The Asmodee LEGO Ninjago: Destiny's Bounty Adventures! Board Game is available at Amazon for £32.88, reduced from £34.99, just in time for Christmas shopping. The cooperative game combines traditional board game challenges with LEGO building, letting children play as their favourite ninjas while working together to defeat villains.
How the game works
Players take on the roles of Kai, Cole, Nya and Zane as they defend the flying Destiny's Bounty ship from invading villains. Instead of competing, players must communicate and combine their ninjas' unique abilities to defeat enemies, unlock new skills and progress through six increasingly challenging adventures. Each character has different abilities, such as freezing villains or moving through walls, adding variety to each playthrough.
The game incorporates physical LEGO elements, allowing children to upgrade their ninja minifigures with new equipment as they progress. Inside the box are 124 LEGO elements, including four minifigures, a double-sided game board, villain tokens, adventure cards and upgrade pieces. The exclusive Nya minifigure is only available with this game.
Parent and shopper reactions
Parents have shared positive feedback, with one saying their children have “repeatedly gotten this game out on their own to play together.” Another added: “My kids love this game so much! My seven-year-old son bought it with his birthday money and they have been playing ever since!”
One shopper noted: “My 14-year-old son loves this game. He said it's very good.” Another wrote: “My 12-year-old grandson said it was a 'pretty cool game' after we played, which is high praise indeed from him from anything that is non-electronic. He really liked the character progression and being able to see that progression reflected on his LEGO avatar. I thought adding stuff to the LEGO characters was a little clunky myself, but I agree that it is pretty cool. I suspect a LEGO fan would really dig it.”
Some found the instructions confusing, as one reviewer explained: “We ended up watching a couple of guys on YouTube explain the instructions to playing the game. My son definitely understood the lingo used, but these instructions were really confusing to read. Fortunately the video cleared it up and we were able to play. My son is a huge Ninjago fan, so we had a good time. Different levels for different difficulties. Pretty cool game with opportunities to build on the characters.”
Availability and alternatives
The game, created through a collaboration between The LEGO Group and Asmodee, follows the brands' previous family games, Brick Like This! and Monkey Palace. It requires two to four players and is available from retailers including Amazon, Very, Hobbycraft and The Entertainer.
For those seeking alternatives, Debenhams offers the Menkind Minecraft The Nether Colourful LED Pinball Game at £149, featuring LED lights and a customisable sticker sheet. Argos has the Risk Board Game for £35, where players build armies, move troops across territories and attack through dice-roll battles, with 300 figures stored in five war crates.
