In FlipToons you are an aspiring director trying to amass the most fame with your new movie. You will be drafting cards from a market, trying to create cool combos while praying to the shuffling Gods that the next 6 cards you draw from the deck are the winning ones. I was immediately drawn to FlipToons since Castle Combo is for me without any shred of doubt the game of the year. I played it at all player count about 25 times now. So naturally when I saw another combo driven card game with open draft mechanic and Cuphead inspired artwork I was transformed into “shut up and take my money” mode. So, lets see if FlipToons delivered on my expectations and if it can challenge Castle Combo’s aspiration to the game of the Year.
Game setup and flow
Being a card game, this is a fast play and an even faster setup. You start by giving each player a reference card, which will be acting as a fame score card. Give each player their starting cast, composed of 2 caterpillars, 1 dragonfly, 1 bee and 1 snail. Eeeehhh not the brightest galaxy of starts but a newbie director needs to start somewhere. Shuffle the toons deck, set the deck in the middle of the table and place five price cards next to the toon deck. Draw 5-character cards and place them under de price cards, arranging them by rang. Naturally the highest the rang the more fame you have to pay to add that character to your movie production. Place the critic choose somewhere near the town deck, give the starting player to a random player and your good to start filming.
The game is divided into 3 phases, Flip phase, check fame and market phase. In the Flip phase player will simultaneously draw six cards and create a 3 by 2 grid of characters. Congrats this is your movie cast. Make sure you place your cards as you draw them from left to right on both row of the grid.
All players, simultaneously check their fame. The review each toon in their grid, and add up all the fame they have generated. Each player marks how much fame they gathered using their reference card. If a player has reached 30 fame, congrats you are the film critic favorite so have 3 fame on the house.
The market phase is the meat and bones of the game, each player starting with the first one in turn order can perform up to two actions. They can hire a toon by paying its fame cost (priced by the market) or dismiss it out of your deck and kick it to the unemployment toon line for a measly 5 fame. Hey ripping one’s contract costs even if it is a 50s style cartoon.
Once a player has finished their actions you refill the market and play passes on until somebody plus a 30 fame out of their toons. In that moment a final round takes place followed by a final Flip phase. The player who has the most points at the end of the last flip phase wins the game.
The Good
This game pop onto my radar via its artwork. I am a sucker for Cuphead inspired cartoons. So, if you are a fan of the IP or just enjoy the 50s vibe, FlipToons will shine brighter than the guestlist at Oscars afterparty.
Generally speaking, deck building games have a problem with scaling to different player counts. You have games like Magic the Gathering which are fantastic at 2 player count while lacking in the multiplayer department (come at me EDH bros) or Dune Imperium which is virtually unplayable at 2 player count and shines in a 3 or 4 player session. I am happy to say FlipToons doesn’t have this problem. I played it several times both at 2 player count and with 4 players and the game was equally satisfying. Also, because 2 of the 3 phases are played simultaneously there is limited downtime in the market phase.
Another strong point of the game is the target audience. I played it with some of my friends which are fans of the Cuphead IP, but I also played it with my wife who is not a fan of the titular IP both groups enjoyed the vibe of the game. The game advertises a 10+ age requirement but I am sure it can be played by 8-year-olds too, so all in all this can be turned into a nice family game.
The Bad
There are 2 items I would like to mention which for some might be features not bugs, but for me they sure felt like bugs. Firstly, there are 30 unique characters in the game, 30 that is it no more no less. Creating a deck building game with just 30 unique cards it’s like hosting a Hollywood party with one champagne bottle. Sure, everybody might get a small sip of bubbly but nobody will go home buzzed or tipsy.
My second quarrel with the game is the initial build up. In the first several rounds all players will have the same level of fame between 5 to 6. This means that for the first couple of rounds you can only buy one card or dismiss another, while praying that the market will turn up a bright and shinny toon on the lower spectrum of the market so you can pimp out you deck and generate more fame for more actions in the next turn. Problem is that if you get a buy from the market a character with little impact you are just adding more shaft to you deck without the possibility of getting momentum.
Conclusion
“So, who is the game for?” I hear you say, dear reader. If you are a deck building enthusiast and you want a fast-paced quick fix game, this might be the game for you. If you enjoy the Cuphead inspired artwork or just looking for an easy family game this might be your next purchase.
