When comparing Tsuro vs Stratego, the Slant community recommends Tsuro for most people. In the question“What are the best Android board games?” Tsuro is ranked 5th while Stratego is ranked 13th. The most important reason people chose Tsuro is:
The game is easy to explain and introduce to new players, even ones that aren't familiar with modern board games, due to the simple nature of it. The game is played on a 6x6 grid on which cards can be placed, forming a path for your player piece. The game is quite straightforward - each turn consists of playing 1 card and then following the path on that card until it's stopped by a tile-less space. Your path can collide with an opponent's path, in which case both you and the opponent move their pawns accordingly, following your paths. If you collide with an opponent on the same road or if you walk off the board, then you are out of the game. The game is won by the last player on the board.
Specs
Ranked in these QuestionsQuestion Ranking
Pros
Pro Very simple gameplay
The game is easy to explain and introduce to new players, even ones that aren't familiar with modern board games, due to the simple nature of it.
The game is played on a 6x6 grid on which cards can be placed, forming a path for your player piece. The game is quite straightforward - each turn consists of playing 1 card and then following the path on that card until it's stopped by a tile-less space. Your path can collide with an opponent's path, in which case both you and the opponent move their pawns accordingly, following your paths. If you collide with an opponent on the same road or if you walk off the board, then you are out of the game. The game is won by the last player on the board.
Pro Can be played competitively or nicely
The way Tsuro is designed allows you to either try to make your own path without interacting with other players or play completely cutthroat and try to ruin your opponents' paths by making them run off the board.
Pro Beautiful and unique artwork make the game stand out
The artwork on the main game board is very well done and it follows an Asian theme. Needless to say, a lot of work has been put into the presentation aspect of this board game. Aesthetically this is probably one of the prettiest playing spaces out there.
The game gives a very peaceful and zen-like feel due to the simplicity of the game mixing with the detailed art style. There's an epic Eastern-styled phoenix colored in the royal colors of red and gold accompanied by some clouds on the background of the board. The player figures have engraved dragons, adding flavor to the simplicity of them. There are also Chinese characters scattered throughout, roughly translating to "passage" or "going the same way".
Moreover, as the board fills up with path tiles, the tangled web of paths looks visually striking. They look as if they've been carved into marble.
Pro Short play length allows for quick sessions
Tsuro is a great "appetizer" game that can be set up and played very quickly, making this a perfect option to kill some time. It plays in about 15 minutes or less and it'll easily hold the attention of everyone all the way through. The quickness of the game also pretty much guarantees replayability.
Pro The wide player count allows Tsuro to be played in a variety of settings
Tsuro can be played with 2 to 8 players, which means that it is easy to find enough players to play, while having room for larger play counts that are somewhat rare in other boardgames.
Pro Originality
It is really disruptive wrt classic games.
Pro Simple to learn but utilizes much strategy
Stratego's rules are pretty easy to learn but the beauty is there is so much strategy involved that each game can have wildly different outcomes. Being that there is so much choice in how to strategize every game there is truly a limitless amount of fun to be had.
Pro Creative thinking and playing the other player take a large role
Players can arrange their troops however they like which begins a game of strategy but also a game of playing your opponent. By trying to trick or manipulate the other player the game becomes more in depth as a match of will.
Cons
Con Highly random
There are pretty much no aspects in the game that can be planned ahead apart from the fact that you can choose between three tiles. The rest is based on luck. There's no way to predict how your opponents will play and sometimes even you won't have much control over the outcome due to the cards that are drawn.
Con Relatively simple play might not appeal to experienced boardgamers
The simplicity that makes this a great game for new players might also turn off experienced players that are looking for more complex strategies.
Con Character pictures have to be manually placed
The character pictures have to be manually placed on each individual plastic board piece, which is time consuming and really should have just been done at the factory.