Noir Card Game Review

Order here - Noir

WBG Score: 8/10

Player Count: 2-4

You’ll like this if you like: Simple deduction games, with some killing!

Published by: Level 99 Games

Designed by: D. Brad Talton, Jr.

This is a free review copy. See our review policy here.

This may well be one of the easiest games to pitch that I have seen in a long while. Noir is a simple-to-learn, quick-to-play (15-minute) card game that comes in a small box with four variations that all feel quite different. It works just as well for two to four players, but could be open for more in a team play situation. If you like deduction games and want something light and easy, this is a dream. But, is it any fun? Let's get it to the table and find out.

How To Set Up And Play Noir

There are four game modes here. I will go through them one by one.

Killer Vs. Inspector:

How To Set Up Killer Vs. Inspector: 2-4 Player Game.

Separate the Suspect cards from the Evidence cards and place them in alphabetical order in a five-by-five grid. Shuffle the Evidence deck and deal four cards to the player acting as the Inspector and two the player acting as the Killer. The Killer will look at both cards and use the first as their secret identify. The second will be there disguise. The Killer will then Kill one card in the five-by-five array by flipping over one card that is above, below, next to, or diagonal to the card they were assigned as their Identity. The Inspector then chooses one of their four cards to be their secret identify. ideally, not the one just killed if they had been dealt that one!

How To Play Killer Vs. Inspector:

The Killer will now take their turn, carrying out one action. The Inspector then has one action. This continues until either the Killer kills ten people, or the character chosen by the Inspector as their secret identity, or the Inspector correctly identifies who the Killer is when next to that card, or successfully guesses who both the Killer's identity and disguise are. Both players on their turn can shift one column or row one place in either direction, moving all cards one space. This is done to move closer or away from certain cards. Both players can also remove previously killed cards and collapse the board down, bringing all remaining cards together to form a new smaller grid. The Killer is also able to kill at will, any other card next to them, as well as being able to switch between their identity and disguise at any point. The Inspector can accuse any card next to them of being the Killer. If they are right, the game ends and they win. They can also try to solve the identity of both of the Killer's cards. But if they guess wrong here, they lose. The game ends either way if this is the choice of the Inspector. The Inspector can also use the cards in their hand, placing one Evidence card over the matching Suspect card, and the Killer then must reveal if they are next to this card. The Inspector then draws one more Evidence card to keep a hand of three at all times.

Spy Tag:

How To Set Up Spy Tag: 2-4 Player Game.

Lay out the Suspect cards into an alphabetical five-by-five grid. Then deal each player an Evidence card. In a four player game, separate into two teams. Team mates will share their Evidence cards with each other. This is the only time in the team game players can secretly communicate in the game. All other communication must be open for all to hear.

How To Play Spy Tag:

Players will now take turns to try and identify who the other players in the game are. You will do this by carrying out one of three actions each turn. You can either move one row or column one or two spaces, shifting all cards in either a row or column one or two spaces in either direction. Or, you can ask if any one other player is next to one specific card. The card you pick must be adjacent to your own identity, so this will reveal some information to the other players about your own identity. The other players must answer truthfully. Or finally, you can try to capture, by picking a card adjacent to your own, and if any other player is this character, you capture them, take that card as a point, and that player is then dealt a new Evidence card as their new identity. The first player to do this two times is the winner.

Dragnet: 2-4 Player Game

How To Set Up Dragnet:

Lay out the 25 Suspect cards into a five-by-five grid. (You're sensing a theme now, aren't you?) Shuffle the 25 Evidence cards and deal each player two cards for their hand, and one card to be placed face down in front of them. The face-down card will be each player's own personal Secret Suspicion. Players may look at their own Secret Suspicions, but they must keep it, as the name suggests, secret. Then draw the top three cards and place them face up on top of their matching Suspect card, and leave the rest to create a face-down deck.

How To play Dragnet:

Players will now take turns to perform one of four actions in an attempt to create a line in the main grid that contains only innocent characters or Secret Suspicions. The first action is a Targeted Shift. This lets players place an Evidence card from their hand on top of the matching Suspect card and then shift the row or column containing that Suspect one space in either direction. Cards that move outside of the 5-x-5 grid in this way will be placed into the empty space created at the start of that row or column. The second action is to Question. This is where players may place an Evidence card from their hand on top of the matching Suspect card in the grid, and then take an adjacent previously placed Suspect card from the grid and place it into their hand. Then, all players must honestly say if any of their Secret Suspicions cards are adjacent to the card that was just picked up.

The third action allows players to Rethink. Here, players can again place an Evidence card from their hand on top of the matching Suspect card in the grid, but this time, they can then pick up their Secret Suspicion and swap it with the other Evidence card in their hand. They will then draw a card from the Evidence deck to replenish their hand. The last action allows players to Solve the case, by picking any row or column, including diagonals of five cards. Then players must raise their hand if their Secret Suspicion is in that line of cards. If the number of raised hands matches the number of cards without Suspect cards on top, then this player wins the game. If they are wrong, then the player who guessed misses their next turn, and all players who raised their hand may swap their Secret Suspicions with a card in their hand if they wish. When the Evidence deck runs out, all players may attempt one Solve action in turn order, and then if no one wins, the game ends in a tie.

Buddy Cops: Three Player Game

How To Set Up Buddy Cops:

Once again, lay out the Suspect cards into an alphabetical five-by-five grid. Shuffle the evidence deck and leave it nearby. One player will be a Killer, another the Profiler Cop, and the third an undercover cop. Take the appropriate reference card. Each player now draws three Evidence cards. The Killer picks one as their Secret Identity, placing this card face down in front of them. The other two are set aside as Disguise cards. The Killer player then flips over a card adjacent to their current Secret Identity on the grid, "Killing" them. Each player acting as a Cop now picks a living Suspect in their hand to be their own Secret Identity, placing this card face down in front of them. The Undercover cop then hands the other two cards to the Profiler Cop, checking the Profilers Secret Identity as they do this. The Two Cops must not speak as they do this or for the rest of the game. The game then begins.

How To play Buddy Cops:

Play rotates between the Killer and cops, with the cops taking every other turn, in between the Killer. So the Killer goes first, then the Police. Then the Killer, then the Undercover cop, then the Killer, and so on. The Cops are looking to Accuse the right Killer. The Killer wants to make 13 Kills, or simply kill both Cops.

The Killer has three actions. They can Kill, just as in set-up. Shift one column or row one place in either direction, moving all cards one space. Or Disguise themselves by picking up their two Disguise and swapping their Secret Identity with either card.

The Undercover Cop can take one of four actions. They can Shift just as the Killer above. Fast Shift, which is the same but two spaces. Disguise themselves by drawing a new card from the Evidence deck and picking a new Secret Identity from this card or their current one. The unused card is given to the Profiler. Or they can Accuse the Killer by choosing a Suspect adjacent to their current Secret Identity, and if they are correct, the Killer must reveal themselves. If you pick the Killer's Disguise, they must discard this card, but they do not lose.

The Profiler Cop can Shift or Accuse, just as above. And they can also Exonerate or Deputize. Exonerate means they will place a card from their hand onto the matching card in the grid. The Killer must then sat if any of their Disguises or current identity is adjacent to this card. They do not have to say how many of their cards are adjacent or which one. Just a simple yes or no. Deputize means they can choose a card from their hand matching any living card in the grid and place down to replace the Undercover Cops current identity. Their old Identity is placed to the bottom of the Evidence deck.

Is It Fun? Noir Card Game Review

The four games in this box all feel quite similar, but they certainly have their own flavour and style. The first and fourth are by far my favourite, with the last being the best of the lot, and the one I have played and enjoyed the most.

There is a really interesting moment in Buddy Cops when one cop is killed by the killer. This does not end the game as the killer needs 13 deaths in total, or two dead cops. But it does create a shift in the game. When a cop is killed, the two players acting as the cop must switch roles. The old profiler gives all their evidence cards to the new profiler along with their reference card. The old undercover cop takes these and gives their reference card to the other player. The dead cop then draws cards from the top of the evidence deck until they find the first living card. This becomes their new secret identity. Any other drawn cards are discarded face up. Then the new undercover cop looks at their partner's new identity. After all this has happened, a lot of information has been shared between the two cops. They are one life down and closer to losing. But they have also gathered a lot of new intel and shared more between each other. It's a great little catch-up mechanism that adds incredible tension to the game.

All four games are short and tense. They offer an incredibly smooth and fast deduction-style experience with just two small decks of cards. It really is incredible what has been done here with so little. I think there is something for everyone with the four variations. More ruthless players will enjoy being the Killer in the first and fourth games, whereas the more 'sleuthy' players who enjoy the deduction side will have fun acting as the Detective or Cop in these two games. The second game, Spy Net, is more for families, I feel, and the third game, Dragnet, suits players more into puzzle and pattern building games.

I would recommend this game to anyone due to its versatile nature, and my family and I can enjoy the first and last game a lot more over the coming years. It is portable, simple to teach, and quick to play. It creates a lot of fun table talk once the game is over, and a real sense of tension as you play.