Magical Athlete review

CMYK | 2–6 players | 6+ | 30 minutes

In this racing game, published by CMYK, players draft unique racers with different abilities to compete across four chaotic, dice-driven races in an effort to earn the most points.

During setup, the race track is placed in the middle of the table with the Mild Miles side facing up. The gold trophy and silver rosette point chips are stacked in descending order, with the highest values on the bottom. Players then reveal twice as many racer cards as there are players and recruit their team by snake drafting two cards. This process is repeated until everyone has a total of four racers.

After determining the starting player, everyone simultaneously reveals which of their four racers they will use in the first race. Each turn, players roll their die and move their racer token that many spaces along the track, potentially triggering their own ability or those of other racers.

Play continues until two racers cross the finish line. The winner claims the top gold trophy chip, while second place receives the top silver rosette chip.

The used racer cards and tokens are then removed from the game, the board is flipped to its opposite side to reveal a more advanced track , and players simultaneously reveal a new racer for the next race. This process is repeated until all four races have been completed. The player with the most points at the end wins the game. In the event of a tie, the tied players share the victory and celebrate together.

Indruk

I absolutely love how abstract, quirky, and colorful this game's theme is. It feels like playing a classic roll-and-move racing game that has been completely reimagined while still keeping its nostalgic charm.

The game includes 36 unique racer cards, each with its own distinct artwork and special power. Every racer comes with a high-quality token. Most are similarly sized, but there are fun exceptions, such as the extra-long token for Legs and the oversized one for Huge Baby. The race track shares the same vibrant art style, while the point chips have a beautiful shiny finish. Overall, the production quality is excellent. The only thing I would have liked to see is an insert to keep all the components neatly organized, although that would naturally increase the price.

The gameplay is just as nostalgic as the presentation, bringing players back to the simplicity of classic roll-and-move games. At first glance, it may seem like there is very little strategy, and I initially worried the experience would become repetitive. While strategic decisions are mostly limited to choosing which racer to use in each race, the game stays engaging thanks to the wide variety of chaotic character abilities. You never truly know who will win because racers can suddenly swap places, trip opponents, or trigger all sorts of unexpected effects.

Since there is very little to optimize once a race begins, the experience feels refreshingly relaxed. Rather than constantly calculating the best move, you simply embrace the chaos and enjoy whatever happens. This is the kind of game you bring to the table for laughs, memorable moments, and plenty of surprises, not for deep strategic competition.

It feels genuinely unique, and I think it deserves a place in almost any board game collection. Thanks to its straightforward rules and accessible gameplay, it is easy to introduce to almost anyone and works well on nearly any occasion.