Game play in Coloretto is simple: Either draw a card to play to a row, or take a row of cards to add them to your collection. A row can have at most three cards, so at some point everyone is forced to take a row. Once all the rows have been claimed, players start a new round, drawing or taking once again.
What are you trying to do with these cards? Collect huge sets - but only in three colors as every color beyond the third will cost you points. Jokers are highly-prized as they always match what you want, and +2 cards provide sure points, giving you a back-up plan if everything goes south in terms of the colors you're collecting.
Once only a few cards remain in the deck, the round ends and everyone tallies their score, choosing three colors of cards to score positively while any other colors count against you. Each color is scored using a triangular number system: the first card in a color is ±1 point, the second card is ±2 points, and so on. The player with the high score wins!
A two-player variant is included with some versions of Coloretto, with the only change being that rows can have only 1-3 cards placed in them, depending on the icons on the row cards.
Nordic version include extensions: 'Coloretto: The Extra Cards', 'Coloretto: The Limit Cards' and 'Coloretto for two players'.
- fast, fun, and accessible
- two-player adaptation remains tight
- negative points for excess in collected sets may feel punishing to some
- set collection with push-your-luck elements
- gallery of colored chameleons in a column drafting setup
- abstract, light
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- set collection / push your luck — players place cards into columns, trying to collect three colors while avoiding negative points for excess of certain sets
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- I think Concordia is one of the best games ever made, full stop
- two players it works extremely well because the downtime is gone
- it's a brain burner game
- the tension in the two-player game is great
- loads of content to explore, tons of replayability
References (from this video)
- easy to teach
- fast and portable
- pocket-friendly filler
- may feel luck-dependent
- scales oddly with player count for some
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- set collection / push-your-luck — Players collect colored cards to build sets while avoiding penalty cards; strategic risk-taking in a quick game.
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- I am color blind and sometimes we just have to wing it
- it's not at the Forefront of why I enjoy gaming
- life is generally a bit busier for me now
- I would rather play someone else's game that I don't have or I've not played before
- I find his games a little bit too loose
- the expo is normally a good day out, I enjoy it, it’s a shopping day
References (from this video)
- high accessibility
- versatile with players of all skill levels
- can feel light for some groups
- artful, light-handed set collection
- color collection with simple set-building
- light and approachable
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- drafting — players pass cards around, creating tension and access to hidden information
- set collection — players collect color cards to maximize points while avoiding negative colors
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- It's one of the best filler games out there. It's absolutely evergreen.
- El Grande... the best area control game of all time.
- Resistance Avalon, this was actually my number one in my top 50.
- I can't quite actually answer why I don't play Age of War as regularly as I should because whenever I do play it, I thoroughly enjoy it.
- This is actually the original version of a party game which is now called Good Critters.
- This is one of the best filler games that you will play.