Hanamikoji

The Game

Hanamikoji is a 2013 game, so it's no longer a new game. I've heard many positive reviews, but only managed to give it a go recently. It is indeed a wonderful design. Succinct and clever. Hanamikoji is a 2-player card game in which you compete to win the favour of seven geishas by presenting them gifts. 

The seven geishas have different point values, from 2 to 5. If you manage to get 11 points, you win. You can also win by winning four geishas. If the players each fulfil one condition, the player with 11 points wins. The point value of a geisha is equal to the number of cards in the deck (gifts) which are for her. The players sit on opposite sides of the table, and the geishas are lined up between them. Gifts are placed on the two sides of the row of geishas. Scoring is done only at the end of a round. Whoever has more gifts on their side of a geisha wins that geisha. So far, this doesn't sound unusual. What's interesting in the game is how the cards are played. You don't directly choose where to play the cards. Instead, you get four different actions every round. You must perform every action exactly once. You just choose the order in which you do them. It is through these actions that cards go into play. 

On your turn you first draw a card and then you must pick an action. One of the actions requires that you play three cards. Your opponent picks one of them to place on her side, and then you place the other two on your side. Another action requires that you play two sets of two cards. Similarly, your opponent picks a set first. Deciding which cards to play and how to group them is difficult. Since your opponent picks first, you need to avoid giving good options to her. That's hard to do. 

Only one action allows you to choose one specific geisha to influence. You play one card face-down. This is the only time you have direct control. The last action is to discard two cards. This is a painful decision to make, because you are giving up opportunities to influence up to two geishas. 

At the start of a round, one card is removed face-down. This creates uncertainly, making it hard to card count. 

As a round progresses, cards will get played and you can assess the game situation better. However scoring is only done at the end of the round, when you and your opponent reveal that one secret card you have committed. 

Scoring is done after both players have completed their four actions. If you have more cards played on a geisha, you win her favour and move the round token to your side. If anyone scores 11 points or wins 4 geishas, she wins the game. Else, start the next round. The second round onwards becomes interesting, because by now you will have some geishas on your side. If your influence ties with that of your opponent, she stays on your side. So you have a slight advantage, and you can afford to fight harder in other areas. 

The Play

The rules are simple, but this is a brain-burning game. The overall feel is a little like Lost Cities, Riftforce and Battle Line. You sit on opposite sides of a row of things to fight over. However in these other games you have much freedom where to play cards and which cards to play. Hanamikoji turns this upside down. You need to think hard about your every move. For two of your actions, your opponent picks the cards first. This is I-divide-you-choose. It's difficult to create options in a way that no matter how your opponent chooses, you will benefit more than her. This mechanism means often the options are equally good. There is always some unknown, so you cannot calculate precisely. There is the one card removed from the round, the one card which your opponent claimed face-down, and also the two cards she discarded. 

You have the same actions, and the game mechanism creates a tendency for the players to be equally matched. It's easy to end up having the same influence over a geisha. When you want to fight hard to win one geisha, it means you must give up on another. The outcome tends to be balanced. The trick is to make small wins beyond this natural equilibrium. You want to force your opponents to use more than the minimum resources to win a geisha. Small efficiency wins can lead to ultimate victory. 

My gut feel is it's hard to win the game within the first round. You'll probably get into at least the second round. The second round becomes very interesting because by now both players will have some geishas on their sides. The landscape is different. You just need to tie in strength with you opponent on these geishas who are already on your side. You want to focus on winning over those who are not yet on your side. If you can win over a geisha currently on your opponent's side, you are both reducing her points and adding to your own. 

The Thoughts

The game is short, simple, yet brain-burning. It is an excellent design and I highly recommend it. This is not the kind of fast-paced card game. It is thoughtful and deliberate. You'll play a bit quicker once you have a better grasp of the tactics. The decisions you have to make remain difficult and interesting.