TreeLineBackpacker

Imagine a chess board that rolls up like an armadillo, stuffs into a water bottle pocket, and doesn’t lose game progress when transported. That is basically the VentureBoard. My Review:

The VentureBoard started as a Kickstarter project with the simple concept of making chess mobile. It is a plastic board with a metal internal layer that allows magnetic chess pieces to lock in place while packed up, yet slide around during gameplay. The kit includes the board, pieces, 4 spare pieces, and a nylon travel sack. It retails for around $70 but often goes on sale.

The board itself rolls into a small tube-like shape thanks to internal hinges. The individual sections fold up effortlessly and lock in place via relatively strong magnets when shut. Angular side pieces form a light seal to keep dirt and debris out, while also ensuring any stray pieces can’t escape in the event of a hard drop or impact. While in transport, the game pieces stay in place surprisingly well. I can shake the kit as hard as I want and they stay locked in place, aside from maybe the minor shift here or there when I’m really trying. Yet, the pieces are easy to move about the board when the game is on.

The set includes the board, all the relevant pieces, and even a couple of spare pieces with stickers that allow you to assign them as any piece you need. This is a nice bonus that comes in handy in the event that a piece is somehow lost. Extra pieces are also available online in the event that you lose more than a couple.

The board quality and construction overall is rather good. The collapsible game board is stiff, sturdy, and the hinges have no wiggle or play to them. The board surface is lightly textured, which not only looks nice but has a nice feel to it that helps keep the pieces in place. So far this hasn’t worn down or degraded, so I suspect this will last a while.

The game pieces are solidly built from plastic with an internal magnet. These have a smooth texture with a slight indentation to them that makes them easy to grip and lift off of the board. The individual pieces are all shaped the same, but the printed icons are fairly distinct and make them easy enough to identify.

My only minor nitpick is the travel sack. While fine, the feel is only O.K. It’s constructed from a mediocre quality synthetic nylon with thin strings for the cinch strap. It holds up fine and really isn’t a problem, but given the quality of everything, it kind of stands out. Just a nitpick honestly.

Overall

The VentureBoard is a slick, compact, interesting way of bringing along one of the best board games ever created. It’s sturdy, light-weight packs down relatively small, and keeps all the pieces reliably in place. It’s also a great conversation starter and adds a little flair to an otherwise classic game that doesn’t see a lot of innovation.

Highly Recommended

For more information on Ventureboard and their equipment, consider checking them out via their page. This is not an affiliate link.

For information on our rating system and our testing procedures, check out our About us/ Contact us page.

I want to extend a huge thanks to VentureBoard for providing this product for review. We couldn’t do it without their help.

Our full disclosure can be found on our contact us/about us page. Thanks as always for reading! Don’t forget to follow our blog for future updates and reviews (link on the right also).