Toppo game

by Shelley

(Upstate New York (USA))

Game:
Toppo
Game manufacturer:
Rio Grande Games
Number of players:
2-4
Ages:
10+

Quick Verdict

A fast-paced pattern match game, but which doesn’t encourage much player interaction.

The game and gameplay

Goal: Score the fewest points by exhausting your card deck before your opponents.

Divide the stack of cards, leaving a draw pile in the center of the table. The starting player reveals the top three cards. Each card shows a colored symbol.

As fast as possible, players lay three cards from their personal decks on the table, and try to match the center set.
You can match symbols exactly (color and symbol), or match the entire set. You make a set by pairing symbol to symbol or color to color. For example, if the center set is:

yellow circle
blue square
red plus sign

…your matching set can be…

yellow wave
red square
yellow plus sign

Once a player has ten or fewer cards in their personal pile, the round ends. The rest of the players count the number of cards in their hands, and that is their score. The round starts again, but this time the starting player may show three, four or five cards on the table.

Pros and cons

If you like fast-paced matching games, you’ll quite enjoy Toppo. If you don’t do well at pattern recognition, look elsewhere.

The verdict

Serviceable, but not one of Reiner Knizia’s best games. I felt like I was playing a game of community solitaire, than playing a game with my friends.