Explosiv (1999)

Overview

Theme In this simple card game players are Chicago era mobsters trying to make off with briefcases full of stolen loot. But careful, some of those briefcases might explode...

Aim of the game Collecting the most points by collecting "explosive cards" with high values.

Game play There are four sets of 8 cards, each with values from 1-8. Each player gets a set of one colour. The explosive cards show briefcases with positive values from 1-8 on one side, and bombs with negative values from 1-8 on the other side. They are shuffled and a number of explosive cards equal to the number of players plus one are laid out, positive side up. The remaining explosive cards are set aside.

Players try to win as many positive explosive cards as possible. They take turns placing one of their number cards in front of one of the explosive cards. Whoever places the highest total on each explosive cards gets to take that card.

Rules for card placement:

You cannot play another card directly on top of one of your own cards. Each number can only be played once per explosive card, i.e. if another player has already played the 4 on an explosive card, you cannot play a 4 on the same explosive. 8 is an exception; there is no restriction on how many 8s can be played on one explosive card.

If there are already 7 number cards on an explosive card, a player can blow it up by adding an 8th card. The explosive card is then turned from its briefcase side to the bomb side, and the player who wins it gets negative points instead.

A round ends when all players have played all their cards. Card values on each explosive card are added up, with the last card in a row earning its owner an extra two points. The player with the most points in one row wins that explosive card.

Players get back their number cards and a new round starts with new explosive cards.

The game ends when all explosive cards are gone or there aren't enough left to start another round. Players add up the points from all their positive and negative explosive cards. The player with the highest total wins the game.