Set out to build an enjoyable trail for your next hiking adventure, but don’t make the inclines too steep! Does Switchbacks make for an enjoyable trek, or lead you to perilous downfall? Let’s put on our hiking boots and find out.

Game Name: Switchbacks (2022)
Designer: Susumu Kawasaki
Artist: Daniel Profiri, Anca Gavril
Publisher: Allplay
Player Count: 2-4 Players
Playing Time: 15 minutes
Review Date: 5/23/2025
Reviewed By: Dan

Upfront Disclaimer: I purchased my own retail copy of “Switchbacks”. No free copy was provided for review, and I’ve had no contact with the publisher regarding this game. All opinions contained within are my own unbiased thoughts.

Game Overview

Another in the long line of small box games from the folks at Allplay, Switchbacks is a 2022 release that rethemes the game originally known as “Connect 37”. The first thing that jumps out in this new version is the pleasingly colorful artwork on the front of the box, depicting a winding trail curving through trees and mountains. This is a sign of things to come, as this lightly themed game still manages to present itself as a simple to play, relaxing experience.

I picked my copy of “Switchbacks” up from the Allplay booth at PAX Unplugged in 2024, after giving it a shot with some friends during the convention. It’s no secret (mentioned in multiple past reviews) that I really enjoy finding fun games that come in smaller boxes; shelf space is always at a premium, and this format makes it so much easier to add games to the collection without being overwhelmed. And this is a title that lives up to the small box simplicity – even on the back of the box, it proudly mentions that it requires only “1 minute to teach”, a promise that is definitely fulfilled by what sits inside.

Crack open the lid of the box, and inside you’ll first be greeted by what appears to be 9 different gigantic thick cardboard puzzle pieces; these are assembled to create game board. Next you’ll find 37 different hexagonal cardboard “elevation tiles”, in slightly varied colors containing the numbers 1 through 37. There are also 51 different wooden hiker meeples. (One thing worth calling out – my version pictured here includes the optional “deluxe hiker meeples”, which are slightly larger than those found in the base game, and also have a nice screen printing on both sides. The standard version still contains wooden meeples, but they are slightly smaller and without screen printing. You’ll be fine with either.) And the final component inside the box – a rulebook so tiny and small that you might mistake it for some kind of packed-in advertisement.

The goal of Switchbacks is extremely simple – each player has a certain number of wooden hiker meeples based on the number of players in the game (16 each in a 2-player game, or as low as 8 each in a 4-player game). Players will alternate taking turns placing one of their elevation tiles from their own hand of 3 tiles anywhere in the play area that they would like, and then afterwards, deciding whether or not they want to play one of their own hiker meeples on the tile they just added. The goal here is to get as many of your own hikers as you can onto completed hiking paths. So what makes a completed hiking path? A path where, at the minimum, there are four or more consecutively numbered tiles in a row on the board when the game ends.

Too simple, you say? Well, not quite so fast. There are a few things making this a little bit trickier than it sounds. At the start of each game, each player is secretly dealt one facedown tile that they get to look at (or two each in a 2-player game), that is ineligible to be played during the game. You’ll have knowledge of your own tile(s) that will never show up on the board, but other players will carry their own secrets. This ensures that there will be random breaks in the sequence where some trails just won’t be able to be continued, and the players will have to try and deduce where those breaks might be as the game is played. The other thing making this tricky – on every single turn, you either have to play a hiker on your own played tile, or you have to choose to “buddy up” two hikers together, that have to be played as a pair in a future turn. If you reach the point where ALL of your hikers are buddied up, you’ll have to place a hiker every single turn after that. This is difficult especially early in the game, when you’ll have to make decisions on placing hikers long before you can be sure they will end on a completed path.

End game scoring is simple – every hiker placed on a completed path (even multiple on the same path) counts as 1 point; every hiker who ends up on an incomplete path is worth 0. Sum up the total points, and the player with the most is declared the Switchbacks champion.

My Thoughts

Switchbacks is a delightful little game that I have really enjoyed playing (which probably does not come as a surprise, since as I mentioned at the start, I bought it after having the chance to demo it). The small box doesn’t take up hardly any space at all on my shelf, so it’s an easy decision to keep it around and also makes it a great game for travel. The setup is quick, the rules really do take 60 seconds or less to teach to new players, and the whole game plays out in just a few minutes.

I think it plays fine at all player counts, but my recommendation would be to go with 3 or 4 players if possible. In a duo game, I still think it is fun, but it plays much differently – even with two hidden tiles each, both players will still be able to figure out where the breaks in the sequence are most likely to occur based on where the only opponent chooses to place their hikers. Honestly, the best thing about Switchbacks is that it’s a unique game where you actually have to work together with your opponents for either of you to score most of the time. Your hand size is limited to a max of three tiles at any one time, and a completed trail requires at least four consecutive numbers. Later in the game you’ll probably have some good info on which trails can be completed, but for the first 2/3rds of the game, you’ll probably have to place some hikers and tiles based on the faith that your opponents will see your optimism on finishing the trail and join you in adding to it. At the same time, you still need to be cautious with the information you reveal by which tile you choose to play and where you play it. You might see an opponent building up a ton of hikers on an incomplete trail, and be holding a key tile in your hand to complete it, and choose to just play it all the way on the other side of the board. I LOVE the decision to allow players to place a tile literally anywhere they want – it does not need to touch an existing tile, it can be played in the middle of nowhere on any empty space if you so choose.

Even though this one isn’t heavy on theme, I do feel like even the slight attempt at conjuring up the idea of building a hiking trail has a positive effect on my mood while I play. Combined with the fact that some of the mechanics lead to players needing to occasionally help each other out, I think that Switchbacks is overall a very gentle, calm game to play. As far as the components, everything is more than adequate and I have no issues with it. Do you NEED the upgraded, larger screen-printed hiker meeples? Nah. Don’t get me wrong, they’re very nice quality, but you probably won’t miss not having them if you decide to skip paying for them and just use the standard ones.

There isn’t a lot to dislike here, overall Allplay did an excellent job with this game. I wish a solo mode existed for it, maybe someone more creative than me can come up with one using the included components? I also think that at if I am playing 1v1 against someone else, this probably isn’t the title I’m going to grab off of my shelf. Again, it’s not BAD at two players, but some of the mechanics just don’t feel as engaging. But with three or for players, this will get quite a bit of play when I need a super quick game. I don’t see myself playing 1,000 rounds of this in a row by any means, but because it takes almost zero effort to learn or teach the rules, it will really have a lot of staying power on my board game shelf over time, and see quite a lot of action on the table.

Verdict:

Switchbacks is small, quick, simple, gentle…and very fun.  It’s a good game for two players, but a GREAT game for three to four players. The small size and enjoyable components make it an easy add to any gaming collection for a quick 10-15 minute casual game.

Likes:

• The mechanic of players needing to work together makes the gameplay very interesting
• About as simple to set up and teach as a game could possibly be, yet does not feel like it lacks depth or strategy
• Manages to extract a nice relaxing feel out of a very minimal theme
• Giving each player a few hidden tiles to remove from the game really adds a lot of intrigue
• Super small box and table presence makes it a great travel game

Dislikes:

• Two-player count is ho-hum; I’d recommend trying it with three or four players
• Box is a very tight fit if you add in the optional deluxe hiker meeples