Tabletop Game Review – Disney Jungle Cruise Adventure Game

Disney Jungle Cruise Adventure Game by Ravensburger Games
Price: ~$30.00
Players:
2 to 4
Playtime:
45 to 60 minutes
Perfect for:
Families with younger players beginning their board game journey.

Disney Jungle Cruise Adventure Game is a game of navigating treacherous waters while trying to keep passengers and cargo safe! Players become the captain of their vessel, responsible for the lives of 12 individuals who have signed up for a pleasant little exclusion down the river. Little do they know that danger lurks around every corner, so players will have to strategize, prioritize, and ultimately hope for some good luck! Here’s a bit more on the theme from the publisher, Ravensburger Games:

Attention Skippers! Family seeks experienced skipper for a safe, speedy voyage along perilous jungle river to Jungle Navigation Company Headquarters. Esteemed Company owner Alberta Falls will announce one of four families as temporary Company caretakers before going on sabbatical, and we’re in the running! Since we might be your future bosses, if you keep us on board, we’ll do the same for you. Payment dependent on arrival of cargo and passengers… preferably in one piece.

To begin Jungle Cruise, 2 to 4 players choose their boat, its twelve corresponding travelers, and a flare gun to be used in emergencies.  On a turn, the skippers roll the dice to see how many spaces they can advance down the river. Then, four danger cards are turned over and the number that needs to be resolved/addressed directly correlates to the number of spaces moved. To find out the consequences, danger dice are the rolled depending on how hazardous the situation is. For every “!” rolled, the player must lose a passenger or a box of cargo from the designated section (using the flare gun allows for one re-roll). Gameplay continues until all players reach the finish line, and points are awarded for the number of tourists safely escorted back as well as bonuses for particular types of people still on board and sets of collected cargo.

RELATED: Tabletop Game Review – Wonder Woman: Challenge of the Amazons

What works in Disney Jungle Cruise Adventure Game is the light-hearted nature and simplicity, suitable for all ages. The basic mechanics are very easy to grasp for new and younger gamers, and the roll of the dice can be exciting. Jungle Cruise also has some good fun with the cards, as each one contains a “groan-worthy” joke often leveraging nautical puns and alike. Also, each captain has a special power they can employ for a small advantage in particular situations, which also for some variance between games.

More sophisticated and older players who prefer less repetition and randomness in their games may not enjoy Disney Jungle Cruise Adventure Game as much as others. The gameplay is almost entirely luck-based, and the same basic actions are executed upon over the course of the cruise. The complexity level is quite low, so experienced gamers may not feel quite as engaged.

Disney Jungle Cruise Adventure Game is a lovely title for families with young ones who are just getting their first taste of games and mild thrills. While those a bit more familiar with intermediate-level and beyond mechanics might not find enough novelty in this particular game, Ravensburger neatly fills a gap for parents who want to have a fun time introducing new players to age-appropriate strategy and excitement.

Recommended if you like: Wonder Woman: Challenge of the Amazons, 

Final Grade: B+

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