Yogi

• Designer: Bez Shahriari
• Publisher: Gigamic
• Players: 3-10
• Age: 8+
• Time: 20 min
• Amazon affiliate link: 
• Played with review copy provided by publisher

In Yogi, players are challenged to contort their bodies in unusual ways — ideally doing better than everyone else in their impersonation of a pretzel! 

The deco of 60 cards is shuffled and divided into two piles, placed so that players can easily reach them.

On a turn, a player reveals the top card from the deck. 

If the card is orange or purple, the card itself can stay on the table, but the player must do whatever is specified on the card, such as keeping one thumb on your chin or having your hands touch. Keep going, and stay flexible!

If the card is green, you follow whatever instructions are on it.  You need to follow the text, not the illustration – you might be able to come up with some fun and inventive ways of abiding by the text!

If you ever cannot follow one of the instructions on any of your cards, you are eliminated – even if you have to do so in order to draw a new card to start your next turn!

The last person left in the game is the winner.

My thoughts on the game

So, when I met with my Hachette rep at Gen Con, we had a short discussion about whether or not this was the sort of game that I would even want to review.  In general, whimsical party games are not really my jam.   My desire to play new games (and my membership in the Cult of the New) couldn’t resist trying the game just to see what it was all about…

Yogi is definitely the game that it is advertised to be.  In the games that I have played, we have had gamers contorted in all sorts of weird positions (thumb to an eyebrow while the pinky on that hand always in contact with the table) doing weird things (barking like a dog with each card reveal).  Lots of laughing is inevitable, even for someone like me.

As you are playing the game, you’ll have to continually consider how you are going to draw your cards in later rounds.  You have to maintain all of your rules even when drawing a card – so you have to leave yourself an option to actually get your next card (and make sure you’re able to read it!)

This really isn’t the sort of game where there is much other strategy.  Flip over the random card and then do what it says.  You can’t choose what card to put into play.  If luck favors you, you’ll get a bunch of cards that give you things to do prior to drawing a card – generally these are easier to accomplish.  If you draw poorly, you’ll end up with physical instructions that just aren’t compatible, and you’ll bust out of the game.

The game lasts just a few minutes, and there is plenty of laughter along the way.  Yogi is most certainly not the sort of game that I’d really ever request or want to play that often, but I can definitely see situations or groups that would love this – or nights where enough alcohol has been had to generate the right atmosphere for this sort of game.

Amazon affiliate link:  https://amzn.to/4g1Tu7F