TnP Ambassadors - our tiny testers put two Winning Moves products through their paces

AMBASSADORS SPECIALPlaying favourites Our junior testers play with some of their favourite characters - including Marvel superheroes and the avatars from the popular Among Us online multiplayer game - both courtesy of Winning Moves

Dad Paul says:

“Herbie is looking forward to doing more gaming jigsaws”

Piece of the action

Herbie is a big fan of the online game Among Us, so he was keen to get stuck into a puzzle featuring his favourite characters

Dad Paul says: “My nine-year-old son Herbie is an avid gamer, and he really enjoyed playing Among Us while in lockdown, as it meant he could communicate with his friends online. So he was very excited when he found out it was now a jigsaw - he hadn’t done a jigsaw for some time but really enjoyed getting back into it. “It became quite a family activity, with all of us hopping on board to help complete the 500-piece puzzle, and Herbie said he liked doing this with different members of the family over a period of time. It was just right in terms of difficulty - not easy but hard enough to keep him stimulated. “Herbie is now looking forward to doing more gaming jigsaws. I’m really pleased about this - it gets harder as he gets older to find things to entertain him that are not screen-based.’’

Ben says:

"You can't see what the other person is doing, so that makes it really exciting. You don't know whether you are going to win or not!"

A Marvel-lous matching game

Mum Colette says: “My 10-year-old son Ben tried out the Marvel Top Trumps Match game and it was fun! This is a well thought-out game. I like the element of strategy to it - that you have to think carefully about your next move. But it is also really good that you can’t see what the other player is doing. You have to focus on your own game, which makes it a surprise when you win (or lose!).

“First impressions were good: it's bright and colourful. The instructions are reasonably clear - we had to read them a couple of times as Ben got ahead of himself and 'just wanted to play'! I also like the fact it’s transportable - I can imagine us taking this on holiday, or to grandparents for the weekend.

“Ben played a good few games with his older sister and then with a grownup, so it kept him entertained for about 90 minutes. It's quite a simple game but with an element of luck as well as strategy.’’

This is a two-player, matching and connecting game. You have to match five cubes in a line to score points. The first player to score five points wins the game. There are 25 character cubes and 15 cards. You take it in turns to push out the cubes to build your line of five. You can also win two points if your line matches your character card - if not, you can still win one point or your opponent can 'snatch the match'.

Colette explains: “It’s not unlike Connect 4 in principle, but with the aspect of not being able to see what your opponent is doing - it’s Connect 4, crossed with Battleships, mixed with Marvel! The cubes are all different - with different configurations of the characters on, so you can't second guess them - which is good.

“Ben loved that it was Marvel. He enjoyed seeing the characters form a line as he connected them. And he liked the fact that the youngest player started - that made it a winner! He also loved the fact that he won several times against his older sister - less so against his dad! He enjoyed that you have to concentrate on your own tactics - and then you can still lose! It was a genuine surprise when the other player said 'match'.

“I think we will play this over and over. The age range is four-plus and I'd like to try it with my nephew who is five - I think he will like it too. I can see this being played with regularly, because it's quick to set up and fun to do.”

Contact: Winning Moves 020 3920 8151 www.winningmoves.co.uk