Reviewed by Herb Levy
YUMMY WORLD: PARTY AT PICNIC PALACE (WizKids, 2 to 4 players, ages 8 and up, 20-30 minutes; $14.99)
People who like to read have favorite authors so, when a new book by the writer appears, those folks need to check it out. It’s not much different with game designers. When a new game by one of our medium’s successful designers appears, I have to check it out! And that brings us to this look at the latest released design from Phil Walker- Harding (Imhotep, Sushi-Go and more): Yummy World: Party at Picnic Palace. 
Yummy World consists of a deck of 120 cards, 12 of them being invitations. Each player starts with three invitations (in a two player game, players start with four) which will be used to “invite” various “yummy guests” to their “picnic party”. (Cards depict these “guests” as personified food!) These 108 cards are shuffled and three rows of 9, 10 or 12 cards (depending on player count) are placed, face down, in the center of the play area. Now, the first two cards of each row are revealed. At this point, the game begins.
On a turn, a player has a choice to do one of three things. First, he or she may flip a card. A player may flip one card from any of the three rows which adds to the cards already exposed in that row.
OR an invitation may be used. Playing an invitation allows a player to collect ALL face up cards in a particular row. Players will get points for the cards (or food) they have invited. For example, there is “Bunford Burger” (worth 4 points), “Kyli Kiwi” and “Sassy” (whose values are on a sliding scale with 1 collected card worth a single point but two cards worth 3, three cards worth 6 and so on with five or more cards worth 15), “Cheezey Pie” (who, in similar fashion to Sassy scores points on a sliding scale) and so on.
OR a player may play an already collected Pauly Pickle card. Playing a Pauly Pickle card allows the player to take ONE card from any row and add it to his/her stash. Any Pauly Pickle cards NOT used may be kept for the next round. In addition to the various “guests” amassed and those Pauly Pickle cards, “Sprinkles” cards may be collected too. These, however, are placed aside for now.
Once all players have used all their invitations, the round is over and collected cards scored. With scoring done, players retrieve their used invitations, a new group of rows dealt and the next round begins. After three rounds (and after the third scoring), the Sprinkles cards come into play. Players total up the amount of Sprinkles cards collected. The player with the most gets 10 extra points; the player with the least LOSES 10 points. The player with the highest point total wins!
Yummy World is kind of a sweet game, from the theme to the whimsical names given the “food” to the”sweet” artwork – and I mean that in the best sense of the word. (Surprisingly, the artist remains a mystery and is uncredited in the rules). The entire presentation seems aimed at the younger crowd but, with its “push your luck” timing element (reminiscent of Reiner Knizia’s It’s Mine) and the decision making involved in just when to use a Pauly Pickle card (and save your invitation for a later – and better- opportunity), the game manages to provide a bit of bite for the more mature among us.
This isn’t a “big box” game. As a card game, it is easy to tuck into a book bag, lunchbox or even a large pocket! And with games of today routinely costing $30 or more, the price point here is definitely user -friendly.
Anyone familiar with Sushi-Go will find touches of it here in collecting sets of cards to score, three rounds of play and a particular set of cards being scored only at the end of the game. Whether this game was a design that pre-dated Sushi Go (and was then developed into that title) or if Walker-Harding decided to scale down Sushi-Go (eliminating card drafting) to make a relatively easy game even more accessible, I couldn’t say. While this is not the kind of game that will be on the short list (like Imhotep) for the Spiel des Jahres (German Game of the Year), Yummy World is a game that can link generations; parents, grandparents and kids can play this and have a good time doing it. (You can’t say this about too many games.)
One of the classic questions revolving around the World of Games (like a moon around the Earth!) is what’s a good game for someone who only knows the mass market stuff and, to be more specific, what’s a good game to introduce children to the vast world of games out there. With Yummy World: Party at Picnic Palace, it looks like Phil Walker-Harding has come up with an answer. – – – – – – – Herb Levy
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