Koryŏ

Choose a family of politicians in secret, play them all at once and squeeze the most from eight short turns.

Designer: Gary Kim
Published by: Moonster Games
Editions by: asmodee, Portal Games, Hobby World, 2 Pionki, Magpie (Korean Co)

Koryŏ is a short card game set in an alternate-history, steampunk-flavored world of scheming politicians. Each round, everyone secretly chooses a family from their hand and then plays as many cards of that family as they have and wish to. Every family has a value from 1 to 9, which is both the number of cards in the family and the points it scores at the end. A game lasts exactly eight turns, and each turn the family you control grants a special power. Your council gets more influential as the game goes on, but you draw fewer cards each turn, so choices tighten. Think of it as a clever, compact set-collecting duel of nerves for two to four, done in about twenty minutes.

Families valued 1 to 9, which equals their sizeExactly eight turns, simultaneous choicesEach family gives its own power

Who it's for

You want a compact card game of simultaneous decisions where you outguess your table in twenty minutes.

Not for you if…

You want a big theme or lots of free-form interaction. It is a tight, abstract-feeling card puzzle with a steampunk coat.

Vibe's take

Tight and tense. Every reveal is a small bluff, and as your hand shrinks each decision matters more than the last.