Hard Time Kickstarter Preview/Review

Hard Time is currently on Kickstarter. Thanks to the publishers for sending me over their prototype to try out.

Hard Time is a relatively light game about controlling the prison yard. You do so by picking up basic commissary cards and using those to purchase influence cards which you then use those to purchase cards that can break the game or win you the game. You win the game by "shanking" the other players. Be the last person standing to win. There is more in depth strategy than that, however. You can pick up cards to help you to defend yourself if one of the other players attempts to take you out. If you want to shank another player, you need to have the Guard's Favor, Inmate's Favor, and a shank card. All of these are purchased with the influence cards.

The Good: It's a really easy game to teach that allows for more depth than you'd expect. You really need to pay attention to what the other players are picking up. The overall gameplay loop allows for very little downtime in between turns and it really does make a great filler game. I also really liked the minimalist art.

The Okay: I wish that there were more abilities on the cards. The commissary cards are only there to get you to influence cards which are then there to get you to cards that can do something. It feels like there's an opportunity to make the influence cards able to do something beyond another form of currency.

The Not So Good: I'm not sure where this really fits but I can absolutely see some people having an issue with the theme of the game. Players are picking up cigarettes and using them to buy drugs or line a guards pockets so you can essentially kill other players. This is probably not one to play with your kids but it's still a good time with the right group.

Final Thoughts: I never assign a score to a Kickstarter game because it is unfair to the publisher. I will say that this is a game that has a ton of potential. The overall game is very approachable to new players and it created some genuinely funny moments and banter while we played. Should I be concerned by how much my friends wanted to shank me?