Retail Price: $15
Player Count: 2-7 (best at 3+)
Age Range: 7+ (consistent with our experience)
Play Time: 20 mins. (runs closer to 30 mins. with higher player counts)
Complexity: 2 out of 10 (consistent with our experience)
Mechanisms: Trick-taking
Designer: Ben Eisner, Steve Ellis (II)
Artist: Wook-Jin Clark
Publisher: Renegade Game Studios
Educational Value:
Strategic Thinking
Problem Solving
Math: Addition
Flavor Text:
"Gudetama: The Tricky Egg Card Game is a trick-taking game for 2-7 players in which the goal is to avoid winning the final trick! Take as many cards as you want, but don't get scrambled on the last card!"
Overview:
Gudetama is a trick taking game of sorts, where the person who catches the last trick scores points, and the goal is to avoid taking points.
Setup:
The only setup in this game is going to be shuffling the deck before you begin play.
Gameplay:
Each round you deal seven cards to each player, and then the highest card wins each trick. If you catch a trick with a 14 (the highest card in the game), then you get to choose who will lead the next round. Ties are resolved by the last player to play the tying card winning that trick. Whoever wins the final trick, scores the amount of points on the card they won with, unless someone plays a 1, in which case everyone scores the face value of their card in that last round. The game ends, when one player reaches a score of 21 points or higher, and the player with the highest score loses.
Luck/Strategy:
You will notice throughout my reviews, I am not a fan of a lot of luck in games, unless the game is pretty short and quick playing. Trick taking games almost always have a fair amount of luck, which is offset by strategic play to mitigate that luck. Gudetama is no different in this regard, you are certainly going to have hands where there is really nothing you can do to avoid taking points, but especially with higher player counts, you do start to recognize some strategic and tactical opportunities that open up to help manage those points. At 2 players, it pretty much turns into a complete luck fest though, so I would advise playing it at 3 or more if you can.
Artwork:
One of the biggest appeals of Gudetama, is going to be the amazing artwork by Wook-Jin Clark. The cards are not only cute and endearing, but have really funny text that adds to the fun atmosphere created when playing this game.
Theme:
There is really no theme to speak of here, other than purely the artwork and text on the cards.
Replayability/Fun Factor:
You aren’t going to uncover any deep strategies the more you play this game, but there is just enough strategy, and the game is very attractive and quick to play. To me this is a good filler for a game group, but also a game I can pull out to play with my kids or my parents, who aren’t into heavier gaming.
Conclusion/Audience:
This game is one I would highly recommend to pretty much any audience, as it is easy to learn, quick to play, and adorable to look at. This is simple enough, that it honestly can serve almost as an alternative to Uno or something like that. Kids from early elementary or possibly even preschool age, should be able to understand and enjoy this game, even if the bigger arcing strategy isn't immediately obvious to them.
+ Easy to learn
+ Quick to play
+ Small footprint
+ Beautiful artwork
- More luck than strategy
Final Score:
Jared - 6.5
Abigail - 8.5
Other Games You Might Like:
Sushi Go (Party), Ramen Fury, Fox in the Forest, Claim
This game was purchased from my friendly local game store, and is available here. This isn't an affiliate link, but just my way of trying to support my FLGS, who carry great games at even better prices.
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