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Review on Contender Game Presidential Debate by Matt Venable

Revainrating 5 out of 5

Fantastic game - totally authentic and endless fun

I picked The Contender because I've been a long time fan of Justin Robert Young - I have incredible respect for him and really appreciate what he does. Aside from my admiration for it, this game is truly exceptional. Let me address that briefly. The game takes several rounds to create a flow. I noticed in my playthrough that you want to simulate a debate - that's why you have Attack and Objection cards. Once your group has mastered the game, you can really create an immersive atmosphere that's surprisingly immersive. There's nothing like having the perfect card to react sharply to the last contestant's comment. I could see that this process was a bit delayed when players played slowly, but my group got caught in a stream where we were yelling at each other as contestants for over an hour. which took us a little over an hour. Your mileage varies and you can of course turn it off at any time. As the game says, you can play it for 15 minutes if you want. We have completed all 460 player maps and all 40 theme maps. It moves fast as you collect up to two-digit numbers in the cards of each theme card. However, you can absolutely shuffle both decks, start over with themes and player cards, and still end up with a brand new game. You can play it as long as you want and it won't get boring. I'm not a fan of the You've Coped the Maps Against Humanity review here. I really don't think that's true - I liked it a lot more than CaH. The procedure is completely different, the roles of the cards are reversed (you fill the gap with the word of the topic card, and not the other way around, as in CaH). Besides, you own what you say and you read it. The moderator is not blind in his judgments. (What makes sense is the discussion.) Yes, they share some similarities, but all card games draw inspiration from others. The Contender does more than enough to make itself completely original. I'm really, really sorry for not backing Kickstarter - I really want a politically incorrect deck and would love to buy one. (This remains exclusive to backers.) However, life happened and I had to capture it here on Revain. I'm so glad I finally got it. Buy it! It is very funny.

Pros
  • Nice to use
Cons
  • Almost never