How to Play Ingenious

Game Objective

In Genial, the main objective is to accumulate points of each color by strategically placing your tiles on the board. You earn points by placing a tile next to other tiles or colored symbols printed on the board that have the same symbol (color). The more matching symbols you connect, the more points you earn for that color.

The victory condition is a bit peculiar: the winner is the player whose worst-positioned scoring peg (i.e., the color with the lowest score) has the highest value among all players. This means you need to score in a balanced way, preventing any color from falling "behind" on your scoring track.

Setup

To start a game of Genial, follow these steps:

1. Before the first game, punch out the scoring tracks from the frame and place the game tiles into the bag.
2. In each game, open the board in the center of the table.
3. Mix the game tiles thoroughly inside the bag.
4. Each player takes a tile holder and places it in front of them.
5. Each player draws six tiles from the bag and places them vertically in their tile holder, so they can see the printed symbols.
6. Each player also places a scoring track in front of them, visible to everyone.
7. On each scoring track, place one scoring peg of each color on the corresponding symbols, indicating the value "0".
8. The playing area on the board varies according to the number of players:
   • For 1 and 2 players: use only the white spaces on the board.
   • For 3 players: use the white and light gray spaces.
   • For 4 players: use all spaces on the board.

Gameplay Flow

The game proceeds in turns, starting with the youngest player and continuing clockwise. Each player's turn consists of three steps:

1. Place a tile on the board: The player chooses a tile from their tile holder and places it on two adjacent empty spaces on the board.
2. Score points for this tile and move the scoring pegs: Immediately after placing the tile, the player scores the colored symbols on the tile and moves the corresponding scoring pegs on their scoring track.
3. Draw new tiles: At the end of the turn, the player draws tiles to replenish their tile holder.

In the first round, each player must place a tile next to a colored symbol printed on the board, choosing a different symbol from the other players. After the first round, tiles can be placed anywhere on an empty space on the board, without the need for an initial symbol match.

Actions and How to Play

1st Placing a Tile on the Board

When it's your turn, you must choose a tile from your tile holder and place it on two adjacent empty spaces on the board. Each tile has two colored symbols, which can be the same or different.

When placing a tile, observe the following:

• The board limitation according to the number of players must be respected. No part of the tile can be outside the delimited zone.
• Tiles can be positioned to leave single empty spaces.
• Spaces with colored symbols printed on the board are not considered empty spaces and can never be covered by a tile.
• You must place a tile, even if it doesn't earn you any points this turn.

2nd Scoring Tiles

After placing a tile, you score both colored symbols present on it, even if they are the same. First, score one colored symbol and move the respective scoring peg. Then, do the same for the second colored symbol.

To score a colored symbol:

• Each colored symbol of the newly placed tile is adjacent to 5 other spaces (except at the edges), which represent 5 scoring directions.
• Scoring is done in a straight line in each of these 5 directions.
• You sum the quantity of colored symbols (on other tiles or printed on the board) that are the same as the symbol being scored, without interruption. Scoring stops when you encounter an empty space or a non-matching colored symbol.
• Each matching colored symbol found in a direction is worth one point. The total sum of points from all 5 directions defines the score for that color.
• The colored symbols printed on the placed tile itself do not count for points. Even on tiles with the same double colored symbol, the "sixth direction" pointing to the adjacent symbol on the same tile is never counted.

Bonus Move

If a scoring peg of a colored symbol reaches the value 18 on the scoring track, it remains there until the end of the game, and additional points for that color are lost. The player shouts "GENIAL!" and receives a bonus move: before drawing new tiles, they can choose an additional tile from their tile holder and place it on the board. This can trigger more bonus moves. A tile with two different colored symbols can trigger two bonus moves simultaneously. It is not allowed to forgo a bonus move. Only after all bonus moves are completed can the player draw tiles.

3rd Drawing New Tiles

At the end of a turn, you can receive new tiles in two ways:

• A – Draw new tiles: You draw tiles from the bag until you again have six tiles in your tile holder.
• B – Exchange all your tiles (rarely possible): You can only exchange your tiles if you do not have any tile with the colored symbol in which you currently have the lowest number of points. If more than one colored symbol is in the worst position, you can only exchange your tiles if you do not have any colored symbol of all those colors. To exchange, you must show your tiles to your opponents and set them aside. Then, draw six new tiles and place them in your tile holder. The tiles set aside are then placed back into the bag, and your turn ends.

End of Game and Scoring

The game ends when it is no longer possible to place any tile on the board (because there are no more free spaces in the delimited region for the game).

The final score is then checked for each player:

1. Each player's worst-placed scoring peg is compared (i.e., the color with the lowest score).
2. The player with the highest score on this scoring peg wins the game. In other words, the player who has the highest worst score that is higher than all opponents' worst scores wins.
3. To determine victory, it does not matter which color came in last place or how many scoring pegs reached the value 18.

In case of a tie for the worst position, players compare the position of the next lowest-scoring scoring marker. If the tie persists, they continue comparing the next worst scores. (A player with more than one scoring marker in a tied position loses to an opponent who has fewer markers in that position).

There is an immediate end (rare): whoever manages to get all 6 of their scoring pegs to the value 18 wins the game immediately.

Tips for Winning

• Balance your scores: Remember that victory is determined by your worst score. Focus on scoring evenly across all colors to avoid leaving any "behind" and ensure your lowest scoring peg is the highest among players.
• Strategically pursue Bonus Moves: Reaching 18 points in a color grants a bonus move, allowing you to place an additional tile. Use this advantage to create new scoring opportunities or to balance your colors, especially if you have tiles with double symbols that can trigger two bonus moves.