OVERVIEW
What it is
Munchkin is a game for 2-6 players. It is essentially a card game and can be played with or without the included board. Players use skills from the cards to attack monsters and collect treasure. Winning occurs when one player reaches level 10.
Quick start rules
Lay out the board. Each player receives 4 door cards and 4 treasure cards. Players immediately lay out cards of class, race, weapons or armor in front of them for all to see. These cards give various benefits. Play begins by the first player "kicking down the door" and drawing a door card from the deck. If the door card is a monster, the player must attempt to defeat the monster. To defeat a monster, the player's level plus bonuses must be greater than the monster's level (there are some exceptions to this rule, outlined in various cards). If the player cannot defeat the monster, s/he may run away (by rolling a 5 or a 6 on the die), play a card that allows the player to defeat the monster or run away, or may ask for help from another player. If the card drawn is not a monster, that card is discarded and the player then may either defeat a monster from his/her hand ("look for trouble") or may "loot the room" and draw another door card, which will be placed in his/her hand. The player may play any armor, weapon, class or race cards in front of him/herself. The player's turn is now over. If the player has more than 5 cards in his/her hand, s/he must either give cards to the lowest level player(s) to get down to 5 or, if the player is the lowest level player, discard.
Players may play cards on other players or on monsters at any time, even if it is not his/her turn.
FIRST IMPRESSIONS
The first play through of this game was a little bit tricky with our 6 year old. With so many cards in play and so many different strategies available, keeping track of everything was a little hard. Rules "change" without warning because cards take precedent over the rule book, so game play was a little slow as everyone had to read each card. We allowed her to place her hand down so that we could guide her through some potential strategies, and that helped immensely, but did slow things down.
However, we all enjoyed the game immensely and chalked any difficulties up to learning curve. We finished the game ready to play again.
WHAT WE THINK NOW
This is one of our favorite go-to games currently. After having learned many of the cards, play moves smoothly and quickly. Our daughter's instinct is to "play nice", and Munchkin gives her the ability to try being a bit ruthless and aggressive, as the fastest course to winning (and sometimes the only one) is to play cards against other players. Everyone keeps a good attitude about this, and we have had some good laughs as a couple of players gang up against one temporarily.
MISCELLANEOUS INFORMATION
Suggested ages
Box:
Developmental Skills Actually Necessary:
Young players should be good readers and capable of thinking in many different directions at once. They should be able to store a fair amount of information in their head at once (or have some help with being able to do this in the form of making known their hand to an unbiased adult). They should be able to do basic math (addition to just beyond 20 would be adequate) and have enough number sense to know which number is more than/less than another.
Rating and Maturity:
There are a number of "questionable" cards in this deck. For our purposes, they went over the head of our daughter, but "knee pads of allure" and the like are referenced. Not all cards are like this, and some of the humor is acceptable to younger players. This is probably a "high PG" game, but not quite PG-13.
Our Final Assessment:
I was surprised at how well this game played for younger children, but with enough appeal to play well as an adult game, as well.
Play Time
The game is as fast paced as you would like, but no turn lasts particularly long. Game play can be shortened by helping younger players or by setting time limits to decision making. Play is somewhat variable based on specific cards drawn, but typically lasts around an hour for up to 4 people, a little longer for more.
Space Necessary
The board is largely optional, in which case players merely need a space to lay out some cards and room for a stack of door cards (plus discard pile) and treasure cards (plus discard pile). We have more than adequate space on our kitchen table, even including the board. Cards laid out can be somewhat extensive for some players, however, and it might be tight for four people at a card table in some games.
