- BGG rank
- BGG #6,069
- BGG rating
- 6.3
Doodle City
- 1–6 players
- 30 min
- Complexity 1.4/5
- 2014
- BGG rank
- BGG #16,025
- BGG rating
- 6.4
Doodle China
2016
Rules assistance for Doodle China
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.
- 1–5 players
- 20–40 min
- 8+
- Complexity 2.0/5
Rules assistant for Doodle China
What would you like to know?
Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
Doodle China is a board game released in 2016 for 1–5 players, 20–40 minutes per game, and ages 8 and up. It was designed by Kristian Amundsen Østby and Eilif Svensson and its main mechanics are Line Drawing.
Similar games
- BGG rank
- BGG #814
- BGG rating
- 7.4
Trails of Tucana
- 1–8 players
- 15 min
- Complexity 1.3/5
- 2019
- BGG rank
- BGG #2,941
- BGG rating
- 6.7
Kokoro: Avenue of the Kodama
- 1–8 players
- 15 min
- Complexity 1.5/5
- 2017
- BGG rank
- BGG #3,028
- BGG rating
- 6.8
Avenue
- 1–10 players
- 15 min
- Complexity 1.4/5
- 2016
- BGG rank
- BGG #14,943
- BGG rating
- 6.5
Doodle Islands
- 1–5 players
- 40 min
- Complexity 1.8/5
- 2018
- BGG rank
- BGG #870
- BGG rating
- 7.8
Saltfjord
- 1–4 players
- 45–90 min
- Complexity 3.0/5
- 2024
- BGG rank
- BGG #92
- BGG rating
- 8.0
Revive
- 1–4 players
- 90–120 min
- Complexity 3.5/5
- 2022
- BGG rank
- BGG #550
- BGG rating
- 7.5
Santa Maria
- 1–4 players
- 45–90 min
- Complexity 3.0/5
- 2017
- BGG rank
- BGG #847
- BGG rating
- 7.5
The Magnificent
- 1–4 players
- 60–90 min
- Complexity 3.1/5
- 2019
- BGG rank
- BGG #1,324
- BGG rating
- 7.2
Bad Company
- 1–6 players
- 30 min
- Complexity 1.9/5
- 2021
- BGG rank
- BGG #2,208
- BGG rating
- 7.0
Capital Lux
- 2–4 players
- 30 min
- Complexity 2.0/5
- 2016
- BGG rank
- BGG #2,428
- BGG rating
- 7.5
Capital Lux 2: Generations
- 1–4 players
- 15–40 min
- Complexity 2.2/5
- 2021
About the game
Doodle China (游画小镇) reimplements Doodle City and includes two playable cities: "Suzhou" and "Shanghai". "Suzhou" plays like Doodle City. Players draft dice that indicate where on their sheets they may draw. Players try to draw a network of canals that connect houses, parks, markets and ships. "Shanghai" uses the same basic mechanisms for dice drafting, but is played on a 6x6 grid and introduces completely new rules for scoring. One new building is the skyscraper. When activated, you either add another floor to the skyscraper, or finalize the building by drawing a road in its space. You then score 1 point per floor multiplied by the number of connected parks. When you score points, all other players must cross out this point value on their sheets, so each value can be scored by only one player throughout the game. Shanghai also has hotels, with which you score points for the length of the road passing through the hotel (as in Doodle City), but again, each value can be scored by only one player. There are no "wildcard dice" in Shanghai. Instead, when you choose dice that activate a park, you can draw in any space in that park's row; doing so costs you a tree. At game's end, players score points for having made a large network of taxis and buses.
Categories
Mechanics
Publishers
- Aporta Games
- Gamdow Games
Questions and answers
Doodle China supports 1–5 players according to the catalogue. This range comes from the publisher’s listed player count, so the game can be set up for any group size within it. Some setups, rules and scoring details may still vary by player count, so check your edition’s rulebook for the exact configuration.
The listed playing time for Doodle China is 20–40 minutes. This is the publisher’s estimate for a full game. The actual duration depends on the group, the player count and familiarity with the rules: first sessions usually run longer, while experienced groups often finish faster. Setup and teaching time are not included in this estimate.
The catalogue lists Doodle China for ages 8 and up. This is the publisher’s recommendation and reflects reading demands, rule complexity and small components rather than theme alone. Younger players can often join with help from an adult, so check the age guidance on your edition and consider your group’s experience with board games.
Doodle China has a complexity rating of 2.0 out of 5 from BoardGameGeek players, which makes it a medium-light game. The rating reflects how much rules knowledge, planning and decision-making a typical game demands. Expect a longer first teach for heavier games, and use a preparation guide before game night.
Doodle China belongs to these categories: City Building. Its main mechanics are Line Drawing. Categories describe the theme and setting of a game, while mechanics describe what players actually do on their turns. Each mechanic links to a catalogue hub with similar games, which helps when you want something comparable.
The credited designers of Doodle China are: Kristian Amundsen Østby and Eilif Svensson. These credits come from the published game data and name the people responsible for the game’s design, not its illustrators or publishers. Designer pages on MeepleRules collect other titles by the same designers, which helps when you enjoy a game and want to find similar ones.
The catalogue lists Doodle China as a base game. It can be played on its own with the components in the box and does not require any other title. Expansions, if any exist, add new content or rules on top of it and are listed separately in the catalogue with a link back to this base game.