Last year, a friend of mine said, “Hey, who wants to play fliptoons on BGA?” Always up for a new game (not including heavy euros), I said sure. After one play, I was hooked and made sure to pick up a copy at Gen Con that year.
Fast forward a year, and Thunderworks Games has put out a casting call for new toons (it’s a theme joke, just roll with it) and brought us Fliptoons Season 2. Unlike most shows today, you don’t have to wait 3 years between seasons. Is this game’s sophomore season a solid follow-up? Time to find out.
Gameplay Overview:
If you’ve played the original Fliptoons, you can skip right ahead to the next section, because the gameplay hasn’t changed at all. For those of you who are new, you can get the full ins and outs in Chris’ review of the base game here.
But the quick of it is that this is a deck-building game that will have you flipping out a 3×2 grid each round, trying to earn the most fame points. Fame is spent on firing crappy cards from your deck and buying new ones from the market. The first player to 30 fame in a round triggers the endgame, which is one more flip. At that point, the person who earns the most fame in the final flip wins.
Game Experience:
Fliptoons Season 2 is one of those classic expansions that says, “Hey, did you enjoy the core game? Great! Here is more content”. As the gameplay hasn’t changed at all, this expansion is purely about more cards and additional variety. It’s also a standalone expansion, so you don’t need to have played the first Fliptoons to enjoy this one (or even own it).
The biggest stars of this show (see what I did there) are the new fish cards. Four of the new toons are fish, and they all trigger off having other fish in your grid. For example, the clownfish is a cheap card that wants to be near other fish, while the goldfish just gives you bonus fame for every fish in your grid. In general, if you start getting fish, you want to go heavy on fish. There is some really good synergy with these cards, so points can come in abundance.
That being said, there are plenty of other interesting cards in this expansion that are non-aquatic. One of my favorites is the crow, which gives you only a paltry 2 fame. However, when you fire him, you can take any card you want from the market. This is a great way to get one of those high-cost cards early in the game.
One such card could be the gorilla. He gives you 5 fame, and if he’s placed in the upper row, he puts the next card above him, giving you access to an extra card during that flip. The art has him lifting weights, so it’s pretty on theme.
Interestingly, the game has a unique set of starting cards. You have the mosquito, which gives you literally nothing. Mosquitoes suck in life, so I guess this is on point. Then you have the ladybug, which makes it cheaper to fire adjacent cards. Instead of the card from the core set that boosts the player with the fewest fame, you now have the firefly. So instead of being able to fire a card for free with the skunk, you get 2 bonus fame points. Is that better? I think it depends on your game state. Once you’ve cleared out your starter cards, the skunk is not very useful, while the firefly remains relevant as bonus fam is always good. That being said, starter cards should all be quickly fired.
Finally, for those curious, you can combine seasons 1 and 2 of Fliptoons. It’s pretty simple. Each player gets a random starter deck, and the market gets an extra 3 and 15 cost slots (the cards on the highest and lowest end of the spectrum). Then you shuffle both decks together, and you’re good to go. It’s easy as pie and works well.
Final Thoughts:
Fliptoons Season 2 is an easy expansion to review. Do you like the original Fliptoons? Great! Here is more content for you. Was it not your thing? Then nothing here will change your mind. I thought the new cards were interesting, and I liked how they had a unique starter deck in this one. While I don’t play a lot with the combined cards, It’s nice that it’s an option for people who want to do that.
Final Score: 4 Stars – More of the goodness that you love from Fliptoons. A must-buy for fans.
Hits:
• Same great gameplay
• Like the new aquatic cards
• Unique starter deck
Misses:
• Nothing I can think of
