Sophisticated Dominoes (Deluxe Tri Ominoes)

Member Name: salem_witch

Product:	Deluxe Tri Ominoes
Date:	05/07/07 (518 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: A grown up version of Dominoes

Disadvantages: The numbers rub off, having to keep score

Not many people will have heard of Tri-Ominos but we’ve had the game since as long as I can remember. Our set was bought in the early eighties when I was a really young so I would have had no interest in this and I don’t recall playing it then. My parents tell me they used to play it, which explains this. It does look like a dull game to play and for young children it would be, especially now with all the computer games they have.

*** So what is Tri-Ominos? ***

Tri-Ominos works on the same principle as a game of dominoes but the tiles are triangular and instead of dots you have a number at each point ranging from 0 through to 5. You have to place the tiles next to each other matching the numbers to the other tile. This is the basic idea but it is far from dull as you get extra points for certain moves.

In the box I have you get 56 tiles and the instructions are on the inside of the lid.


*** Aim of game ***

The aim of the game is to get rid of all your tiles. For each tile you put down you get a score and also for any bonus scoring moves that you make. If you’re the first person to get rid of your tiles then you get bonus points plus points for any tiles your opponent's have left. The winner of the game is the first person to reach 400 points. Of course, you can change this amount or perhaps have a time limit or a limit to the number of rounds you play. When I usually play we stop when we’ve had enough more than because someone has reached a certain score.


*** How to play ***

First you need to decide who’ll keep score. This involves constant writing down so anyone who’s likely to have more patience or be able to add up quickest would be the best.

Each player has to pick a number of tiles depending on how many are playing –

2 players = 9 each
3 to 4 players = 7 each
5 to 6 players = 6 each

Once you have them you stand them up facing you so that no one else sees them. I personally put them in order and any double tiles I have (say 3,3,4) I put in a row so I can see at a quick glance which doubles I have. Any triples I have I’ll put with these as well and then any tiles with three different numbers I’ll stick at the end.

A triple 5 is the highest so if a player has that then they go first. If no one does have the triple 5 then you work your way down the triples and the player with the highest triple goes first. If no player has any triple (including the triple 0) then the player with the tile with the highest total goes first. So a 5,5,4 (14 points) beats a 4,4,4 (12 points). The player who does go first gets a bonus 10 points. Then going clockwise the next player tries to match the tile already down. So if a triple 5 is put down then they’ll need a tile with a double 5 in it. If they don’t have one that they can match then they’ll have to pick a tile from the stockpile and see if that can be played. If that can be played then they put it down. As they’ve picked it up from the stockpile they have to minus 5 points from their score. So if the tile is 5,5,0 then they get 5 points and if it’s the triple 1 then they have to minus 2 points from their score.


*** Bonus scoring ***

There are ways of increasing your score substantially. If you make a hexagon shape (this needs 6 tiles) then not only do you get the points of the tile you’ve played but an extra 50 bonus points. This means that all three numbers have to match with the two tiles it would be touching though.

You can also form what’s called a Bridge and this will get you 40 points. This is when you connect two lines with a tile. So you might have 2 lines running side by side but with a gap in-between them enough for a tile. If you can match two numbers on one tile and the third on the one opposite it then you can slot it in the gap. This is hard to explain so if I’ve not done a very good job then there are diagrams in the instructions.


*** Winning the round ***

You continue playing until a player has no tiles left or no one can go anymore. If someone does get rid of all their tiles then they get 25 bonus points plus the score of all the tiles that their opponents have left. If you get to a point where no player can go then the game is over. The player with the tiles adding up to the lowest total wins. They get their opponents total minus their own. They don’t get the bonus points though. It’s also worth noting that if a player can’t go and there are no tiles left in the stockpile then they have 10 points deducted from their score. This happens until all players can’t go or a player has played all his or her tiles.


*** My Experience ***

Tri-Ominos is an interesting game, which certainly passes the time. I would say it would appeal to older children and adults. I only say this because as a child we had this game and me and my brother or sister had no interest in it. This doesn’t mean that all children wouldn’t be that interested but I can’t see them playing it over and over. What I like about it is you can play it for as long as you like. Each round varies in time but most of them don’t take any longer than 10 minutes or so. So If you’re short of time and at a loose end then you can play for a bit. Or you can play for longer periods of time. I’ve played it for sometimes over an hour and haven’t got bored of it. When playing it we do tend to play for shorter periods of time (say half an hour) and then come back to it later on.

It’s an easy game to pick up the rules so most people should be able to grasp them after one game. You do need to look out for the tiles that will form a Bridge or Hexagon so you don’t miss out on those extra points. If you’re not paying attention to them they can easily be missed. When picking a tile to place you need to be aware of the other tiles you’ll be able to place after it sometimes. If you can put two different tiles in the same place then it’s best to see what other tiles you’ll be able to place after it even if you get fewer points for that move. Of course, someone else might beat you to it but it’s worth keeping in mind. Also if you have an idea of what someone else might have then you can block them from going. This doesn’t happen all that often as you can’t see the other persons tiles. However, a number of occasions when playing my Mum she’s put a tile down (say a 0,0,3) and then when I’ve placed a tile (say a 0,0,5) against it she’s tutted or sighed. So I’ve guessed that she has the triple 0 which means I might be able to stop her from placing it down further in the game.

So you can be tactical although it’s more difficult as you can’t see what tiles your opponents have. If you have a tile with a double number on it you maybe able to place it in several places. So if, for example, you have the 2,2,4 you’ll be able to place it on a double 2 or a 4,2 or 2,4. So it’s best to see which move would benefit you for the next move rather than just put it in the first place you spot. It’s also better if you get rid of any triple tiles when you can as they are harder to play. Then once you’ve played then you can place any other double ones off it if you have any. It does get annoying when you have a tile where the numbers are the wrong way round for a bonus move. Especially when you think it’ll fit!

We have the version made by Ideal. The tiles are black with white numbers, which are slightly raised on them. Our set is so old that the paint had come off so the numbers were really hard to see. I soon sorted that as I got some white paint and used an old make up brush and re-painted them. Now the sets that they sell are white with black numbers so it’ll be easier to see the numbers on them clearly.

The more players makes it more interesting as you’ll less likely to go where you want to. So if you place a tile down where you’ll be able to go afterwards and only against that tile, another player might beat you to it. So if there are only two of you playing you only have to hope that one person can’t go off it. So it can make it harder to go but it also means more tiles could be placed down between your moves so you’ll have more options.

Tri-Ominos can be found for a very reasonable price. I can’t say I’ve noticed it in any shops but Amazon stock it and at the moment it’s £6.99 for the regular set which comes in a triangular box. The Classic version comes in a square box and is £14.99 from Amazon. Apart from the price and the shape of the box I can’t see any difference between them. The Deluxe version is available for £18.94 and are higher quality than the other sets and come with racks. So as you can see shopping around for the cheapest price is best or perhaps even looking on eBay. There is also a children’s version which is being sold on Amazon. Instead of numbers they have pictures of an animal. So the 1 is replaced by a cow and the 5 is now five ducks. So if you do have younger children then this would be the better set to have for them.

Summary: A fun game for all the family