2-4 Players Ages 8+
Welcome ye Salty Dog
Does ye love the open seas? Are ye tougher than me old welly boot sandwiches? Well say no more ye scurvy land lubbers! Come join me crew for the best swashbuckling card game of all time SALTY DOGS!
Join the kookiest bunch of pirates ever to sail the seven seas. Fun for all the family! Put down your cackle fruit and let the games begin!
An overview of the Game
Duration
Perfect for the type of game this is. Turns are quick, pick up a card and play a card. Game length is pretty much perfect, especially at two players. But even at four players it doesn’t drag or out stay its welcome.
I have recently played this two player at a board game club night whilst awaiting for a third person who was running about 10 minutes late. We got two games in before the third person turned up.
At which point we played another game of Salty Dogs with the third person. He was intrigued by our laughter and the artwork.
Interaction
Full on and in your face. You are attacking your opponents pirates, you are giving them illnesses, you are stealing their pirates or sending them to the brig.
Although it is heavy on the interaction, it is quick and it is hilarious so it doesn’t feel crushing as you will be doing something to equal it on your turn.
So the “battlefield” feels even.
Complexity
Salty Dogs is a good example of a simple and fun card game.
I don’t mean simple in a bad way, but simple in a way that lets the game come through and the fun and laughter to shine.
Engagement
As the turns are quick and you are more than likely going to mess with your opponent in some way then players are engaged throughout.
Downtime is a minimal and it is always engaging to watch your other opponents battle it out before you swoop in and deliver a black spot or walk the plank card.
Scurvy Thoughts from Matt The Friendly Boardgamer
I have had such a blast with this game. I can’t remember the last time that I’ve had such laughs from everyone that has played it. This game is fantastic, the rules are simple and easy to understand making the game accessible for everyone. I have literally dealt out the cards, explained that you pick up a card and play a card and started playing straight away. Which cards defend against which attacks and which cards cure which illness is all explained on the cards themselves. You don’t even need to explain this really. It is a game that I can get to the table, with rules explanation in minutes. I think this plays best with three or four players but it works well as a head to head duel. It is just more chaotic and gives the opportunity for a bit of table talk with the more players.
Game length is perfect for this style of game meaning you can get multiple games in back to back. Best of three anyone?
A 10 Minute Teardown
The artwork (by Simon Bisley and Andy Brown) is gorgeous and I really like the animal pirate theme. For some reason this just adds to the hilarity of the game.
Alpaca Chino taking on Hugh Jackelman just adds that extra bit of humour in to game which lets people role play a bit. There is just something humorous about shouting at your opponent across the table (in a pirate voice of course) for Alpaca Chino to walk the plank only for them to be saved by a rubber dinghy.
Games can be fun, games can make you laugh, and yes you might lose but what the heck. Deal the cards and go again. Strongly suggest that you check this out on Kickstarter when it launches.