The Grizzled Cooperative Card Game, 10 years +...

The game components are high quality and the artwork is exceptional. The rules are straightforward and can be explained in 15 minutes, but the strategy gets deep and is difficult to master. The game says it can be played by two players and while there is a two player variant, the game rules (especially the "support" mechanic) make it so it's really meant to be played with at least 3. I find it's most enjoyable with 4 or 5 players. The inability to share the contents of your hand or coordinate support creates a heavy but enjoyable tension throughout the game. It also avoids the common problem in cooperative games of one player "quarterbacking" the moves of the rest - no one can effectively direct anyone else, because no one knows for sure what cards anyone else has in their hand. Every single play feels like a hard decision that could make or break the mission, or even the war. Do I play this trap card now and risk failing the mission, or do I hold it, knowing it will deplete our morale? Do I support Alice, so she can get rid of her "hard knocks", or do I support Ben, so he can regain his lucky charm? If I give a speech, do I think we're more likely to face assaults in the future, or the snow? Like most card games, there's an element of luck involved and at times luck is the primary force in the game. There will be games that are effectively doomed at the outset because of the way the cards are shuffled. There will be games where the difficulty is incredibly high based on which cards and support tokens you randomly start with. Even with "perfect" play, you will sometimes find that there's nothing you can do (or could have done) to win the game. I don't mind that, but it's worth keeping in mind as I know some folks can't stand high-luck games. On the flip side, I have never played this game and thought it was too easy due to the way the cards came out - which makes sense as even "good" decks still contain 99% cards that will hurt you and only one card that helps. I strongly recommend this game to anyone who enjoys challenging cooperative games and good artwork.

I picked this up on a friend's recommendation and because I'm a fan of the artist. I've also been really interested in the idea of "cooperative" games, where you cooperate to achieve a coal, instead of competing against the other players to win. The game is beautiful and very high quality. The art is fabulous, evocative stuff, and the printing is excellent. You have everything you need in the box. The rules were a little tricky to understand; they could use a little clarification. I took this to a gaming convention, and even the experienced gamers had a little trouble figuring out how the game worked at first. A practice round is a good idea. There might be errata on the Web site, or useful articles or videos online; I didn't think to check first. But once we puzzled it out and got the hang of it, everyone who played agreed that they'd had an interesting time (it's hard to say "a great time" when you've been in the trenches suffering, admittedly, but we enjoyed the experience) and would play it again. But the idea of the game is amazing. You play a group of French soldiers in the trenches during WWI; your team goal is to help everyone else survive and get through. You can take various actions to help others or try to advance in battle. It can get pretty emotional, and sacrificial. The authors didn't pull punches here. They definitely took things seriously; this isn't a lighthearted or joke-y game. The authors mention that some of the characters are created in tribute to their own ancestors who fought in the Great War. I felt like I gained some insight into the soldiers' suffering, watching our little band of brothers struggle and try to encourage each other. I am definitely intrigued by this "cooperative gaming" idea now.