YORKTON - The theme in Kundalini – if theme matters greatly in a two-player card game, is a bit different, which is OK.
Players “are the best yogis in decades -nay, centuries! But gaining access to the Kundalini Academy is strict and in order to do so you will be put to the test by seven Gurus, each specialized in one chakra. You will do your best to try to gain the approval of these remarkable teachers and be worthy of their time and attention, and with good reason, because there’s only room for one new student at the Kundalini Academy every seven years,” details a crowdfunding page to the game.
The description makes Kundalini sound ‘bigger than it is.
Players have a limited hand of three cards.
On your turn you select two, offering them to your opponent, one face down, and the other face up. They select one and place it ‘at the feet of the appropriate guru’ and you do the same with the one they did not choose.
Now there are some more powerful ‘wilds’ here, some helpful, others a hindrance, and therein lies the heart of how cards are exchanged, can you bluff to keep the good, and choose wisely to avoid the bad?
That sounds like a neat mechanic, but you never leave a wild face up, so taking it while not always the ultimate move, is the safest.
The game did impress on Board Game Geek where it placed well in several categories of the 2024 two player PnP contest including being voted ‘Best Gamer’s Game’ and second ‘Best Game Overall’. (It’s where I found the game too)
Now if you like pretty in your print ’n play games, then this weeks offering Kundalini is going to be a good fit.
A 2024 design by Iván Sende who also has the art credit. Kundalini has cards which remind – at least at my age – of someone with talent using a Spirograph. It’s sort of ‘hippy-esque’ too.
The colours are bright too, red, orange, purple, blue etc.
Now for some it might be a bit much, but it worked for us.
Since this is a card game it’s an easy print, and the game play is interesting enough, and easy enough, for play at coffee time.
Definitely a worthy addition to a PnP collection.
And that folks is a wrap – the end of the bonus PnP Summer series. But fear not something new from The Meeple Guild launches soon.
