It’s always good when a game hits the table and surprises in a positive way.
Such was the case with Loners, from designer Dan Cassaro and publisher Weast Coast.
Loners is a climbing and shedding card game, so the core mechanics are nothing new.
Players play ever-escalating combinations of cards from their hands, with the goal of being the first to empty their hand.
Now, there are a few twists in Loners that help it rise above the deluge of filler games hitting the market these days.
To start with, players can’t rearrange their hands. How the cards are dealt is how you need to manage things. So having three eights spread throughout your hand does not give you three-of-a-kind to play.
That restriction alone makes for some interesting decisions, as you need to think about which cards to play and which combinations you might be able to create later.
Helping things along are cards on the table that players can “recruit” to strengthen the combinations they lay down.
Of course, if you can’t play a better combination, you have to pick up and add a “loner” to your hand. Since the goal is to empty your hand as quickly as possible, extra cards are generally bad news.
You can also flip the script by playing Security Guard cards to de-escalate the fight, forcing future combinations lower rather than higher.
That particular twist received something of a mixed reaction at The Meeple Guild table. I liked the change of direction, but another guilder didn’t think it added much to the experience.
One thought was that another special card, perhaps a “silent alarm,” could draw the guard away and reverse the order again. That might add another interesting layer to the back-and-forth play.
Of course, adding cards here would be rather easy. A few wild cards that could be part of any combination might work, or perhaps a femme fatale who steals a card from those already played so you can use it yourself.
But that is just daydreaming about a possible expansion.
As it stands, Loners is a really good filler game, aided in part by the comic-style gang artwork from Young Jerks and Brett Stenson.
Yes, there is a street gang theme here, but it really doesn’t add much to the actual gameplay. The appeal comes from the fun climbing and shedding mechanics, along with a couple of clever twists that set this one above the filler norm.
The inability to rearrange your hand is probably the most significant of those twists, turning what might otherwise be a rather straightforward card game into something requiring a little more planning.
The recruiting mechanic adds another wrinkle, giving players opportunities to improve their combinations without relying entirely on the cards they were dealt.
Together, those elements provide enough decisions to keep things interesting without bogging down what should be a quick, accessible game.
Now, that does not mean Loners is a game I expect to play every week. It is more of a once-in-a-while option, great to have at the cabin or tucked into a suitcase for a trip.
But there is certainly a place for games that are easy to bring to the table, quick to teach and offer a little more strategy than you initially expect.
Loners fits that description nicely. It delivers more fun than most filler games, and that makes it one well worth looking at.
Check it out at weastcoast.games.
About Author
Calvin Daniels is a Saskatchewan-born, self-taught journalist. He is currently Editor of Yorkton This Week, with 35-years in the newspaper business.
Loners Offers More Fun Than Most Filler Games
Such was the case with Loners, from designer Dan Cassaro and publisher Weast Coast.
Loners is a climbing and shedding card game, so the core mechanics are nothing new.
Players play ever-escalating combinations of cards from their hands, with the goal of being the first to empty their hand.
Now, there are a few twists in Loners that help it rise above the deluge of filler games hitting the market these days.
To start with, players can’t rearrange their hands. How the cards are dealt is how you need to manage things. So having three eights spread throughout your hand does not give you three-of-a-kind to play.
That restriction alone makes for some interesting decisions, as you need to think about which cards to play and which combinations you might be able to create later.
Helping things along are cards on the table that players can “recruit” to strengthen the combinations they lay down.
Of course, if you can’t play a better combination, you have to pick up and add a “loner” to your hand. Since the goal is to empty your hand as quickly as possible, extra cards are generally bad news.
You can also flip the script by playing Security Guard cards to de-escalate the fight, forcing future combinations lower rather than higher.
That particular twist received something of a mixed reaction at The Meeple Guild table. I liked the change of direction, but another guilder didn’t think it added much to the experience.
One thought was that another special card, perhaps a “silent alarm,” could draw the guard away and reverse the order again. That might add another interesting layer to the back-and-forth play.
Of course, adding cards here would be rather easy. A few wild cards that could be part of any combination might work, or perhaps a femme fatale who steals a card from those already played so you can use it yourself.
But that is just daydreaming about a possible expansion.
As it stands, Loners is a really good filler game, aided in part by the comic-style gang artwork from Young Jerks and Brett Stenson.
Yes, there is a street gang theme here, but it really doesn’t add much to the actual gameplay. The appeal comes from the fun climbing and shedding mechanics, along with a couple of clever twists that set this one above the filler norm.
The inability to rearrange your hand is probably the most significant of those twists, turning what might otherwise be a rather straightforward card game into something requiring a little more planning.
The recruiting mechanic adds another wrinkle, giving players opportunities to improve their combinations without relying entirely on the cards they were dealt.
Together, those elements provide enough decisions to keep things interesting without bogging down what should be a quick, accessible game.
Now, that does not mean Loners is a game I expect to play every week. It is more of a once-in-a-while option, great to have at the cabin or tucked into a suitcase for a trip.
But there is certainly a place for games that are easy to bring to the table, quick to teach and offer a little more strategy than you initially expect.
Loners fits that description nicely. It delivers more fun than most filler games, and that makes it one well worth looking at.
Check it out at weastcoast.games.
About Author
Calvin Daniels
Calvin Daniels is a Saskatchewan-born, self-taught journalist. He is currently Editor of Yorkton This Week, with 35-years in the newspaper business.
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