nana / Trio

The Game

Nana is a card game from Japan. The first edition is called nana (without capitalisation). The second more widely distributed version is called Trio. Lately I tried quite a number of card games, mostly courtesy of Han. I've played some trick-taking games and some climbing games (i.e. the Big 2 / Cho Dai Dee type). Nana is not in either of these common categories. It is a simpler game. You can call it a set collection game. You have to collect sets of three cards of the same number. 

During game setup, you create a 3x3 grid of 9 face-down cards at the centre of the table. The rest of the cards are dealt out to all players. When you get your cards, you must arrange them in order. The basic idea is you want to collect sets of cards. A set is three cards with the same number. If you manage to collect three sets, you win. In addition to that, if you collect numbers which add up to 7 or have a difference of 7, you also win. E.g. 6 and 1, 11 and 4. If you collect the set with 7, you win too. 

On your turn, you may reveal up to three cards. You reveal cards one by one. If the second card you reveal is of the same number as the first, you may reveal the third card. If all three cards have the same number, you claim the set. The moment you reveal a number that is different from the previous card, your turn ends and the cards are turned face-down or returned to the hands of the owners. When picking cards to reveal, you may pick any card at the centre of the table or the leftmost or rightmost card in a player's hand, including your own. 

Let's say I reveal a card at the centre of the table, and it's a 1. That's the smallest number. If I happen to have a 1 in my hand, I know there is another 1 out there. It might be with one of my opponents, or it might be among the other yet-to-be-revealed cards on the table. I will try to find the 1 from my opponents' hands. If they have it, it would be their leftmost card. I will try to reveal two 1's out there, before finally revealing my own 1. Then I can claim the set. 

This game has a memory element. You want to remember the cards you have seen, both those on the table and in your opponents' hands. 

I have two 1's. I will first try to find the remaining 1 from my opponents' hands. If they have it, it would be their leftmost card. 

The Play

Nana is a pretty simple game. The game mechanism is new to me. There are some tactics. Due to the memory element, Allen, Han and I, being middle-aged uncles, played rather clumsily. Our short-term memory is lackluster. Perhaps we are just not used to playing memory games, and we are lazy to memorise stuff. I think children will do well in this game. They are pure and more focused. In our game, Allen won by claiming both 4 and 11. 11 - 4 = 7, so he only needed these two sets. It is important to consider this and to prevent opponents from getting a quick win. 

Nana is for 2 to 5 players, but the current version Trio is for 2 to 6. Some rule adjustments are made in Trio. 

Comparing the art style in nana and Trio, I like nana more. It's the cute Japanese style thing. Trio has darker art. Mexican theme, cool style. 

The Thoughts

The game mechanism in nana is refreshing. I consider it a family game. It's light and short. Memory games are not my thing, because I'm too lazy to do memorisation. I prefer games that involve planning and calculation. I'm a look-forward guy. There is some luck in nana. Don't think of it as just a memory game. Memory is just part of it. Luck comes in when you have to pick cards on the table to reveal and when you try to guess who among your opponents has a card you want. 

This is a game which can have funny player interactions. Sometimes you should cooperate. Let's say one guy has claimed 3. If he claims 4 as well, he's going to win, because 3 + 4 = 7. In this situation, the other players should work together to stop him from claiming 4. You can communicate, negotiate, and even lie about what card you have. Okay I'm probably overthinking this. This is supposed to be a children's game, a family game. Please don't lie to your kids. That can be traumatic.