Smash Up

OVERVIEW

What it is

Smash Up is a card game that pairs two factions together in a fight to defeat base cards against other sets of two factions. There are a number of expansion packs, but there are 8 factions in the base pack from which to choose.

Quick start rules

Players choose two factions to play. They take those decks and mix them together. Bases are laid out: one base more than number of players in the game. Players then draw 7 cards from their own deck. 

The first player can, in any order, lay down a minion on a base and complete an action. There is some variability to this due to the nature of specific cards (some allow extra minions or extra actions). Some cards are one use only, whereas others can be used even when it is not the player's turn (see card text). 

When the power level (top left) of the minion cards add up to base power level (top left of the base card), the base is "tipped." The player with the most points towards tipping the base gets the number of Victory Points on the far left of the card, the player with the second most points gets the number of Victory Points in the middle of the base card, and the player with the fewest gets the number of Victory Points to the right. If a player has not played any minions, s/he does not get any points towards this base. 

Play completes when one player has reached 15 Victory Points. 

FIRST IMPRESSIONS

Smash Up was an instant hit for our entire family. Even our 2 year old got into the excitement. Keeping track of the constantly changing math was definitely a job for the adults (with the help of pen and paper!), but the rest of it was easy for our 6 year old to play, and she started developing strategies to maximize winning potential from the first game. Some of the cards could get confusing, however, and we quickly developed a couple of house rules to make things more streamlined for us. 

WHAT WE THINK NOW

This is the card game we will bring just about anywhere, regardless of audience. Who doesn't want to find out if Robot Dinosaurs are more powerful than Sorcerer Zombies? We have discovered that there are certain factions that are better suited for younger players (Dinosaurs are powerful and fairly clear cut, but Robots and Tricksters get confusing quickly, either due to math or keeping track of abilities), but our daughter can play any faction pretty readily now (though sometimes her strategy suffers a bit if she has one of the more confusing factions). Adults love this game, as well. Although we rarely want to run out to buy an expansion pack immediately upon playing the game, we put an expansion on our wish list for this game immediately because the number of players can be expanded by doing so, and because we want to introduce this game to absolutely as many people as possible.

MISCELLANEOUS INFORMATION

Suggested ages

Box:

Developmental Skills Actually Necessary:

Players should be able to read and comprehend well and keep track of sometimes complex strategy. Math skills are important (addition and subtraction to around 30 or a bit higher). 

Rating and Maturity:

I found very little questionable in this deck. Some of the female characters are clothed in stereotypical "fantasy wear", which I find demeaning but not offensive. I would give this game a "G" rating. Though the very youngest players will find game play too difficult, they could hear all the text on all of the cards without worry.

Our Final Assessment:

This is a definite winner. It is one of the games we can play through and immediately play again. Games are never the same twice, and there is a lot of flexibility in changing up how one would play by switching factions or by simply drawing different bases. Kids and adults should like this one. 

Play Time

Highly variable based on cards, but we can typically complete a game with 4 people in 45-60 minutes. 

Space Necessary

Our kitchen table is adequate for this game, but only just barely. It takes up a surprising amount of space for a card game, since minions must be laid on bases and there must be enough distance to avoid confusion. There is no board, but bases must be in the middle and create their own "board" space. It uses up about the same amount of space as a game of Monopoly in which all players lay out their property cards and all of their money.