Details: Written by Josh Willhite; Category: Review; Published: 07 July 2024; Hits: 420

Neighborhoodies

NeighborhoodiesHeader

Designer: PlayMonster
Artist: PlayMonster
Publisher: Playmonster
Year Published / Kickstarted: 2024
No. of Players: 2+
Ages: 5+
Playing Time: 15 min
Main mechanic / Theme: set collection

The card game where being different counts!

Find more info on Playmonster website.

Disclaimer: This is a personal copy. The publisher did not provided a copy or prototype of the game for this review.

Overview:

Build your street with adorable animals numbered 1 to 7! But neighbors have to be different…the same animal can’t be neighbors, and they can’t share the same hoodie either. Create a full street of animals to win! NeighborHoodies card game for kids can be played by kids ages 5 and up. This adorable kids learning game is easy to learn and can be played with two or more players.

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Gameplay and mechanics:

At the start of the game, deal each player five cards. Place one in the middle face up to start the discard pile, next to the draw pile. There are three types of cards; neighbor (x49), moving (x3), and packing cards (x3)

Turn order;

1) draw a card from draw or discard pile

2) Place a card on your row, play an action card, or discard from your hand

3) Play passes to the left.

The object of the game is to be the first to fill up your street of seven animals, numbered one through seven, but neighbors can't be the same animal and/or be wearing the same hoodie. The action cards, packing (go through the discard pile, pick a card and play immediately) and moving (take an end card off another player's street and immediately play it) once used are removed from the game.

You can only place one card of each number on your street. In the example, a purple 6 card has been placed. On the next turn, this player could place the 1st, 2nd, or 5th cards in their hand. They couldn't play the 3rd card (the blue 5 panda) because they would be wearing the same pig hoodie. They also cannot play the purple 6 in their hand as they've already played a 6 (there are no rules to replace a card with another).

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Theme, Artwork and Illustration, Graphic Design and Layout (optional)

Colorful, cute little animals in hoodies add a playfulness to the game. I think it really helped to encourage kiddos to play this game, mine wanted to play multiple rounds after finishing (they're never afraid to play once and never again if they don't like it). The game contents include a small rulebook with easy to follow rules and concise examples, considering the simple rules we never had to refer back to it during a game for clarification.

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Inclusivity and Accessibility:

The tagline sort of sums the game up well, The card game where being different counts. A light filler game that's easily accessable to most gamers, lightly touches on the theme that we're all a little different from each other, but still inclusive to each other (I suppose I wouldn't read too much into the same animal/hoodie being next to each other, they're all living on the same street). Colorblind players shouldn't have an issue with card art considering how different each animal and hoodie looks. The rules are simple enough to convey verbally to individuals that might face language barriers, none of the three types of cards have any rules so complex as to be language dependent in my opinion (E.g. the art of the moving and packing cards should be enough for a player to distinguish apart from each other). So while the inclusivity theme is fairly light, in it's own way the game encourages players that we can be accepting of people from all walks of life.

What worked:

The cute, playful art helps to catch the eye of children. The short play time ensures it doesn't out stay it's welcome. Simple, concise rules make it easy to teach others.

Final thoughts:

A quick, simple set collection filler of a card game with cute playful art. Good for kids and families to play a fast game together. Simple rules easily remembered along with a fast setup and playtime. Obviously not for the heavyweight euro crowd, but also not pretending to be either. This is that game to bring out with young kids, mine wanted to play multiple hands and wanted to revisit the game days later. One might want to sleeve the cards, made of that thick cardstock the could fray and crease if abused, but honestly considering the pricepoint I don't think I would unless it becomes a favorite in your gaming group. All in all, a cute set collecting game with bright colorful cartoon animals wearing hoodies, simple rules and fast playing, Number your street one through seven, but make sure that none of your neighbors are the same animal or wearing the same hoodie. Being different counts!

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