Camel Up - Digital Version

Title: Camel Up

Developer: Outline Development

Type: Digital Board Game

Platform(s): iOS / Android

# of Players: 1-8 Local (Online coming)

Release Date: Released


Camel Up (sometimes called "Camel Cup") is a digital adaptation of a physical board game published by Z-Man Games. The original board game was nominated for and received many awards in the year of its release, 2014; including the coveted Spiel des Jahres.

Camel Up is based on traditional roll-and-move board games, with a few twists. Players place bets for which camel will win, and which will lose. On each player's turn a random colored die is rolled, and the matching camel is moved according to the result. When a camel lands on a square occupied by one or more other camels, it is placed on top of the stack. Any camel that is moved caries whatever other camels are on its back with it. Additionally some spaces cause a camel to move backwards, sliding to the bottom of any other camel(s) it lands on. All of this makes predicting the winning and losing camels more complicated. Players are scored on a variety of events that occur during the game as well as how accurately they predicted the winners and losers. The game is very easy to learn and play, and is a fast casual affair appropriate for all ages.

The digital version of the game is well presented graphically and does a decent job of replicating the look and feel of the original board game. The initial version of the app has been criticized for its poor/incomplete tutorial, but the game is rather simple and resources to learn to play are readily available online (including the videos linked below). The developer has committed to tuning up the app with forthcoming updates, and it is said that online multiplayer is in the works. Camel Up is currently available on both major mobile platforms for $4.69.

iTunes Store: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/camel-up/id919119741?mt=8

Google Play Store: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=de.development.outline.camelup

Here is a review of the iOS version of the game posted by Jay of Empire of Robots:



Here is a review of the original board game by Tom Vasel and Zee Garcia of dicetower.com: