So, let’s get this little bit out of the way up first. This is not a review. Or a preview. Or whatever view that you expect out of tabletop gaming media commenting on a kickstarter. This is merely me talking about a game that I was shown a great deal of and my reaction. I have not played Snitch.
But you know what? I dig it and am excited about it.
See, Robert Crowter-Jones of The Elusive Meeple is a co-designer on this game and he and I have collaborated on a couple projects and supported each other’s mutual sites from time to time. I actually discovered Robert through the strength of his awesome reviews, critical analysis, and strategic breakdown in games. I trust the guys judgment, and he asked if he could do a presentation of the game and get some honest response and feedback. This is the result.
What is Snitch
Snitch is a 3-5 player semi-cooperative bluffing game where players are gangsters and crooks, collaborating in a series of bank-jobs, trying to pick when to snitch on their team. If everyone works together, the players who helped in the heist get an equal breakdown of the loot; if it fails, anyone who “snitched” gets to split money for the round. The problem is that players only have 3 snitch cards, and once a card is played for a round, it’s gone.
The remaining cards make up the various rolls and obstacles in the heist. If the table shows “muscle” and “lock pick” for the round, players need to collectively match these rolls in order to succeed. With each player only playing one card facedown per turn, only revealed once all cards are selected, it means that you are gambling on whether your friends are telling the truth, whether they plan to snitch, and what you think you can get away with.
What I Dig
Here’s the deal. You’ve heard of games like this before. Tonally, this might sound like some other hidden traitor or bluffing games, but trust me when I say that this one feels unique. With the language independent cards, simple iconography, and multi-use cards, this seems like one of the lowest-barrier to entry social games that I’ve ever seen. Snitch appears to distill the best and most high-impact parts of these games into really streamlined package.
The best thing about social bluffing games is the nuance and “meta” that develops from people playing repeatedly, learning each other’s ticks, applying their bias from each hilarious loss and devious victory. Snitch seems to capitalize on that, and get you up and running in a short time frame able to have those repeated plays right away.
Look, I’m not saying this is the game is a completely new paradigm in the hobby, this is not the new go to game and reason to meet up with your friends, but Robert and his co-designers appears to have made something really special. Snitch looks easy to teach, fast to play, and a great platform for you to have some hilarious fun, perfect for breaking the ice at a meeting, or closing out the game night with friends.