Subtext (game)

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Subtext
Game data
author Wolfgang Warsch
graphic Studio Muti
publishing company Pegasus Games (Playground Edition),
Stronghold Games
Publishing year 2018
Art Card game
Teammates 4 to 8
Duration 20 to 40 min
Age from 10 years on

Subtext is a communication game by Wolfgang Warsch that was published in 2019 by Pegasus Spiele in Edition Spielwiese and in English-speaking countries by Stronghold Games . As with similar games, the game is about players drawing a term and others guessing it, although the drawings must not be too clear in order to win the game.

Theme and equipment

In Subtext is a communication game in which a player similar to classic characters games like Pictionary , Pictionary or activity each a given term must stand. The teammates also each receive a term and have to draw it, in an open betting group all players try to find out which of the teammates got the same term as the active player and had to draw it. In order to score as many points as possible and to win the game, the drawings should not be too clear and should only be assigned to the active player and his / her unknown partner in the subtext .

The game material from subtext is next to the Instructions of:

  • a game board,
  • eight colored player figures as point markers,
  • 56 tip tiles, 7 of which are in each player color,
  • 8 point tiles, one in each player color,
  • 5 number cards,
  • 115 word cards with 5 words each with increasing difficulty,
  • 8 pencils, and
  • a pad of paper.

Style of play

To prepare, the game board is placed in the middle of the table and each player chooses a color from which he takes the game figure and tip tiles (one less than the other players). The word cards are shuffled and laid out face down. The players agree on a number from 1 to 5 and place the corresponding number card on the game board to determine the number of terms and thus the level of difficulty. Each player receives a pencil and some blank sheets of paper to draw on. The players' point tiles are placed next to the game board.

Depending on the number of players, six to ten rounds are played, with each player being dealer twice in small rounds and only once in larger rounds. The dealer is the active player in the round and draws a card at the beginning of the round. He remembers the word with the previously selected number, which is given by the payment card, and then draws further cards until he has a card for each of his teammates without himself, including the first card drawn. He shuffles these and distributes them to the other players so that one player, the partner, has the same word as he and everyone else has a different word in hand.

All players now draw a reference to their term, whereby it makes sense not to represent this either too precisely or too absurdly. All drawings are placed next to the game board on spaces A to G and all players compare these with the dealer's drawing to find out which player had to draw the same term as this one. Each player, including the dealer, chooses one of his guessing tiles A to G and places it face down in front of him, after which they are turned over together. The dealer says his word and the person who had to draw the same word points to his drawing. All tip tiles that are incorrect are taken back and count as a missed tip.

An evaluation takes place after each round:

  • the dealer and his partner only receive points if both guess correctly; In this case, you will receive one point for each wrong tip.
  • every other player who guessed correctly receives one point for each incorrect guess and one additional point.

If the assignment was too obvious and everyone guessed correctly, all players except the dealer and his partner receive one point each, as there were no incorrect guesses. If, on the other hand, the assignment was such that only the giver and the partner were correct, only they receive points corresponding to the incorrect tips. The points are recorded with the game piece on the game board and if a player exceeds 12, he receives his corresponding point chip. The winner is the player who has the most points after the specified number of rounds.

Versions and reception

The game Subtext was developed by the Austrian game designer Wolfgang Warsch and was published in 2019 by the German publisher Pegasus Spiele in the Edition Spielwiese and in an English version by Stronghold Games .

The game critic Wieland Herold gave the game its second highest rating, "Gladly again tomorrow". He sums it up

“The tension arises from the level of suggestion, the SUBTEXT, which should only be recognized by the partner if possible. If I'm being completely honest, drawing skills are very helpful for this, but circles, triangles and squares, supplemented with a few dots and lines, are often enough. With the right group, the game offers communicative fun, the joy of discovery and often lots of laughter at the gaming table. Warsch can do a lot, so ambiguous drawing games also belong in his portfolio. "

supporting documents

  1. ↑ a b c d e f g Game Instructions Subtext , Pegasus Games 2019
  2. ↑ Subtext , versions at BoardGameGeek. Retrieved May 5, 2019 .
  3. ↑ a b Wieland Herold: Subtext. Review on "With 80 games through the year", March 27, 2019; accessed on May 5, 2019.

Web links