WE Games Royal Game of UR - Ancient Strategy Two-Player Board Game with 13.5” x 5.5” Wood Board & Storage Drawers, Ideal for History Enthusiasts

I was interested in this game because I happened upon a YouTube video: The Royal Game of Ur with Tom Scott vs Irving Finkel, the latter working in the British Museum. Great video, I suggest checking it out. This is a fun little game. And there is some strategy to it, despite its simplicity, as well as some luck, which can change outcomes. The rules that come with it are meh. I followed the rules of the YouTube video mentioned above, which I thought were so much better. The quality of this specific box and peices are... alright. It could be better, more sturdy, and the drawer could actually stay in, but it doesn't really detract from game play. It's a solid two player game, my kids play it together, and they'll ask for us to play it with them, so it translates well between the ages. My 8 year old with ADHD sits though a whole game and enjoys it. The original game had triangle shaped dice. I have a love-hate relationship with them. I know there are other dice available, but even though these are sometimes a pain to handle, I find myself charmed by their simplicity and shape and have stuck with them. I really, really like this game. It reminds me of boardgames with my grandma, has an old fashioned feel to it, and as the original was made around 2500 bc, I suppose that makes sense. It is super cool to enjoy a game with so much history. I recommend this, it's a fun 2 player game.

Not many games can claim a 5000 year history. But one can see why it’s lasted so long despite being rediscovered 100years ago and the rules deciphered maybe 40 years ago. it was found in a 4000 year old tomb and could be older than that! This rendition is of good quality and likeness to the archeological find even it’s built in drawer for the pieces is like the original. The white paint that marks the dice and pieces does come off eventually but it’s only due to the sweaty, anxious and exited hands that use them. Some MagicMarker and WhiteOut will restore to its original and simulation look. It’s compact and will bring you years of playtime

This set is designed to look like the artifacts from 5000 years ago, but the dividers around the squares are not in any of the photos I’ve seen or videos I’ve watched that demonstrate the various ways to play the game. In the demonstrations, pushing opponent’s pieces off the board with gusto, which the dividers prevent. HOWEVER, extra pieces and the compartment to store them inside the board housing is a nice touch in keeping with the design of the artifacts and the variations of the play styles. The included rules are a little lacking but there are several videos from archaeologists and game historians that show the basic and more complex versions of the game on YouTube.

The 4000 year old game, as published in these rules is quite good. I did a quick database check and found that we have 30 2-player only games that play in 30 minutes or less. Our rating for this put it above a dozen of those games and equal to eight others. That's a good game. The rules are very simple but the play is interesting offering strategies and tactical choices based on odds and style. It's in the vein of Pachisi, Backgammon or Sorry, a race to get your pawns off while "hitting" and sending your opponent's back to the start. Four dice, each with faces showing "blank" or one" mean that you'll move 0,1,2,3 or 4 with two most likely. That unusual component along with a couple of safe spaces make for an intriguing game.Components: This set is wood. My set was $35. At this price, you're getting a nice, functional, glued wood board that works well, like a wood starter set for Chess or Backgammon -- it's not a showpiece, it's a game and the components are good enough to learn and decide if you really want to get fancy. We choose not to.

The game is well made and very fun to play. I especially like that there are spare pieces for when the inevitable happens. Very satisfied with purchase.

On the pricey side for the build quality, but it holds up well to the rigors of family game night. There is some strategy involved but it is impossible to truly blow out an opponent, which makes it fun for all ages and skill levels. I can see why it was so popular for thousands of years.As other have noted, I strongly recommend discarding the game rules that come in the box (at least at first). There are lots of different versions of playing the game. By far the most enjoyable and easiest to learn is the version demonstrated on the British Museum's youtube video. The curator's personality alone will make you want to play this game.

As we are studying Ancient Egypt, I wanted to incorporate a game or two. Ur is simple to learn and relies heavily on luck but there is some skill as well. I really enjoyed learning the history of the game as well as playing it with my children ages 9,11, and 14. My husband and children all enjoyed the game as well. We have probably played it 15 times in the last two weeks so I would say it is a favorite of ours. The construction is wonderful. I love the pyramid dice and the the drawer for storage. I wish it was painted colorfully but this is not something I expected and therefore didn't remove any stars.

Spent many pointless hours trying to find the best version offered of this game. Etsy had some nice ones but I'm banned from Etsy indefinitely for no apparent reason so here I come to Amazon. Yea you can't flick them off like the video you're probably buying this because of but who cares just flick em harder or find some other way to do it. All the pieces are well aligned and fastened no crooked bars or leaking glue or weird smells. I'm sure those problems exist but it's not every unit.