Hard to Get

This is not easy to win, thus the name hard to get, but we love it. It is simple and fast and everyone gets a kick out of it. When we have multiple people playing, we just keep score, kind of like golf. If you clear the board you get zero points. If you pick the wrong answer before the end, you get a point for every word left on the table. The team with the least points after 5 rounds wins. It’s also funny, because we are now describing things like the cards. I made brownies and someone said “these are more yum than ick”. lol! It is cheap fun.

If you are a fan of Codenames this is so much fun! The fact that its challenging makes you want to play again instantly! The trick is to try to determine why someone would pick one word over the other. Ex. peanut vs pistachio when trying to get everyone to pinpoint the word "apartment". Which would you choose? If thinking literally then neither nut relates directly to an apartment. However, if you think about a peanut being basic and ordinary and cheaper vs a pistachio that is high end or expensive THEN you can deduce that the person chose peanut over pistachio to gear you away from expensive things (diamond, limo, etc) and lead you to more basic/cheaper words like apartment, flip flops, etc. It is such a fun way to play a game similar to the idea of Code Names but you can't think of clues yourself, you have to rely on using options handed to you. We love it!!!

Hard to Get is unlike any card game we've played before and we like the premise overall. It's definitely a game that requires concentration and unfolds a bit slowly, but its uniqueness keeps it interesting. I wouldn't say it's a "fun" game in that players will be laughing; in fact, there are times where it can be frustrating and players will second guess the dealer's decisions. This might all make sense with a brief description of the game. In short, 16 cards, each with a word or phrase (could be an animal, famous person, cartoon character, tv show, etc.) are turned up and the dealer chooses the target word out of those 16 with the aid of a card randomly pulled from another deck. Dealer then draws a series of five clue cards, each with two words, one at either end. Dealer decides which of the two words best fit the target word and places that end of the card up for the other players to see. The other players then have to decide which of the 16 cards do not jibe with the clue given and cover them up, effectively taking them out of consideration. The dealer than progresses through the remaining clue cards, with the other players covering up (ruling out) more of the 16 cards after each round, with the intention of finally having just the one card left that they believe to be the target card based on the five clues given. The aspect that we find frustrating is that there is often absolutely no correlation between the clues given and the target word, leaving the dealer to make a decision that may only make sense to themselves. For example, if the target word is CLOCK and the five clue cards are NYC/LA, HOT/COLD, OCEAN/LAND, SWEET/SOUR, PAINT/WALLPAPER, you could argue that not a single one of the clue cards - regardless of which of the two words the dealer chooses from each, describe CLOCK. They may rule out some of the other 15 cards enabling you to eventually end up with just CLOCK, but most of the time we play, there is not a consensus winning card and just some lighthearted bickering about why the dealer chose HOT instead of COLD to describe CLOCK, and the dealer saying "I had to choose something!". At the name suggest, the answer can be Hard to Get. So if you like thinking games and enjoy some spirited debate, this might be a good choice at a reasonable price. I would not recommend this as a family game with (younger) children. We do enjoy it, and when the clue cards align with the target word, it can be a very rewarding experience.

Hard to Get is an amazing party game that fits the perfect formula: "Easy to learn, Hard to Master". The beauty of it that it is cooperative and runs so fast that most party games pale in comparison - especially a game like Codenames. It's an instant classic at my house, at my work place and a sure hit every time I have board game night and invite friends over.

You will be really confused at first, if you don't see the beginner cards. We didn't but once you get the hang of it. I would recommend over the more popular version of this game. Please make an expansion Thanks

Great simple and quick game. Like code names but goes much quicker

Game was fun & similar to code names but not as exciting as code names. Easy to learn & good for those who aren’t too competitive.

Tried this with friends in Europe last year and have been eagerly waiting for it to be published here. Hands down the best party game I’ve ever played - it’s both fun and clever and it sparks great conversations and is even perfect for playing with my family.