Review of Quackle! in Finnish.
Snorta! — or Quackle!, as it’s known in Finland — is a light party game. The rules are very simple, the components attractive, the game works for up to eight players and it’s easy enough for kids yet interesting enough for adults to enjoy it as well.
The components are definitely great: each player gets a plastic barn and a cute little animal figurine. The figurines are colourful and funny, and improve the game a lot. There’s another Finnish edition with just the cards, and I think this is just so much better.
Flipping animals
The deck of animal cards is distributed to the players. The goal is to get rid of your cards. Players reveal one card at the time, going round the table. When two players show matching animals on top of their discard piles, there’s a challenge between them.
To win the challenge, you need to make the sound of your opponent’s animal. Not the one in the cards, that is, but the one they have been given in the beginning of the game. Of course, during the play the animal figurines are hidden in the barns, so you’ll just have to remember — or make every sound, hoping you’ll hit the right one soon enough.
First one to make the correct sound wins the challenge. Loser must take his discard pile and the discard pile of the winner and add them to his draw pile. Then the game moves on.
Simple and fun — but not always
It’s all very simple. The rules don’t cover certain situations, so players will have to improvise a bit. Also, taking it all too seriously might be a problem, as some comments at the Geek indicate. However, with light attitude, Snorta! should be great fun amongs kids and adults in the right mood.
In the end I did sell my copy. I don’t have much need for party games, and I prefer Halli Galli if I want to play a hilarious speed game. Halli Galli is also less dependant on the mood of the players: Snorta! requires players to be in an enthusiastic and funloving mood to start with.