Diver Go! from Itten and designer Mashiu is a light, family-friendly memory and dexterity game where players dive for treasure coins on the ocean floor — balancing quick observation, recall, and a touch of luck against the mischievous curse of King Octo. It’s a compact design that combines a silly nautical theme with sharp gameplay, and like many of Itten’s titles, it thrives on simplicity that hides surprising depth.
At its core, Diver Go! is about scanning, remembering, and retrieving treasure. At the start of each round, players are given a brief moment to study a glittering seabed of coins piled inside the box. These coins represent treasures of four materials including gold, silver, bronze and iron, but the twist here is that about half of them are cursed with a blue symbol.
Once the dive begins, players cover their eyes with a thick, cardboard diving mask and must attempt to collect coins they recall spotting. Curses are only printed on one side of any affected coin, so whilst you may recall the position of a few on the surface, there’s an aspect of luck both because of hidden curses and because the coins move as you touch them.
The tension in Diver Go! comes from the limited time to observe the coin layout (which is about twenty seconds, as determined by an included sand timer) and the uncertainty of what you’ll end up with when you dive. How many coins each player takes on their dive is determined by a card taken from the side of the box prior to the dive – with the player taking the “1” card acting first but only getting one coin, and the player taking the “5” getting a whopping (and often too great) bounty of five coins, but acting last.
When a player “surfaces” they will look at the coins they drew and any they already had. If three or more are cursed, those must be placed onto their personal “sunken ship” card, resulting in minus points for each one. Any remaining coins (including up to two cursed ones) can then be used to fulfill contracts laid out beside the box. In short you can trade in around three to six coins in various combinations for points. Whilst up to two cursed coins can be retained and used in this way, any contract fulfilled without a cursed coin will earn a x2 token, doubling its value.
Diver Go! supports 1–4 players and plays in about 20–40 minutes, making it accessible for families and casual groups. At higher player counts, interaction increases as divers compete for dive order (and the same coins) and try to outwit King Octo’s curse. One thing we did notice was that this isn’t a tight game – a score can range from about minus 5,000 to plus 20,000 points, and this is not a game you want to take too seriously.
Mechanically, Diver Go! blends memory recall with set collection — you’re not just grabbing any coin, but planning which ones will give you the best return. The curse mechanic complicates this in a fun way, as coins you thought were safe may show a curse symbol on their reverse side that unravels your entire plan and causes great eruptions of excitement around the table.
The production is classic Itten: minimalist yet striking. The coins are thick, tactile and shiny, the box doubling as a seabed is eye-catching, and the rules are simple enough to teach in a few minutes. The artwork is clean and nautical in theme, while the curse mechanic adds narrative flavor without overcomplicating the gameplay. The tactile nature of the coins and the act of physically retrieving them reinforces the theme of diving and treasure hunting, making the experience feel more immersive than a purely abstract memory game.
Replayability is strong due to the excitement that Diver Go! creates around the table. No two rounds or games feel the same, and the shifting coins ensure that even experienced players can’t guarantee a winning strategy. Diver Go! also scales well in difficulty — younger players can enjoy the simple act of remembering and collecting, while older players can lean into more of the risk management aspects. This makes Diver Go! a versatile choice for mixed-age groups.
Diver Go! is a charming, accessible game that delivers quick bursts of tension and laughter. It’s not a heavy strategy title, but it doesn’t need to be — its appeal lies in the immediacy of the challenge and the joy of testing your memory against friends, family, or King Octo himself. For fans of Itten’s quirky, minimalist designs, this is another gem worth diving into, offering a blend of lighthearted fun and subtle strategy that keeps players coming back for more.
Diver Go! is available now, you can find more out about it on the website of publisher itten.
