Reiner Knizia has done it again. High Society is a thirty-one-year-old classic that feels fresh off the press. The game got a reprint by Allplay in English and is available in Japanese and Korean via Playte Games, and it is small enough to take anywhere. I think this is old enough to be called a classic, although with the new print, you could have fooled me.
The game is fast. It is brutal. It is all about bidding on luxury. You are trying to collect prestige while trying not to go broke. Sounds simple, right? Except you cannot make change, you cannot take money back once you have played it, and sometimes the card you do not want is the one you are going to end up with.
HOW IT PLAYS
Grab a player aid and the stack of 11 money cards in your favorite color. Shuffle the status cards, flip one over, and let the fanciest person start the bidding.
On your turn, you can pass or add money to your bid. Be careful because you can't make change or swap out cards you've already played. The highest bidder wins the status card and discards the money they played.
And those cards you don't want? That's where the scandal cards come in. Instead of bidding to win the card, you're bidding to avoid it. As soon as someone passes, the auction ends. They take the scandal and get their bid back, while everyone else loses their bid money. The winner starts the next round, and you keep revealing cards until the fourth game end card comes up. That card isn't auctioned. The game just ends, brutal!
Then everyone reveals their remaining money. Whoever has the least is eliminated and can't win. Everyone else adds up their status cards and applies any prestige and scandal effects to see who wins. So yes, you want the good cards, but you also need to keep enough money to stay in the game. Long story short: don't go broke chasing luxury.
WHO IS THIS GAME FOR?
If you like quick, competitive games where you can spend five minutes thinking about whether something is worth X amount and then immediately regret your decision, this one is for you .
High Society is easy to teach, plays quickly, and there is a surprising amount of tension in trying to figure out when to spend and when to stop. Want to get a thinky game in about ~20 minutes? This may be it. There is a lot packed into this pretty (as in beautiful) small game.
PROS
- Quick teach
- Tiny box, big game
- Language independent
- Super fast but full of tension
- Public bidding = constant drama
- Stunning art with vintage glam vibes
CONSIDERATIONS
- It can take a game or two to understand how aggressive you need to manage your money
- This game is brutal, and I'm here for it!
BOTTOM LINE
High Society is the kind of game where you can spend half the game thinking you’re absolutely crushing it, only to realize you’ve spent way too much money and are going to get eliminated.
Every bid feels like a dare. Do you spend big now because you really want that card, or do you hold back because you know there are still better things coming? I’ve really enjoyed teaching this one and watching people get weirdly competitive over tiny piles of make believe money. Reiner Knizia does not disappoint, even after thirty years.
GAMES IF YOU LIKE HIGH SOCIETY
For a lighter auction - For Sale: buy and sell properties and try to make the most money. It's lighter and somewhat faster than High Society.
For another Knizia auction - Modern Art: bid on art, but don't assume it's worth what you think it is. You're trying to influence what the art is worth, so knowing when to spend big and when to walk away is a huge part of the game.
For something bigger - Raccoon Tycoon: bid on commodities, manipulate the market, and try to make the most money.
For something similar but different - Circus Flohcati: push your luck feeling of deciding whether you should take what you have or keep going. It's not auction, but it has that same do I risk it feeling.
For something thinkier - SCOUT: small box and big game about hand management. You can't rearrange your cards.
