Disclaimer: We were sent this Bakugan Battle Arena and starter set to review free of charge, but words and pictures are mine. This post contains affiliate links, see more information here.
With no end in sight to the government lockdown in the UK, we are finding plenty of time to play with new toys! This week, it’s the turn of the Bakugan Battle Arena from Spinmaster!
We were gifted a big set of Bakugan toys including a Bakugan Armored Alliance Battle Arena, a starter set, a special edition set and some Bakuballs to play with and review.
What is Bakugan?
Bakugan is a is a long-running Japanese-Canadian anime TV series about creatures called Bakugan and their ‘Battle Brawler’ owners.
It’s also a collectible game made by Spinmaster.
How do you play Bakugan?
You have ‘Bakuballs’, cards and ‘BakuCores’ which come in each pack.
To play, choose three BakuBalls each, placing the corresponding character card face down in the slot at the edge of the arena. Place the BakuBalls in the correct position at the side of the arena, with the little arrows pointing forwards.
Place the small magnetic BakuCore hexagonal discs matching each character on the spaces inside the centre of the arena, ensuring that at least one edge is touching another BakuCore.
To start the ‘Bakugan Brawl’, both players roll their BakuBalls into the arena, trying to land it on a BakuCore, so that their Bakugan will transform and take the BakuCore with it!
If neither of the Bakugans open up and transform then both players take the turn again, and if only one Bakugan transforms then its owner wins that turn.
If both BakuBalls transform then check the B number on the corresponding character card. This number is then added to the B number displayed on the Bakucore; the player with the highest number wins.
In the event of a tie then players use the first number (on the right hand side of the character cards) to determine the winner; the highest number wins.
The winner keeps their Bakugan open, and the loser turns theirs back into a BakuBall. The first player to get all of their Bakugans open wins the brawl.
There are more complicated ways to play with the Bakugan trading cards but as my son is only four, this simple game is more than enough for us right now!
What is in the Bakugan Armored Alliance Battle Arena?
The Battle Arena has a fold-out game board and six plastic edges which slot together to create a playing surface.
This new version of the Battle Arena comes with one character card and one ability card, two BakuCores, and an exclusive gold (Aurelus) Bakugan; Hydorous.
The Bakugan Armored Alliance Battle Arena has an RRP of £24.99.
Do you need a Battle Arena to play Bakugan?
You don’t need a Battle Arena to start your Bakugan collection but it does make the game simple to play, because you can lay the hexagonal BakuCores directly onto the patterned board.
There are spaces for three BakuBalls and three cards for each player so setting the game up is really easy, and the edges of the board stop the Bakugan from rolling off the table.
What is in the Bakugan Starter Pack?
The starter pack contains three transforming Bakugan ‘Bakuballs; one Bakygan Ultra (which you can see) and two surprise Bakugan which all roll to transform into different Bakugan creatures. You also get 6 BakuCores, 3 Ability Cards and 3 Character Cards so you can play!
This three pack has an RRP of £19.99; also available are single Bakugan Ultras which have an RRP of £10 each and come with two cards and two BakuCores to add to your collection.
We were also sent the special edition Bakugan Dragonoid and Dragonoid Ultra set.
These are really special pieces and their cards and BakuCores are worth a lot of points! You can’t guarantee a win every time but if your rolling skill is good and you’re lucky, you’re in with a good chance of win with these on your team!
Bakugan is an easy game to play and master, and individually the little collectable BakuBalls are fun to transform. They’re designed for children aged six and up, but with a little help getting the Bakugans back into their BakuBalls (instructions are provided!) my four year old was easily able to grasp the game and play.
How much and where to buy
The Bakugan Armored Alliance Battle Arena has an RRP of £24.99. Bakugan can be purchased individually or in packs and prices start from £6.99.
They can be purchased from online retailers including Amazon by clicking on the affiliate links below.