R.O.C.K in the U.S.A.
Put on your skinny ties, flip your collar up & whip out your shades. It’s time to party like it’s 1985.
OVERVIEW
Xylotar is a trick-taking game for 2-5 players, where you know the colour (suit) & range of numbers each card could be but not the exact number. The deck consists of skinny cards or “notes” (similar to the tie you just put on), each with a number & colour on one side while the backside shows the colour and a range of numbers (one of which is on the front side), depending on which colour it is. For example, the smallest group of cards (the pink ones) only has 4 cards, #0-3 while the largest group (red cards) has 11 (#0-10). Altogether, there are 8 colours, each with a different quantity of cards. There are also “High Note” cards, which show the number breakdown of each of the colours.
GAMEPLAY
The dealer will give each player a “high note” card (returning extras to the box), then shuffle all the “note” cards, dealing all of them to the players, single number side down. The players then pick up their cards and sort them by number, highest to the left/back & smallest number to the right/front. The colour of the card doesn’t matter; it’s up to you which colour of the same number to put where as long as all of the same numbers are together.
Once complete, you’ll place the stack face down on the table (the highest card will be on the top of the stack and the lowest card will be on the table), take your “high note” card, place it on the top of your stack and pass the whole thing to the player on your left. In this fashion, each player will have a new stack in front of them that the player to their right sorted for them.
Take your stack of cards and, without looking at the other side (the number side), start with the “high note” card and lay them out in front of you. Once complete, each player will have a straight line of cards in front of them, the “high note” card to the left and the smallest card in their “hand” to the right.
With this layout, you know the colour/suit & range of numbers each card could be but not the exact number. Starting with the player to the left of the dealer, they choose a card to play (any card except for their highest card, the one next to the “high note”). Each other player, in turn, must follow suit (colour) if possible (& they are allowed to play the highest card. The only time you can’t is when you lead). Like all the players, you know the range of a card but not the exact number. Once a card is played, though, it will give you a little information about the cards to the left/right of it (since those to the left will be the same or higher & those to the right, will be the same or lower). If you can’t follow suit, you can play any card or use trump. Trump is typically the RED cards (in a 3-player game, YELLOW is trump because you remove some of the suits/colours). High card of the led suit (or highest trump) wins the trick. Keep each trip won separate (at the end of each round, each trick is worth 1 point).
At any point in the game, after you play a card but before the next player plays, you can “bid”. Choose 2 cards from your line of cards that are adjacent (if there’s a space from a played card, those cards are still adjacent). Secretly look at those 2 cards, placing one back in line where it came from (face down) & the other one face up in front of you. This is now your bid, or the number of tricks you’re trying to win (again, when you choose, you don’t know exactly what numbers will be on those 2 cards).
Unlike most trick-taking games, you’re not penalized for not getting your bid. In Xylotar, if you do match your bid, you’ll gain an extra 5 points at the end of the round (in addition to 1 point for each trick you won).
The round ends when all cards have been played. Figure out your points, shuffle all the cards (except “high notes”) & deal out a new round. In total, you’ll play 3 rounds after which the player with the most points wins.
FINAL THOUGHTS
I was given this game as a review copy while at the GAMA trade show this year. At first glance, I thought, “hmm, looks interesting if not a bit dull” (that’s just me). Boy, was I blown away. The premise is so simple but works so elegantly. The rules are straightforward & easy to grasp, even for non-gamers. I really didn’t expect to like this game as much as I did but it has been a huge hit with my game group & family.
To put it in perspective, with 1 being trapped in an elevator listening to the greatest hits of Michael Bolton & Biz Markie and a 10 being backstage at a Monsters of Rock concert, Xylotar would be front row of a Journey/Night Ranger/Foreigner concert in 1983 (which, yeah, that’d be pretty freakin’ awesome).
GAMER RATING – 8.5
This is the perfect game to carry around in your game bag. Simple, fairly quick and really fun. The only downside, as with any card game, is replayability but for the time being, this is one of my go-to card games.
NON-GAMER/FAMILY RATING – 9
This game really is for everyone and with such easy to understand rules, everyone will enjoy it (unless you don’t like trick-takers…or fun). Although the theme is tacked on, it doesn’t matter (although it makes for a good reason to break out your old Thomas Dolby or Men Without Hats cassettes). Rock on!!!
You can find Bezier Games online at beziergames.com or on Facebook at facebook.com/BezierGames.
