Publisher: Bright Eye Games
Designers: Mike Callahan, Brigette Indelicato & Thomas Rochelle
Artist: Brigette Indelicato & Kwanchai Moriya
2-4 Players
Playtime: 20-60 Minutes
Spicy romance novels are in right now, so it’s only natural to capitalize on the social media phenomenon by creating a game where everyone gets to make their spicy book. Making a book is too much work, so The Plot Thickens: Romance Edition lets 2-4 players finish a short story in just 20 minutes, or an entire novel in an hour. Let’s start writing!
A Brief How To Play
Each player is dealt two character cards and chooses one of them to be their character, and they will narrate in first person as that character for the rest of the game. Then, all players are given plot tokens and a hand of five cards that is made up of character, place, and thing cards. During the first round, players will name their characters and establish their situations by playing cards from their hands and using the words on the cards in their story introductions. Every player will do their introduction independently of each other. Players will earn a plot token for every card that they integrate into their stories.
After everyone introduces their characters and collects plot points, the remaining rounds are spent connecting their cards and stories to others. Every time a player connects their story to an element of another player’s story, they place a plot token on the corresponding card, earning a point. Eventually, everyone’s characters will be connected and after all of the rounds are complete, the player with the most plot tokens given out will be declared the protagonist of the story, and that player can tie up all of the loose ends and conclude the story. The player who received the most connections to the words in front of them gets to name the story as the author.
Pacing and Interaction
A turn in The Plot Thickens only consists of the player saying a few sentences as they add to the story, so the game moves along fairly quickly. Players who struggle to quickly come up with stories will slow down the game, but there is no requirement to play their entire hand on their turn, which helps alleviate some of the pressure to insert a lot of elements into the story. The Plot Thickens also doesn’t feel like a traditional board game where there is a clear winner. Sure, the player who connects the most plot points gets recognition at the end, but that doesn’t mean that their parts of the story are the most important.
The Plot Thickens is a social opportunity where everyone gets to come together and tell a story. Like tabletop RPGs, everyone is a part of the story, and everyone feels like an important piece, especially when their character gets entangled (romantic or otherwise) with another. Winning doesn’t feel important in The Plot Thickens, and while that isn’t for everyone, players who just want to sit around the table and giggle at silly words will love playing. Our table found that the short story format, which is just three rounds, is the best way to go, as doing a full novel can drag on, especially if the story goes off the rails. It’s nice having a brief 20-30 fling, then either move on or play another round with an entirely different story and characters.
Replay Value
There are a lot of cards in The Plot Thickens, therefore there are many combinations of story elements for groups to play with. As long as they enjoy telling stories and bouncing off of each other’s ideas, The Plot Thickens can give the same group tons of value.
The value grows significantly if another copy of The Plot Thickens is purchased. There are also Detective and Science Fiction variants available, and adding these allows players to create multigenre stories while also allowing for more players to make it to the table. We didn’t get the opportunity to mix Romance Edition with any other versions, so we can’t speak on whether playing The Plot Thickens is still as enjoyable with higher player counts. However, it will likely add to the playtime significantly.
Theme and Components
There isn’t much to the components in The Plot Thickens. The only things in the box are a few decks of cards and the wooden plot tokens. Still, everything looks nice and while the art is minimalist, it has a nice aesthetic. The card quality is solid, but not astounding. Like the rest of the components, players are treated with solid quality that helps the game be more affordable without feeling cheap.
The Plot Thickens leans heavily on the theme and has plenty of great cards that will surely get a laugh from fans of romance novels. All of the tropes are in here, and it leads to the stories staying in their genre during a playthrough of this thematic game.
The Plot Thickens Is Great For Fans Of…
Those who enjoy storytelling and roleplaying will find a lot to like here. Fans of romance novels will find even more. Players can take their stories anywhere, and the mix of hallmark and NSFW-rated cards gives tons of wiggle room for these fans. Anyone who doesn’t car for roleplaying and prefers more structure may want to pass on The Plot Thickens.
The Plot Thickens
The Plot Thickens isn't for everyone, but telling stories at a table with friends will be a fun time for most.
-
Pacing and Interaction
-
Theme and Components
-
Replay Value
-
Enjoyment
