Ocean Limbo
Ocean Limbo Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Game Info
- Players: 2-4
- Ages: 5 and up
- Time to play: 20-25 minutes
Components
- 4 Ocean Boards
- 4 Sets of Undersea Shapes - 15 shapes per set (Angelfish, Coral, Dolphin, Jellyfish, Lobster, Manatee, Manta Ray, Octopus, Sea Anemone, Seahorse, Sea Snake, Sea Turtle, Seaweed, Starfish, Swordfish)
- 4 Base Support Pieces
- 1 Score Pad & 2 Pencils
Object of the Game
"How Low Can You Go?" Slide all of your Undersea Shapes as close to the bottom of the ocean floor as you can, trying to get the lowest score possible each round. The player with the lowest total points at the end of three rounds is the winner!
Game Set Up
Punch out all the Undersea Shapes and Base Support Pieces from the punch boards. Each player takes an Ocean Board and assembles it using the Back Support Piece to create an angled board for the Undersea Shapes to slide down. Place the board so that it slopes toward you. All players take one set of Undersea Shapes (15 shapes) and lay them face up in front of them. The game is played in three rounds with all players' scores recorded after each round. A round ends when all the shapes have slid down the board. One player takes the Score Pad & Pencil and will keep score for everyone. The last player to go swimming in the ocean begins the game.
Game Play
During each round, the starting player chooses one of the Undersea Shapes and all players must take this same shape in their hand. Place the Undersea Shape, face up, anywhere above the ocean surface line (pink line on the Ocean Board). Make sure to place the Undersea Shape flat against the Ocean Board surface before you let it slide down the board. All players let go of the shape simultaneously so that it slides down the board to the bottom of the ocean. If your shape gets stuck on the edge of the Ocean Board, you need to leave it there. If the shape falls off the Ocean Board, you get one more turn to send it sliding to the bottom of the ocean. You may not touch this shape again during the round.
Game play continues in a clockwise order around the table. The next player, as above, chooses one Undersea Shape that all players must slide down their Ocean Boards simultaneously. Repeat this process so that all players in turn choose an Undersea Shape for the group to play until all Undersea Shapes have slid down the Ocean Board.
Round 1: Basic Ocean Limbo
In the first round, slide all of your Undersea Shapes down the Ocean Board so that they are as compact as possible on the ocean floor, trying to get the lowest score. After all the shapes have been used, record all players' scores from this round on the Score Pad (see How to Score).
Optional: players can turn their Ocean Boards around so that they are facing the other players and everyone can see the results after each slide.
Round 2: Cover up the Bubbles
In this round, all uncovered bubbles or bubble clusters increase your score. The player with the highest score after round one goes first.
In addition to trying to get your Undersea Shapes to the bottom of the ocean, try to COVER UP all of the bubbles with the Undersea Shapes. At the end of Round 2 you count the number of bubbles or bubble clusters that are visible. Each bubble or bubble cluster that is showing (either completely or partially) adds 2 extra points to your total score for this round.
Round 3: Do Not cover up the Bubbles
In this round, all uncovered bubbles or bubble clusters decrease your score. The player with the highest total score from rounds one and two goes first. In addition to trying to get your Undersea Shapes to the bottom of the ocean, DO NOT COVER UP any of the bubbles. At the end of Round 3 you count the number of bubbles or bubble clusters that are uncovered (either completely or partially). Each uncovered bubble or bubble cluster is worth 2 bonus points. Subtract these 2 bonus points from your total score for this round.
How to Score
There are numbered lines (1 - 29) at the top of the Ocean Board. The player's score in Round 1 is the highest numbered line that is covered up by or touching any portion of the Undersea Shapes. A player's score in Round 2 is the highest numbered line that is covered up by or touching any portion of the Undersea Shapes plus 2 points for any uncovered bubbles or bubble clusters. The score for Round 3 is the highest numbered line that is covered up by or touching any portion of the Undersea Shapes minus 2 points for any uncovered bubbles or bubble clusters. Add up all of your points from the three rounds to get your total score for the game.
Example: Round 1 total = 18 points (highest covered line 18). Round 2 total = 20 points (14 points + 6 points for 3 uncovered bubbles/clusters). Round 3 total = 10 points (22 points - 12 points for 6 uncovered bubbles/clusters).
End of the Game
The player with the lowest overall number of points from all three rounds is the winner!