Every kids’ game has an expiry date. The trick is knowing what comes next. For Karak, the answer is printed right on the box: Karak II.
In our Karak review I wrote that kids start to outgrow the original at around eight, and that Karak II is clearly meant for older children. Here’s how the sequel landed with us. Fair warning: this is a shorter review, because our log only shows one game so far.
How Karak II ended up on our shelf
We picked up Karak II at Berlin Brettspiel Con. It came home in the same bag as Love Letter, the Kiezpuzzle from Studio-B, the dice game PLUxINUS and ’ne Tüte Chips from Huch. Our copy came with a small promo pack of bonus characters, which you can see in the photo below.
It hit the table soon after, and both Karak and Karak II made it onto our list of games played.
What is Karak II?
Karak II is a standalone sequel, so you don’t need the original. It’s by the same team: Petr Mikša designed it, Roman Hladík did the art, and Albi published it in 2023. The original Karak and its expansions had sold around 300,000 copies across 17 countries before the sequel came out.
The box details: two to five players, 45 to 90 minutes. The box recommends 10+, though you’ll occasionally see 8+. There’s no text on the cards, so language isn’t a barrier.
How it plays
The big change: you leave the dungeon. Karak II moves the action out into the wild lands around the castle, and it adds towns, buildings, resources and troops.
- One action per turn. You explore, or you gather resources where your hero stands.
- Monsters come out of a bag. When you explore, you draw a monster and fight it with dice.
- Troops are dice. You start with only your hero’s die. Recruit soldiers and you roll more of them.
- Loot builds your engine. Items, spells and amulets from beaten monsters make you stronger over time.
- Soul Stones win. There’s a Dark General to defeat, but the winner is whoever collects the most Soul Stones, not necessarily the one who lands the final blow.
If the original is “roll, add your sword, beat the skeleton”, the sequel is the same fight with a small economy bolted on. More to think about, and more to keep track of.
Karak or Karak II?
| Karak | Karak II | |
|---|---|---|
| Setting | inside the dungeon | the lands around the castle |
| Age (box) | 7+ | 10+ |
| Play time | about 30 min in our games | 45–90 min |
| What’s new | tile-by-tile dungeon, six heroes | towns, resources, troops, engine-building |
Karak
- Setting
- inside the dungeon
- Age (box)
- 7+
- Play time
- about 30 min in our games
- What’s new
- tile-by-tile dungeon, six heroes
Karak II
- Setting
- the lands around the castle
- Age (box)
- 10+
- Play time
- 45–90 min
- What’s new
- towns, resources, troops, engine-building
Our rule of thumb hasn’t changed: kids between about four and eight start with the original. Kids around ten go straight to Karak II. If your family spans both, as ours does, you may end up owning both boxes. Whether that’s siblings, cousins or a blended family with a wide age spread, that’s not the worst problem to have.
Karak II with kids
The box says 10+, and that’s what the publisher aims at. These days our 10-year-old only joins the original Karak for the company, and the sequel is aimed at exactly that gap. One honest caveat: we can’t yet tell you how a whole run of games goes at our table, because we’ve only logged one.
The thing to watch: luck. Draw a few strong monsters early and you can lose fight after fight, while someone with weaker draws builds their engine much faster. In the community, you hear about games where one player lost every fight for the first six turns. With a kid who takes losing hard, that’s a real risk. A house rule that gets passed around: leave the high-level monsters out of the bag until later in the game. We haven’t tried it.
What we hear in the community
Many see it as a good choice for families and children: the rules are easy to learn and teach, decisions are easy to plan and feel meaningful, and the engine-building adds depth. It’s more complex, and more expensive, than the original, while keeping the dice combat and map exploration fans know.
The main criticism matches ours: the snowball effect from random monster draws. There’s also a first expansion, Karak 2: Imperium. It needs the base game and adds duels between players, a mode where you compete for the Emperor’s Crown, five new heroes and new monsters. We haven’t tried it.
Our verdict
If your kids loved Karak and are now rolling their eyes at it, Karak II is the obvious next box. It keeps the dice-and-monsters fun and adds enough to chew on for a 10-year-old.
If your kids are younger, stay with the original. And if luck-driven losing streaks cause meltdowns at your table, keep that house rule in your back pocket.
Where it shines
- A natural next step for kids who've outgrown the original Karak
- Simple turns: one action, then it's the next player's go
- Engine-building gives it more depth than the original
- Standalone: no need to own the first game
Where it stings
- Monster draws from the bag can leave one player losing fight after fight
- Clearly longer than the original
- We've only logged one game so far, so our verdict is still young
Fact sheet
- 2–5
- 45–90 min
- 10+ (sometimes listed as 8+)
- Petr Mikša (art: Roman Hladík)
- Berlin Brettspiel Con
From our table
FAQ
Is Karak II an expansion for Karak?
No. Karak II is a standalone sequel. You don't need the original to play it.
What age is Karak II for?
The box recommends 10+. You'll sometimes see 8+, too, so check the box you're buying. The original Karak is listed at 7+.
Karak or Karak II: which should I buy?
It depends on the age of your kids. For kids between about four and eight, the original Karak. For kids around ten, Karak II is the one that fits.
How long does a game of Karak II take?
Plan on 45 to 90 minutes. That's clearly longer than the original Karak, which takes us about 30 minutes.
Is Karak II very luck-heavy?
Monsters come out of a bag, and a player can lose every fight for the first six turns. A house rule from the community: keep the high-level monsters out of the bag until later in the game.
