I love this game, and I could see it getting a nomination for the Spiel des Jahres. If The Game can garner a nomination (which it did in 2015), so can The Mind , which is every bit as innovative, addicting, and tense. Every group I’ve played with has enjoyed this, and every group has asked to play it again. It looks like NSV and Wolfgang Warsch have a hit on their hands. As profound as this experience can be for many, an equally large population simply finds it empty. If you aren’t invested in the concept and don’t work to find the brilliance, it will never manifest. For such players, The Mind is simply a dull game devoid of charisma. Those drinking the Kool-Aid appear ludicrous. You will be surprised at how the flow of your play changes after a few games and you have learned the pace of the other players in your game. Using the information around you to try and achieve this crazy goal together makes for a great deal of fun.

Each player who’s ready to play places one hand, palm down on the table. Once everyone has placed a hand on the table, they take a moment to concentrate and then remove their hands to begin playing. Have you ever wished you could read someone’s mind? Or telepathically communicate with them? You’ll feel like you can do both within the confines of The Mind, a brilliant little card game from Wolfgang Warsch and Pandasaurus Games.No matter how many players you are playing with, The Mind starts the same way every time although the levels used do differ depending on numbers. So, to concentrate at the start of each level it might be more appropriate to say: "We're getting in synch!" It should be emphasized at this point that this is not a question of counting off the seconds.

As long as players do not reveal the cards that they have is the main communication rule to follow, doing this would ruin the game. Alternatives to The Mind Card Game

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The game scales well between two to four players. You may start the game believing you don't stand a chance - but then you find some sort of cerebral rhythmic connection with your fellow players, and progress further than your collective wildest dream! But be warned, later rounds can get horrendously difficult. To stop the game at any time, any play can put their hand in the middle of the table. This signifies a “lets take a breath” moment, if anyone wants to break the current cycle and take a beat. In how to play The Mind, it is like a timeout during a basketball game. All players put their hands in, and everyone takes it out to get things going again. In several ways, The Mind is a sort of spiritual successor to The Game, a 2015 Spiel Des Jahres nominee. But where The Game solely revolved around the idea of playing ascending numbers in strategic fashion as its foundation, The Mind uses that concept as a piece of a wholly different foundation: reading each other’s minds. After a few sessions of The Mind, you realize that playing the cards is just the mechanic chosen to highlight the real beauty of this game.

This is very much a light filler game. For the moments when you have 30 minutes to spare at the end of a game night or are hanging out with friends. My first game of The Mind was played on a coach trip on the way to Wales. I have played this in a bar and a hotel room. Minimal space is required and the box is small enough that it can be easily transported. I have even been asked by my non-gaming work colleagues to have a game during our lunch break, as they were intrigued by the game. I own this game, when I play it I have a lot of fun, but with that being said it is never a game i want to play… If all Bunnies get used before the final round is complete, then you lose the game. But if players get to the final round then they win the game. Scoring In The Mind Card Game The biggest factor to consider in The Mind card game is the level of communication that you allow when playing the game.

Game details

You start the game with a number of lives equal to the number of players. In a level, each player receives a hand of cards equal to the number of the level: one card in level 1, two cards in level 2 and so on.

Have a look at guides to Chase the Ace card game and Follow the Queen poker for some simple yet classic games to introduce to your next card game night. The cards are vaguely reminiscent of The Game, also published by NSV. Photo credit to Brandon Kempf.Gameplay continues like this, with each level getting increasingly more difficult as the number of cards increases. If the group completes all the levels successfully, the team wins the game! The team loses the game if they lose all of the Life cards. END OF GAME A minor note: this is definitely a game you’ll want to consider sleeving. Constant shuffling will lead to scuffs or marks on cards, especially identifiable or noticeable ones, which can ruin some of the experience if someone can tell what someone else has in their hand. I think The Mind would have worked without the throwing stars, but I’m glad that they decided to include them. You have a limited amount so as a team you have to figure out when to use them. The majority of my group’s wins happened because of well-timed throwing stars. Increasing the player count, increases the difficulty. The game says ages 8 plus and that is perfectly reasonable. My 9 and 12 year olds have played this together claiming they’ve managed level 10, although without witnesses and with giant smirks on their faces I’m not entirely convinced! The increasing levels of difficulty build up like a symphony of pressure and tension. The experience is unique. The secret of the game is developing that collective feeling for "now is the moment". The team has to work in harmony. The team must become ONE!!