I am an enemy of Tic-Tac-Toe. The basic idea is fine, but the gameplay is flawed (or solved). During college, I invented dozens of variants instead of listening attentively in my classes, but never came up with anything that was really satisfying. Stratagem (Playroom Entertainment, 2004 – Maureen Hiron), uses the 3 x 3 grid of Tic-Tac-Toe to produce an interesting game that’s rather unlike the former game, with enough chrome to keep me interested.
For me, StrataGem is a good game, and an interesting one to teach to people; yet I fear that it may not have much staying power. The scoring is a little tricky to remember (a reference card would have been nice) for new folk, and the whole game may be just a bit too random for most people. That being said, I did enjoy playing the game; I'm just not sure how many repeat playings it will see. It's the kind of game where people say, "How clever!", and then move on.
A deck of ninety cards is shuffled and placed face-down on the table with eight cards being dealt to each player. The dealer takes the first turn with play proceeding clockwise around the table. On a players turn they must play one card and draw one card. The deck is made up of "Gem" cards (in six different colored suits - numbered "1" to "6" twice) and Thief cards. If playing a Gem card, a player places it in an imaginary 3 x 3 grid in front of them. The first card does not define the boundaries of the grid, but subsequent cards eventually will. Players can either play a card in an empty spot in the grid or cover up a card that they previously played.
When playing a Thief card, a player may play it on another player's grid to cancel a card that has been played, placing it on top of the affected card. A player can play a Thief card on themselves to cancel a Thief card played by an opponent, (which removes both cards) or play a new Gem card on top of the Thief card. Either way, that particular spot in the grid may never again have another Thief card played on it. After playing a Gem or Thief card, the player draws the top card from the draw pile, and play continues.
When one player completes the ninth card in their grid, the round ends. Each other player may use any cards in their hand to complete their grid as best they can. Each player then scores their grid, totaling the score in the three columns, the three rows, and the two diagonals. If a player has three of the same color OR three of the same number in one of these rows, they receive three points. If they have two of the same number or two colors in a row, they receive one point. If they have three consecutive numbers in the correct order, they receive two points, and if they have three consecutive numbers that aren't in order, they receive one point. A line can possibly score twice (i.e. If I have a red "2", "3", and "4" in a row, I'll get three points for having three of the same color AND two points for having the consecutive numbers for a total of five).
Players play one round equal to the total number of players, and the person with the highest score at the end of the rounds is the winner!
Some comments on the game…
1.) Components: The game is simply a deck of cards with bright cheerful colors. Each suit is not only a different color, but it also has different gems pictured on it to help the colorblind. The thief cards are black but were a little too bland for my tastes. In fact, the whole thing looks a little simple, but that may be just the ticket for such a simple game. The cards are of good quality and seem to handle multiple shuffling well.
2.) Rules: The rulebook is very nice with only four pages (in multiple languages) and in full color. There is a detailed description of scoring, which is exceedingly helpful - something I used a lot in initial games. My only problem was that the game didn't include a reference card, so people were constantly referring to the rulebook to remember how many points they would get for a certain row. While a reference card isn't necessary, it would really have made my teaching the game easier and made scoring easier at the end, also. I ended up scoring everybody's grids in one game - with a card, they could have scored their own.
3.) Simplicity: The game is very simple, as you can place any card in any location in your grid. Yes, you have to sum up the ramifications of placing specific cards in the rows, but soon a player learns that they can't get a lot of points for EVERY line and should just concentrate on some of them. For people who like simple, easy decisions, StrataGem is a good choice.
4.) Thieves: I like the idea of the thieves, because they allow players to stop those people who are building grids of unstoppable power - or at least grids that are going to score them a lot of points. The only problem with thieves is that they are too easy to stop. When I first teach people to play the game, everyone plays thief cards with wild abandon, having fun as they slam each other's grids. Then, they figure out that the best way to stop thief cards is to hoard 'em themselves. Slowly, I've seen fewer and fewer thief cards being played, for this reason. I'm not sure of the best solution.
5.) Time: Stratagem makes a good one or two round game. When playing with four players, I'm a little concerned at how long the game takes. Yes, the game could easily come in under half an hour, as long as everyone plays cards at a good clip. But when some people sit there and agonize over their cards and where to place them, the game can become a little too long for what it is. I fixed this by simply limiting the number of rounds. I also found that the optimal number of players seems to be three. With two players, there's not enough interaction, and with four players, it's fairly hard to get the cards you need.
6.) Fun Factor: While I think that StrataGem is a clever game and has a neat idea, I like building the grids; it just doesn't have that "spark" of game fun. When we're done playing the game, people comment that they enjoyed it and then ask what we are doing next. Many games, when I teach them, have people demanding an immediate replay once we've finished. I've never had that with StrataGem.
That doesn't mean that Stratagem is a bad game; in fact I think it's a pretty neat system and will intrigue the Tic-Tac-Toe or matrix lovers amongst people. But the game doesn't really bear up under repeat playings. It's a neat diversion, and I'll occasionally bring it out because of its simplicity; I just don't see myself playing it all that often.
Tom Vasel
"Real men play board games."
www.tomvasel.com
