Operation Board Game Toy Story 3

by The Beast!

(Boardgame Beast HQ)

Operation board game Toy Story 3

If you loved the classic Operation board game and have seen this Toy Story 3 edition in the stores, you might be wondering whether it’s worth investing in?

That’s not an easy question to answer. While the theme is very nicely handled, with great sound effects when you touch the metal sides with the tweezers and good Buzz graphics, the overall quality of construction leaves a lot to be desired.

Adult buyers of mass market board games, themselves fans of 1970s classics who have bought games for their kids, have found to their dismay that board game makers have cut corners and are producing games like Hungry Hungry Hippos as cheaply as possible these days. Issues include games which are virtually impossible to pack away, parts that jam or fall off and fast-wearing of moving parts.

Operation board game Toy Story 3 suffers a little from this syndrome, in that the parts you’re supposed to remove from Buzz are often way too small and poorly designed. The original Operation game made it very obvious which pieces belonged where, but this version is less satisfying. Most of the pieces are small and roughly square or long and thin. Some are virtually impossible to pick up because they are rounded.

It’s too easy to drop the wrong piece in the wrong hole and the graphics alongside the holes don’t always resemble the pieces, making it hard to figure out what goes where. They are also made from very slippery plastic, so frustration will run high.

That said, the game concept is still as fun as it used to be, so if your kids are rabid Toy Story 3 fans, they may still get something from Operation board game Toy Story 3. But because of the frustrations, don’t expect kids under age eight to be able to play unsupervised.