Spotlight on Games > Ludographies > Essen 2010
Essen 2010 Game by Game

Quick Games (under 30 minutes)

Cat & Chocolate
Ryo Kawakami; Japon Brand, Qvinta Essentia; 3-6; 20; 8+
Card game set in a haunted mansion. Accidents and attacks keep happening to you. You're holding, say, a cat card and a chocolate card. Now quick make up a story about how you would use them to save yourself. Your fellow players will vote on how well you did. If the majority were for you, it's a point for your team, membership in which being only revealed at the end of play. [more]

Catch Out
Shinsuke Yamagami; Grimpeur, Japon Brand; 2-6; 20
Seemingly reminiscent of Kakerlaken-Poker, a player holds three cards each showing one digit and must then state what they are, attempting to get a chosen opponent to believe him and thus take the cards and hoping it is not doubted and a lie revealed. If all three digits are the same a challenge is required. Cards change hands for the unsuccessful player, the idea being to collect angel cards, but avoid devils. [more]

Cinco
Franjos; 2-4; 10
Modernization of the traditional Japanese game Renju that will also remind of 5ive Straight. Cards are numbered 1-90 and each player receives 4. The idea is to play a card which enables placing a pawn on the board and the first to place 5 pawns in a row wins. But here comes the rub: the pawn must occupy a space numbered at least as high as the card, which becomes progressively more difficult. The board has interesting arrangements to make things trickier as well. If you don't want to play a card you can dump all of them and draw a new hand. [more]

Heiss auf Eis
Dirk Hanneforth & Hajo Bücken; Adlung-Spiele; 2-6; 20; 7+
"Hot For Ice". Players place scoops of ice cream on cones to fulfill their 3 orders cards, or move scoops from one cone to another. (Does Joe Huber know about this?) [more]

Hocus Pocus
Elliot Hogg; Hazgaard Editions/Dust Games; 2-6; 20; 8+
Each player is a young wizard. (Does Harry Potter know about this?) The current player reveals a Hocus card which has a powerful effect while everyone else plays a Pocus card with a minimal effect and one which depends on the Hocus card. Three cards belonging to each player are always public. Goal is collection of gems. [more]

Last Call: the Bartender Game
Kris Gould; Wattsalpoag, Inc.; 2-5; 15
Players pass bottles from bartender to bartender trying try to get their drinks filled. But if they get too many bottles they water down the cocktails with ice cubes. Player having the most drinks filled with the least ice wins. [more]

Nobunaga
Mito Sazuki; Grimpeur/Japon Brand; 2-5; 20
Medieval Japan in 62 cards in which players not only compete with one another, but must not let the Nobunaga non-player get the most points, in which case all lose. Hand management and set collection. [more]

Rainbow
Mito Sazuki; Grimpeur/Japon Brand; 2-6; 20
Reminiscent of Lamarckian Poker, players bid for cards which are out on the table. A bid consists of at most three cards and is like a Poker hand. The high hand takes the best set of cards available and second highest the next best. [more]

Sneaks & Snitches
aka Coup Royal - Krone des Verbrechens

Vlaada Chvatil; Czech Games Edition; 2-5; 20
Players are competing gangs of thieves who decide whether to focus on jewels, items or gold. The top thieves in each category win the all-important respect of the criminal underworld. Apparently about outguessing where others will go in a simultaneous action selection system. [more]

Zeit der Zünfte
Tobias Thulke; Spielerei; 2-4; 10
"Age of Guilds" depicts an annual battle of six master craftsmen to get the most lucrative contracts. However, players do not know which player represents which craftsman. Magazine publication requiring that players supply a few coins and cards. [more]

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