Pyramid Pick

Safari Jack

Published by Cheapass Games

Designed by James Ernest

$5.00

What, another Pyramid Pick of a Cheapass game? You bet. Contrary to what some of you might think, we don't bestow this honor on every game that James Ernest designs. There are a couple out there that are merely pretty good.

But not Safari Jack. It's a clever, simple design with lots of replay value, lots of animals with silly names, and enough strategy to keep most gamers interested until they break out, well, probably some other Cheapass game.

Safari Jack is a hunting game, set in "Africa. Land of Adventure. Where a rich man in a ridiculous hat can bust a cap in a rutting rhino and nip back to camp for tea." (Did I mention that Cheapass games are also pretty funny?) Using square cardboard tiles, the players take turns building the terrain, among Cave, River, Jungle and Savannah. Each terrain supports different beasties to bag, and you can only travel directly between tiles of the same terrain. To change terrain types, you have to cut through a base camp (something about having to change into the proper hat).

Each player's hand also has the critters to be hunted, including the Zwik, the Kerbownker, the Ruttled Algalamoo and the Greater Prinoptoled. Each creature is worth victory points, some more than others. Each turn, you add a card to the terrain grid, but only after you move, so even if you lay down a big-point trophy right in your path, the other players get a chance to stop you . . .

This article originally appeared in the second volume of Pyramid. See the current Pyramid website for more information.



Article publication date: November 20, 1998

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