-operative as when playing with 3 or more players, each player can team up with the person to one side of them to build as a team which I thought adds a really nice element of working together rather than just racing to beat each other, as my boys do in a lot of games!
The box includes your timer, ten different coloured wooden blocks, 2 dice, instructions leaflet and your cards – which come in two levels of difficulty with red (the hardest) on one side, and blue (the easier) on the other.
With the cards, you’ll also see numbers 1-3 in the corner indicating how long you’d need on the timer for that card, and there are a variety of cards with the colours all greyed out, all coloured in, or a mixture. The greyed out blocks indicate that you can use any colour for that block, so can make it a bit easier.
The two types of dice are to play in the original mode (normal dice) or in the action mode, with the action dice. This is a new method of playing which adds more variety, and more excitement to the game. For example, if you rolled the symbol shown above then this is the description challenge so one player will look at the card and describe it, while their team mate builds without looking.
You can also get challenges like build it while only using your finger tips, which is really hard! But can be done if you work really carefully together as a team, and if your card is not too tricky!
Make ‘n’ Break is an action packed game, that really gets you working quickly, and helps to develop visual and building skills as well as being fun. We had lots of laughs with it, and did find some of the cards quite challenging especially for the kids. If need be, you could remove some of the harder cards when playing with younger children but my boys did enjoy the challenge of the trickier cards too.
If it falls down mid-way and you can’t complete your card, you won’t get the point for that round, but when you do complete a card, both players who worked on that card together will get the point. Or if playing the 2 player version, then only one player will work on each card using all 10 blocks by themselves.
Make n Break is a fun game for family quality time together, which we all enjoyed, and is something a bit different! As with all Ravensburger games, all of the pieces are very well made and of a high quality so this game will last well and can be played over and over for years! The wooden blocks are solid, nice and smooth, and great to build with.
Make n Break is currently half price on Amazon for 12.99 – RRP 24.99!
Anna Marikar, mum of four and seasoned blogger, has spent over a decade sharing her parenting journey and passion for kid-friendly crafts and free printables.
Her easy-to-follow craft ideas and practical parenting advice have transformed In The Playroom into a cherished resource for parents.