In my limited experience, yes. I’ve taught it to about a half dozen people, and thus far everyone has enjoyed it, and picked up the basics quickly, and been keen to play multiple games (it’s also quick to play – half an hour would be a long game). The standard game only uses five different tile/creature types, which are all easy to distinguish from one another, and it’s easy to teach because there are very few rules to learn. There’s plenty of depth, though; it’s easily one of the best two-player games I know.
The pocket version is pretty good – I carry a copy most places, in my backpack. As a literal “in a pocket” thing it’s not all that practical (refer to Quinns’ video), and even the smaller tiles still weigh a bit, so if you’re serious about minimising the space and weight then I reckon a home-made version is a fine idea. I’d grab yourself a copy of the Pocket edition first, though, and see how you get on.
