2 Players 5 Mins Ages 8+
Welcome to Sumo Gnomes...
Become a Sumo Gnome wrestling to eject your opponent from the tree stump arena!
Use custom dice to move, push, spin and trick your way around the stump, looking for that crucial advantage you’ll need to push your opponent off and claim victory!
Sumo Gnomes is a quick and portable game that is ready to play in less than a minute and will pop back in your pocket when battling is done.
Sumo Gnomes available PLEDGE HERE
Our thoughts
Before the campaign kicks off this month, we were fortunate to receive a prototype of Sumo Gnomes from Peculiarity and to interview its designer Robbie Munn.
While our review is based on a prototype it has to be said the component quality is fantastic as it stands, especially the unique gaming dice and beermat tournament board. (As we understand it there is potentially a deluxe limited edition played from a real tree stump…)
The game itself is fast and genuine fun – having rolled your action dice you opt for the best combo and place the remaining in reserve for the next turn, then begin your strategy to move around the board.
Because your next movement is now locked in you narrow your choices and your opponent acts accordingly as you both roll for 2 new actions hoping you chose wisely on each throw.
The game is quick and rounds can be as short as a minute but this doesn’t mean its a straight forward affair due to the GRAB mechanic where you are slammed and moved around the board and potentially out of the ring…
While battles are short they can be intensely brutal and combined with its portability this makes it a fantastic game to be played on the go, on holiday or while waiting around for the next big game to be played.
A Designers Perspective…
Meet Robbie Munn, creator of Sumo Gnomes… a lover of cheese and ale, and on a mission to possess an epic beard.
What was the inspiration for “Sumo Gnomes” that’s an interesting combo…
Sumo Gnomes was born out of a desire to make a quick game that fits in your pocket, but the Sumo part came much later. Originally it was about garden Gnomes chucking stones (dice) over a giant mushroom to determine who got to stay where in the garden that night, the Gnomes even had special beard powers!
But despite its charms I was never happy with how it played and was about to give up on it until a fellow designer suggested the Gnomes fight on the mushroom instead, I wasn’t initially convinced but the idea stuck and the gears started turning.
Later that night I was scribbling frantically as ideas surrounding sparring Gnomes poured out and very soon after Sumo Gnomes was born.
How did you make it a reality and did it need much tweaking
After it’s rebirth I got straight to making prototypes (I really enjoy making prototypes) and booked a playtesting table at Dragonmeet. Even in the early stages the game was well received, it has some issues but the kinks didn’t take too long to iron out.
What was peoples reaction to it – and the name
So far, it’s been really well received. People love the name, it makes them stop and chuckle, then when you tell them it’s a 5min game most are happy to give it a try. people’s faces
At UK Games Expo I had two demo games that were played near constantly, with some families coming back every day to challenge each other – that was amazing!
From what I have witnessed so far it has quite a broad appeal and the name evokes some fun imagery that puts a smile on people’s faces
Did you need anyone’s help in making the game if so in what way
We work in a really lovely industry; I’ve never experienced such a supportive cohort before as everyone just wants everyone one to do well.
With Summoner’s Isle I needed lots of help and people lent me their time and experience to guide me along.
With Sumo Gnomes the support was still there but less direct, a nod here and a smile there was all I needed to let me know I was on the right path.
How have you marketed the game so far?
I’ve done very little marketing really other than going to conventions and talking to people.
I did have some handmade copies for sale at UK Games Expo, I made these because I believe word of mouth goes a long way.
If there’s already people out there playing your game, sharing it with their friends, uploading comments and pictures to Board Game Geek and social media, that’s worth more than an advert.
What’s the future of the game and is there any more games in the pipe line?
The next big step is the Kickstarter, if all goes well there then I would like to try and find publishers in other parts of the word, for a small box game I think it has a really broad appeal plus it could also be very easily rethemed.
I mean, I love the imagery of Sumo wrestling Gnomes, but it would just as easily be battling robots or frogs on a lily pad. We’ll have to wait and see!
I do have other games in the works but I’m not sure which one to focus on yet, there’s Pillow Fort, Death by Dungeon, Quinary, Get to the Choppa, Graemun and a couple more without names.
What advice can you give to budding creators?
Having fun is what matters most, I’ll hang up my designer hat as soon as it stops being fun.
Don’t worry too much about how it looks, a bit of flavour is great but it’s the gameplay that should shine so let publishers worry about art and design. Playtest with a varied group.
Friends are a good starting point but look further afield and make use of play test zones at conventions to really help your design along.
