Welcome to Part 1 of the 2 Part Holiday Game Recap!

Set is a compact card game that I have been playing for a couple years now, but never actually owned. This year’s office gift exchange yielded my very own copy of Set, huzzah!

Originally published in 1988, Set has stood the test of time very well. It continues to be a very fun and intriguing game. The concept is simple. Twelve cards are placed on the table and players look at them until someone finds a set, then they yell “Set!” and pick up the cards. Three more cards are dealt and play continues.

“What is a set?”, you ask. Well, therein lies the game play. You see, each card in the deck contains 1, 2, or 3 shapes. There are 3 types of shapes, 3 colors, and 3 shadings (outline only, semi-shaded, and totally filled in). Thus you have four attributes: number, shape, color, and shading. A set is a group of three cards whose attributes are either all the same or all different.

“What?!” you ask. Think of it this way: if all three cards have the same number of objects, but different shapes, shadings, and colors, then they’re a set. If two cards have a common attribute that is not shared by the third, they are not a set.

I know it sounds confusing, but the game does a really good of introducing you to the concept. It is packaged such that all the solid shaded cards are together and you can play a practice hand where you only use solid shaded cards, effectively eliminating one of the attributes. Then, when you feel ready, you can add the other shadings in and play the full game.

What ends up happening is everyone is staring at a group of cards, intently. All of a sudden someone yells “Set!” and then proves to the others playing it is, indeed a set, then they take those cards and deal three new ones. Usually there will be a flurry of activity at the beginning as people sweep up the “easy to see” sets, then things get more quiet and everyone analyzes the field. Every Set you get is worth a point. If you cry Set on a non-set, then you lose a point. I usually play so that you can’t have negative points. : )

If there is ever a field where no Set is found, and all players agree on that, then 3 more cards are dealt and play continues. When the deck is gone, people tally up their points and a winner is crowned!

Set is great because it is easy to travel with, expands from 2 to 8 or more players easily, and has a broad age range. It can be a little frustrating for the real young kids, but I find it depends a lot. I think an ages 6/8 and up rating is not out of the question. The box is comes on has all kinds of Sets depicted on the outside to help teach people what a Set is and what a Set isn’t.

It’s also very interesting at the end of the game to look at the Sets people have gotten. I tend to look for Sets with a 1, 2, 3 pattern or where all attributes are different. Some people really concentrate on Shading, and some on Color… it’s kind of fun to analyze that aspect of the game. What kind of Set player are you?

Til next time, have fun out there!

Game Info
Name: Set
Ages: 7+
Players: 1-8ish
Playing time: ~30 minutes
Price: $10
Designer: Marsha J. Falco
Publisher: Ravensburger or Set Enterprises, Inc.
First Published: 1988

Links: http://www.setgame.com

Also — have you just played a cool game, or heard about a neat game?
Tell me about it! Email Shawn at greenfieldgamenight AT gmail DOT com. (Replace AT and DOT with their symbols.)