This is a preview copy sent to us for our opinions. No money exchanged hands. Some art, rules or components may change in the final game. You can follow the game more here.
If you have ever played Rummy or Gin Rummy, or a card game of that nature, you know, where you are collecting sets and runs, this game will be familiar to you. Deal out some cards, in this case, 12 each. Players take it in turns to draw a card from the deck. They then play cards in sets or runs if they can or want to, and then discard a card. Players keep going until one player has played all their cards. Simple.
Well, this game does to Rummy what the Gang did to Poker. And what Flip 7 did to Black Jack. It takes as simple and beloved card game, ramps it up to 11, and see if it can make it exponentially better for the 21st century. Does it work this time?
Before we get into that, lets talk about what this game adds. On top of the usual Rummy rules, there are five major differences. Lets look at them all in turn.
Power Cards: In this version of the game, there are a number of power cards. Added into the deck and shuffled together with the cards for four colour suits numbered one to 12 are five different power cards. Bypass cards that force players to skip a turn, crucial if one player is close to victory. Burden cards, that add extra challenges to one player in one round and score you 50 points if they fail to meet this challenge. But they will score 50 points if they manage to complete this challenge. Flex cards, that act as wild cards. Sabotage cards, that force all players to discard any Flex card they may have in their hand at that point and have them all shuffled back into the deck. And Block cards, that stop people from adding cards to your runs and sets, keeping them only for you.
Discard Pile: When you discard a card, you do so by laying it partially over the previously discarded card so that you can see that card, and any others previously discarded as well. This way, when it comes to the next player's turn, they can either draw from the top of the deck or from the open discard pile; and indeed, any card previously discarded, not just the last one. When you take a card from the discard pile, you must use it this round, and also take any other cards on top of it. So, for example, if you discarded a two and the next player did not want it and discarded a four on top of your two. But then the next player wanted that two, they could take the two, but they would have to use it that turn, and take the four on top of it as well.
Round Goals: Here is the main change in the game. To win, you do not need to simply play all your cards in runs and sets; you need to meet your specific round goal. At the start of the game, all players will be dealt a random round goal card with 12 round goals on them. Each card is different. The goals are the same, but all in different orders. So one card's round one could be another card's round six, for example. Each player will be aiming for a different goal each round, and they vary in difficulty a lot. The goals are a mix of creating a number of sets and runs in various numbers, as well as groups of same color cards in various numbers. If you complete your round goals, called a Sequence, then you can add your remaining cards in your hand to your own runs and sets, and any others laid down by other players. When you get rid of all your cards and you have completed your round goals, then you have won that round and can advance to the next round. You will score points for every card still in the other players' hands and be on the next round goal for the next hand. Any players who did not complete their round goals will have to repeat that round. So, in the next round, one player could be on round two, while others could still be on round one, repeating that for a second time.
The Rummathon Royale!: If you feel you can complete more than one round's sequence in a hand, then you can declare Rummathon Royale and now aim to complete two rounds' sequences. If you manage this, then on the next round you will be on round three. If you fail, and only complete one, or even none, then you will have to repeat all those rounds again. You cannot call Rummathon Royale on a round after failing to complete a Rummathon Royale attempt the previous round. AND! If you call Rummathon Royale twice in the same round, and complete three sequences in one turn, well, then you win the game! Everything stops and you win! Normally you would play 12 rounds and see who completes the 12 rounds first. Or, you can play the first or last six rounds. Or just the odd rounds, or just the evens. But either way, it is a race to the end of the prescribed number of rounds. But a double Rummathon Royale trumps all that and ends the game immediately. That is pretty hard to do though. But possible, thanks to the final little wrinkle in this game. Buying Cards.
Buying Cards: When you win a round by completing your sequence and playing all your other cards, you will score points for all the cards still held by the other players at that point. Cards score you five, ten, 15, 20, or 25 points, depending on what card it was. So you can ramp up your points tally pretty quickly. Then, in later rounds, you can spend these points to buy extra cards. For ten points, you can buy one more card to add to your 12, and you can buy up to 20 extra cards. This is how you may, on occasions, go for a Rummathon Royale.
So, this is Rummy. But not quite as you know it. These five simple additions make what is a well-loved and well-established game ramp up to 11. But do you want Rummy to ramp up to 11? Or are you happy with it as it is? Well, that is up to you to decide. For me, I love this game. I love games like this that are based on traditional card games and bring something new to the table. They are easy to teach, less intimidating to non-gamers, but show people who play modern games a lot just what can be done with a bit of original thinking.
The wild cards perhaps do not all quite work as I would like. The Block cards do not come into use that often. The Bypass just seems mean and lazy. And the Sabotage needs to be played very quickly to have any effect. But the other additions with the layered discard pile, round goals, and ability to buy extra cards make this game so much more interesting than normal Gin. It makes it strategic instead of being mostly luck-based. It turns the experience from a quiet, relaxed parlor game with your nan to something you could enjoy with everyone, including your nan, but now where you feel in control. You have some agency over your future in the game. And it feels great.
I would recommend anyone who enjoys simple card games with a twist to check this one out. The rule book is a little hazy, but being developed. However, the cards are clear and obvious, and once you have played a round, you won't ever need the rule book again anyway. One to watch for sure.
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