Tucked away at a simple table during Play NYC 2017 was a gentleman playing with a set of cards that looked somewhat like Cards Against Humanity. Upon closer inspection, I noticed vibrant colors and RPG-like stats on the cards and my interest was piqued. I sat down to briefly speak with Mr. James Seetal who was showing off one of the first copies of Saturday Morning Games, an upcoming card game of his.
Saturday Morning Games is a simple card battle game for 2 or 4 players. The "4 players" part is rather new in the course of its development; Mr. Seetal relayed to me that he had just recently figured out how to make the game work in a four-player environment.
I have to concede that I didn't have much time to talk with Mr. Seetal at Play NYC and I only have an understanding of the broad strokes. Even with that in mind, I thought it was an interesting concept nonetheless. In essence, players can bid on one of three different weapons using cereal bowl tokens (which double as their life counters). Those weapons can then be used by combining them with an action card and a character card as long as they share the necessary symbols between the lot of them. You'll bonk one another on the proverbial noggin back and forth until someone emerges victorious.
Copyrights and trademarks are cruel masters, and whether it is by design or a matter of caution, the game evokes the imagery of classic cartoon characters and themes without actually mentioning their names. For example, anyone who grew up watching Transformers probably has one or two bots pop into their head when they see the "Mega Robot Transforming Jerk" card (although, to my mind, that could easily be Megatron, Starscream, Dinobot, and a handful of others - but I suppose that's part of the charm.)
The cards themselves looked crisp enough, and I had learned at Play NYC that they had arrived at nearly the last minute as a short run to show the game and playtest it. The colors were quite vibrant and the card designs were simple enough. I half-wondered if it might have been better with some kind of art on it similar to a game like Magic: The Gathering, but I think the simple style works for what the game is. (Besides, the most important thing to me is gameplay.)
For the moment, playtesting for Saturday Morning Games is continuing and a crowdfunding campaign is in the works. From what I've seen, I think it would be enjoyable for a casual audience who likes games like Cards Against Humanity (in terms of the simple gameplay and not the crass humor). I'll be keeping my eye on this one as I have a fondness for a simple game that can fit in your pocket and be picked up rather quickly. IF you'd like to learn more, you can head on over to the game's official website.
What do you think of Saturday Morning Games? Does a simple card battle game with a tinge of Saturday morning cartoon nostalgia seem interesting to you, or would you prefer that the game was a bit more fleshed out? Let us know in the comments below!