Tonga Bonga (pré-joué) (ML)

The games in the L'As des jeux Bazar are pre-played games. They have been inspected by one of our game experts and are certified "Complete." You may find some minor imperfections, such as light wear on the box or on certain game components.

Take command of your own ship and set sail for five remote islands in Tonga Bonga, a nautical bidding and racing game fueled by friendly betrayal and tight math. Each player captains a boat with room for three sailors - represented by dice - and must convince the best sailors to sign on by bidding big at the start of every round. The captain and first mate collect wages each round, but the cabin boy works for free.

Here's the twist that makes Tonga Bonga so tasty: once bidding wraps up, every player rolls their dice and must place them on their opponents' ships - never their own. A higher die bumps whichever die is already there down to a lesser role, so it's your choices that decide who commands your neighbor's ship. This reverse dice placement mechanic, rarely seen elsewhere, turns every round into a small game of leverage and calculation.

Once the dice are placed, ships move and the real race begins: docking at an island earns 25 dollars from the bank, but you then owe 5 dollars to every player who got there before you. Visiting four of the five islands lets you sail back to Tonga Bonga Bay, pocket one last 10 dollar bonus, and trigger the end of the game. In the end, it doesn't matter who finished the race first: the player with the most money in hand takes the win.

Tonga Bonga is for you if you love games that reward bluffing, reading your opponents, and shifting alliances more than plain dice luck. If placing the wrong sailor on the right opponent's ship at just the right moment gives you a guilty little thrill, this nautical bidding game will hit the spot. A safe bet for family or friend game nights that love tight, roughly 45 minute sessions that stay tense until the last island.

Tonga Bonga isn't a newcomer: the game first launched in 1998 and picked up a Spiel des Jahres nomination (Recommended mention) as well as a Meeples' Choice Award nomination that same year, a rare double honor for such a compact bidding game. Since then, the title has enjoyed a real comeback with a reissue that faithfully keeps the original rules while modernizing the components.

Tonga Bonga was created by Stefan Dorra, a German designer known for modern board game classics like For Sale, a staple of auction games, and Medina, nominated for the Deutscher Spiele Preis. Dorra has a particular talent for bidding and negotiation mechanics that are easy to learn but rich in tension, a signature fully present in Tonga Bonga.

BOX CONTENTS
1 game board (islands and Tonga Bonga Bay)
4 ships
12 sailor dice
16 camp tokens
4 individual player boards
8 special tiles
18 compass cards
Play money
Rulebook

Number of players: 3 to 4
Duration: 45 minutes
Age: 14 and up