Author: Tom Sorenson

Foreword

Sushi Go! is one of the simplest drafting games.

Drafting

There are 2 major forms of drafting: simultaneous hidden drafting and sequential open drafting. Sushi Go! uses simultaneous hidden drafting.

Simultaneous Hidden Drafting

In this form of drafting, every player starts with an equal number of hidden resources, usually cards. Each player simultaneously picks a resource (keeping it hidden) and then passes the remaining resources to the player on their left (sometimes right). This then continues until there are no resources remaining to pass.

For example, in a 4 player Sushi Go! game each player starts with 8 cards. Everyone picks a card and passes the remaining 7 to the player on their left. Then everyone picks a card from the 7 passed to them, followed by the remaining 6 cards being passed, etc.

Simultaneous hidden drafting is also used in Epic’s cube draft and dark draft formats, Magic: The Gathering’s 8 player draft, Medieval Academy, Seasons, and 7 Wonders.

Sequential Open Drafting (Not used in Sushi Go!)

How to Play

Goal

The goal of the game is to score the most points over 3 rounds of drafting.

The Round

Sushi Go! uses Simultaneous Hidden Drafting, described above, for each round.

For a 2 player game, 10 cards are dealt to each player.
For a 3 player game, 9 cards are dealt to each player.
For a 4 player game, 8 cards are dealt to each player.
For a 5 player game, 7 cards are dealt to each player.

Since this is Simultaneous Hidden Drafting, each player simultaneously picks a card from their hand, and then all players reveal their chosen card at the same time. Afterwards, the remaining cards from each players’ hand are passed to the player on their left. The round completes after the last card of hand is picked.

After the 3rd round, the player with the most points wins.

The Cards

Nigiri (Egg, Salmon, and Squid)

Nigri is worth a set number of points at the end of the round. Egg Nigiri is worth 1. Salmon Nigiri is worth 2. Squid Nigiri is worth 3.

Wasabi

Wasabi triples the value of the next Nigiri card you draft. So, say you draft a Wasabi card on turn 1. Then, on turn 3 you draft your first Nigiri card, a Squid Nigiri. That Squid Nigiri goes on top of your Wasabi and those cards together are worth 9 points total. You may not use multiple Wasabi cards on a single Nigiri card, and you may not use a single Wasabi card with multiple Nigiri cards.

Tempura and Sashimi

Both Tempura and Sashimi require a set of cards to be worth any points. A set of 2 Tempura is worth 5 points. A set of 3 Sashimi is worth 10 points. If you do not have a full set, you score no points from those cards. If you have 2 complete sets, you score full points for both. So, say you have 5 Tempura and 2 Sashimi. You have 2 complete sets of Tempura so you score 10 points from Tempura. You do not have a complete set of Sashimi so you score 0 points from Sashimi.

Dumplings

The more Dumplings you have, the more points you score per Dumpling. If you have 1 Dumpling, your Dumplings are worth 1 point (1 point per Dumpling). If you have 5 or more Dumplings, you Dumplings are worth 15 points (3 points per Dumpling).

Maki Rolls

Maki Roll cards have 1, 2, or 3 Maki Rolls on them. They are depicted at the top of the card. At the end of the round, the player with the most Maki Rolls scores 6 points. The player with the second most scores 3 points.

If players tie for the most Maki Rolls, the points are split between those tied players. In that situation, no second place points are awarded. If players tie for the 2nd most Maki Rolls, the points are split between those tied players. In both cases, ignore any leftover points after evenly splitting the points.

Puddings

Puddings are the only cards that carry over after each round (the rest are discarded). At the end of the 3rd round, the player with the most puddings scores 6 points. The player with the least puddings loses 6 points. Points are evenly split for ties.

Chopsticks

Chopsticks let you take 2 cards instead of 1 when drafting. If you have a drafted Chopsticks card in front of you, after everyone (including you) has picked their card, you say “Sushi Go!,” and you replace your chopsticks card with another card from that hand.

Conclusion

I’ve said it many times, and I’ll say it again: I love drafting. Sushi Go! is an excellent game for introducing people to drafting. The art is adorable which can attract people, it’s quick, and the drafting strategy isn’t too complex.

In general, the idea of drafting can be bit tricky to get your head around initially. This is because most of the interesting aspects of it are emergent and not directly explained in the rules. When drafting, you want to look at not only what will be the best card for you right now, but based on the other cards in the current and previous hands, what are you likely to get back later in the game. (Since, in a 4 or less player game, you will see each starting hand at least twice).

In addition, once people start taking cards, you can deduce whether you can finish Tempura or Sashimi sets, or if you need to prevent another player from getting all the Dumplings, etc. So, in other words, a large portion of a drafting game’s potential relies on reading your opponents and paying attention to what is happening around you. Although, with this game you can still have fun just working toward your own goals and enjoying the art/theme.

The game I largely want to compare this to is Medieval Academy. (Click here for my review of Medieval Academy.) I think Sushi Go! is a bit simpler, it gives a better feel for drafting with the larger starting hand sizes, and the theme can be a bit more accessible. However, I prefer Medieval Academy. I prefer playing it, and it is the game I use when introducing new players to drafting. Medieval Academy adds on a spatial racing type game-mechanism, and I feel like it can be a bit more engaging. Sushi Go! is strictly drafting. A strictly drafting game is good for teaching the mechanism, but I just don’t feel like there is enough to keep me interested. On the positive side, Sushi Go! is quicker and requires less setup than Medieval Academy.

Overall, if you are looking for a game to teach new players drafting, I would personally recommend Medieval Academy over Sushi Go!. If, however, you want a smaller, quick to play, strictly drafting game, Sushi Go! does work for that purpose. Sushi Go! is a nice game to start or wrap up a gaming session. It’s easy to break out and play since you can carry it in your pocket and you just need a little table space. But, it isn’t a game I would specifically get people together to play.

Foreword

Carcassonne is a popular game that spawned the term “meeple” used to describe wooden, humanoid game-pieces. It is also a prime example of a tile-laying game.

How To Play

Setup

Each player takes their 8 meeples. One is placed on the scoring track and the rest will be used throughout the game.

Place the starting tile in the middle of the table. The starting tile has a distinct back, and on its front, it has a castle, road, and field segment.

Mix up the rest of the tiles face down and put them into easily reachable stacks.

A Turn

On your turn you draw a tile, place the tile, and optionally place one of your meeples on that tile.

When placing a tile, you must put it orthogonally (not diagonally) adjacent to 1 or more placed tiles. Every side touching another tile must match like segments to like segments: road segments to road segments, castle segments to castle segments, and field segment to field segments.

Once you have placed the tile, you may place one of your meeples onto that specific tile. You can either place it on a city, cloister, field, or road, but you can not place it directly onto a segment that already has a meeple. For example, since the red player already has a meeple on the road, the blue player cannot extend that road and put one of their meeples on it.

However, you can place meeples in such a way that they will eventually be on the same segment. In the case above, if the blue player places the tile one to the right as its own road, they could place a meeple on it. Then, if the blue player later draws a tile that would connect the two roads, it is legal to connect them creating a situation where both players have a meeple on the same road.

If multiple players have an equal number of meeples in a segment, all of those players score full points. If one player has more than anyone else in that segment, only that player scores points.

Trying to sideways take over other people’s segments is the most interesting part of this game.

Scoring

After a tile has been placed and the player has a chance to put a meeple on it, if the placement completes a segment, that segment scores. The player(s) with the most meeples on that segment score points based on the system below, and all players on that segment get those meeples back to reuse. Cities, cloisters, and roads can be completed throughout the course of the game. Farms only score points at the end of the game. (So, once you place a meeple on a farm, you will never get that meeple back.)

Cities: A completed city is worth 2 points per tile in the city. Each pennant in that city is worth a bonus 2 points. If a city is only two tiles, that city is only worth 1 point per tile. At the end of the game, if you have the most meeples in an uncompleted city, you score 1 point per tile and 1 point per pennant for that city.

The first 4-tile city with 1 pennant is worth 4 x 2 + 2 x 1 = 10 points.
The second 2-tile city is worth 2 points.
The third 3-tile uncompleted city with 1 pennant is worth 3 x 1 + 1 x 1 = 4 points.

Cloisters: A cloister is worth 1 point for every tile around the cloister including itself. So, a completed cloister is worth 9 points. Uncompleted cloisters at the end of the game still reward 1 point for every tile around the cloister.

Roads: A road is worth 1 point per tile in the road. At the end of the game, uncompleted roads are still worth 1 point per tile in the road.

Farms: Farms score 4 points at the end of the game for each completed castle they touch. The size of the castle is irrelevant. Since the field segments that connect castles can sprawl all over the place, farms can score a lot of points at the end of the game.

Game End

The game ends when the last tile is placed. All remaining points are scored. The winner is the player with the most points.

Conclusion

The fun in Carcassonne comes from the tile drawing. Whether you are trying to complete your segments or take over another player’s, it all rides on drawing certain tiles. And, since you generally won’t draw the tile(s) you need immediately, the anticipation continues to grow throughout as you hope to draw the tiles you need and hope your opponent(s) don’t draw the ones they need. In addition, most of the time the tiles you draw will have some value, even if it isn’t the one you are desperately waiting for. You need a double sided castle, but you draw an always appreciated cloister instead. On your next turn, instead of that double sided castle, you draw a tile to help solidify your control over the mega farm. Once the game gets going, each tile draw is exciting and suspenseful.

With that in mind, Carcassonne is not one of my personal favorite games. People I play it with really enjoy it, and it is a very popular game, but it doesn’t do much for me. While it feels great when you get that tile you’ve been wanting for for the last 10 turns, it is incredibly frustrating if you never draw it. Getting your segments snatched from beneath you is also frustrating if you can’t prevent them from doing it. This aspect of the game is also the most enjoyable part when you are on the snatching side, so it is attempted a decent amount in games. (I am usually the one attempting it.)

The game also does not offer a lot of strategy, and I like a lot of strategy options in my games, usually. As a power gamer, I feel like most of the time there is a “correct” place to put a tile, and the game-contrarian in me really rebels from that idea.

Unlike Camel Up, that also relies a lot on luck, this game’s luck can be lopsided and this can be unpleasant. If someone gets all of the cloisters, or they constantly get the tiles they need, the luck element can really pile up.

With all of that said, I am still willing to play it occasionally. The rules are fairly simple and aren’t too bad to teach. Most people seem to enjoy it, especially the first time they play it. In addition, this is an excellent gateway into other current board games. For the people that enjoy this game, there are also plenty of expansions and re-themed versions, some significantly better than others from what I’ve heard.

I definitely think this game is worth playing. If you really enjoy it, grab a copy. If not, it’s a good game to know something about.