FULL REVIEW

Scrye Magazine
Jason Winter
November 2003
USA

Out of the Box's Basari offers slightly more complex fare than the company is typically known for (such as Apples to Apples and My Word!) but it's a compelling little game that fits the company's philosophy of easy play and family fun.

A nominee for Spiel des Jahres (the prestigious German award for game of the year), Basari centers on bluffing and trading. Each space on the board (30 total) has a number from four to seven, and a picture of two to four gems, in some combination of four colors. After rolling a die to move, each player secretly selects one card from his or her personal set of three: One card lists numbers, another shows a die, and another pictures of gems.

The fun begins when the card selections are revealed. If a player is the only one who selected a particular card, he carries out that action: The number and gem cards award the points or gems shown on that player's space, while the die card lets the player roll the die and move again and score points equal to six minus the roll. However, if two players show the same card, they must bid, using their gems, for the right to take an action. And if three or four players pick the same card, nobody gets to take that action!

To start a bidding round, the player with the most points makes the first offer, offering the other player any number of gems. The other player must decides whether to take that offer and let his opponent take the action on the card, or whether to top the bid (offering either more gems or higher-valued gems) back. The first player then decides whether to take that bid or offer another, and so on, until one player accepts the gems and the other player takes the action.

Play continues in this fashion until at least one player makes a complete circuit around the board. The current round is completed and each player scores bonus points if he or she has the most of any color of gems (14 points for the most red gems, 12 for yellow, 10 for green, and 8 for blue). Each player who completed a circuit of the board scores 10 points. Then, each player who scored points for gems puts some back in the pot and a new round starts. After three rounds, the player with the highest score is the winner.

While crafty bidding is certainly an important part of the game, paying attention to the other players is just as important, especially when it comes to card selection. If every player is on a high-numbered space (like a six or seven), you may be better served by picking the die or gem card, so you won't have to bid - or worse, have your turn nullified if three or four players pick the same card. Paying attention to your opponent's gems, and what he or she needs to get bonus points, can also pay off when you make your bids. And don't underestimate the die card, especially if you're on a mediocre space; getting that 10-point bonus every round can really make a difference.

The only negative to come up in game play was a kingmaker scenario that came up on the last turn of the game. The second-place player, who needed certain gems to secure enough bonus points to win, bid for gems against a non-competing player. That player had no gems that could help the other player, but could offer more than the first player could match. Thus, the first player didn't want to take the offer (which would have done him no good) and couldn't offer enough to get the benefit of the space - though it could be argued that it was his fault for getting into a no-win situation in the first place! Still, this only occurred in one game and may not be a major problem.

In any case, Basari is an enjoyable game for young and old and serves as a good introduction to German-style boardgames. That makes it a perfect fit, and probably another hit, for Out of the Box.

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