Tabletop Tuesday - Phase 10

Welcome to another edition of Tabletop Tuesday - Your weekly exploration into games of dice, cards, luck and more of the Tabletop world.

This week's game...the game of fun with runs that is Phase 10.

Players: 2-6
Time: 60-120 minutes
Genre: Casual Card / Family Game



Made by Fundex, Phase 10 was the second best-selling commercial card game behind Mattel's UNO, which ironically enough Fundex ends up selling the rights of Phase 10 to Mattel in 2010.  This rummy-like card game gives each player 10 phases to be completed across multiple rounds.  These phases can vary from completing sets of the same number, sequential runs of numbers to colorful combos.  Each round, players receive 10 cards, which vary from number values 1-12, Skip cards, and Wild cards.  Players then take turns drawing one card from the deck or from the discard pile, and then discarding one card.  Once a player completes their phase, they can then continue that phase or work off other player's phases to empty their hand.  The round ends when one player's hand is emptied, to which the other player's remaining cards are tallied for their score.  First player to complete 10 phases wins the game, or in the event that more than one player completes the tenth phase at the same time, the lower score wins.  As you can expect, with each subsequent phase, the difficulty of completing such is higher.  Fail to complete a phase, and you'll have to try again next round, giving the lagging players the chance to catch up and stay in the game.

While there is a degree of luck to be had in the draw of the card, the game does contain certain levels of skill and careful observation that can give keen players an edge.  Players will want to pay attention to what others may be collecting so as to not go for the same set or to supply the other player the needed cards.  And while completing phases is the primary goal of the game, it does create additional bridges in which other players may empty their hands.  So timing can be considered if players want to more quickly empty their hand and not allow the same for their opponents.  It's a race to finish all the phases, but also a careful dance not to rack up too many points in the process less it come to a photo finish.

For those looking for a quicker means of playing this game, you can instead play a set 10 rounds in which each round is a different phase that all players are on.  Lowest score at the end of the 10th round / phase wins the game.  There are also numerous other versions and variations to playing this game, but we can save those for another discussion.  I recommend this base version of Phase 10 for those who enjoy lighthearted fun and lazy afternoons.

If you have any questions about Phase 10, let me know in the comments.  Otherwise, stay tuned for future installments of Tabletop Tuesday.  And happy gaming!