Tabletop Game Review: Tater Freighter

Tater Freighter

BARD Games

3-7 Players

Playtime: 10-15 Minutes

Some games exist just to give us a good time. They don’t need a theme that makes a whole lot of sense or a deep story behind them. Sometimes you need a train, a deck of cards, and some fun rhymes to teach the rules. That’s what Tater Freighter brings to the tabletop.

How To Play

Tater Freighter is one of the easiest games we have had the privilege to learn recently. A freighter made up of six food cars is placed at the center of the table. Eight food cards are placed on their respective cargo. Some cars will have multiple foods, some might have none. Players are given six cards, each with a mode of transportation that will give the player access to a specific food. On any given round, all the players will place a vehicle face-down. The vehicle cards are then revealed simultaneously.

The food is claimed from left to right. For example, limes are the first food on the boat. If a player claimed the lime, they will get all of the lime cards in that car. If many players choose the same food, it is split evenly. If no one wanted limes, the next car is up. A player gets all the food from their chosen car and all the foods that came before it.

Once all the food is collected, a new round begins. After five rounds, the game of Tater Freighter concludes. Each food card rewards one point to the player. Players will have one vehicle card left in their hands after five rounds. Whichever food corresponds to that card rewards double points. Whoever has the most points wins the game.

Pacing And Interactivity

Tater Freighter couldn’t have much better pacing. It sets out to be a simple and quick game to play and it accomplishes that. There isn’t any downtime since the game features simultaneous turns. The game can take less than ten minutes for each playthrough. It’s a fun appetizer game, or it can also be enjoyed across multiple plays in a single session.

Tater Freighter looks like it wouldn’t be a very interactive game. At a glance, it seems to be a game where players focus on playing the right card at the right time. However, there are a lot of little rules that make Tater Freighter more brutal than you’d think. For starters, the vehicles played stay on the table for the remainder of the game. This limits the cards that can be played, making every play have much more impact on the game. This also allows players to observe around them and deduce what fruits might be nabbed next. Players can even use the knowledge on the table for some bluffing. Tater Freighter is a lot of fun when players are talking and trying to manipulate each other.

Playing the wrong card at the wrong time can be devastating. If you play a card that’s further down the freighter when everyone else picked the foods that come before yours, you won’t get much and fall behind quickly. The Later Tater card allows players to pass on taking food for a turn and take back one of their vehicles to use later. This eases the tension a bit.

Tater Freighter has a decent amount of replayability. The deck is pretty large. This combined with the way that the game flows ensures that each game feels just fresh enough to entertain. Players will need to be flexible throughout the game and consider what foods can come up later. If players are social, the game will be entertaining through many plays. Those who don’t take advantage of the bluffing mechanisms in Tater Freighter likely won’t get much mileage out of the game.

Theme

Tater Freighter‘s theme is a bit odd. Players are using vehicles to take food off of a boat. I’m not exactly sure why players are doing this, but it doesn’t matter much. It’s just fun to play, and sometimes that’s all you need. Those who are hoping for any rich explanations will be disappointed.

The card art is as simple as can be, yet still aesthetically pleasing. The food cars are pretty basic, but the vehicle cards have really fun and wacky art. The reference cards come with a cute rhyme that helps players remember what vehicle corresponds to what fruit. Everything in Tater Freighter is whimsical, and the theme suits the gameplay well.

Tater Freighter Is Great For Fans of…

One game that Tater Freighter reminded me of while playing was Miraris. Both games require players to constantly consider what card their opponents are going for. It’s more or less a drafting game, so fans of games like Sushi Go! will find plenty to enjoy here. There is a bit of a bluffing element in Tater Freighter as well, so fans of light bluffing games will likely get tons of mileage out of Tater Freighter.

Back Tater Freighter On Kickstarter