Introduction
My first experience with the mighty Kosmos two player series was via the excellent Hera and Zeus, my thought being that it would be a great game for this particular Greek (my last name is Halekakis) to play with his lovely betrothed geek (her last name is Yummysuperhottieperfectgirl). She would assume the role of the beautiful Hera, I the hunky Zeus. Deeper analysis of the game’s theme reveals that each player is actually trying to free the object of their affairs from captivity. Oo…awkward. Minus one for marital romance I guess, but plus one for gaming goodness. A fair trade!

If You Love Somebody Set Them Free
Hera and Zeus is a card game for two players, pitting you and the loved one of your choice against each other on a mythic field of battle. It can be played in anywhere from 10 to 45 minutes or so, depending on the luck of the draw and the skill with which you play your cards. The ultimate object of the game is to find and free your lover, represented by the Io card if you are playing Zeus or the Argus card if you are playing Hera.

Each of you will have your own deck, identical in capabilities, yet different in flavor and beautiful graphics.


At the start of the game you will deal yourself nine cards and put three down in front of you into three columns which represent the field of battle. On your turn you will have as many actions as there are columns in front of you. Possible actions during your turn include adding a new card to any row within your available columns (up to a maximum of four rows), taking new cards, attacking the opposing players characters, or playing mythical cards from your hand.

The columns on the table will be populated by various warriors, represented by your standard fare of Grecian goodness. Each of these cards will have a numeric value that represents the card’s strength. When you play a card it will be played somewhere in one of your columns face-down, making it initially unknown to your opponent. A card in your front row can attack the card in the opponent’s from row directly opposite. When this occurs, both players turn over their face up, with the highest value typically winning, though there is an exception—the Medusa card, strength 0,trumps absolutely everything save an opposing Hero or Amazon card; great for defense, but the poor gal can’t attack. Who knew? If you happen to turn over your opponent’s Io or Argus card as a result of an attack, you’ve just found a winning condition. Go you!

In addition to the standard numbered cards each player deck includes identical special mythical cards. These mythic babies a add number of strategic choices, and provide some great depth and flavor to an already tasty game.

The Pegasus card, though weak at a strength of only 1, can be played right out of your hand to directly attack any card in your opponent’s front row. Pegasus can also attack your opponents hand directly, effectively allowing you to go fish—another potential game winner if you manage to luckily pull that Argus or Io card your opponent has been foolishly holding onto. Pandora will take out both the column she is an and the opponents column when attacked—another victory condition if the Argus or Io is there. Pythia allows you to view an opponent’s hand, is the only card stronger than the very strong Nemesis or Poseidon cards, and can be used to turn over all your opponent’s cards in a single column. Dionysus can be used to move cards already placed on your field of battle. Persephone allows you to retrieve up to 3 used Pegasus cards. And finally, Sirens can be used to take the opponent’s top most card of their discard pile and use it as if it were your own.

The Hera and Zeus cards allow you to play a wooden cube with your God’s likeness into the front of one of your columns. As long as your god is on the field of battle you can get an extra action on your turn.

Rich choices and mechanics make Hera and Zeus a game that will really never play out the same way twice, though over time you will start to see patterns develop. Two players that know the game well can really give each other a good run of it. And yes, there will be those times when one or the other player never manages to pull their lover out of the deck, which is a luck element that can be a wee bit frustrating. But hey, it’s a quick enough game, and more often than not both lovers will pop their heads up at some point.

Conclusion - 8/10
Hera and Zeus is an awesome mix of bluffing, hide and go seek, and push-pull attack and defense. Such depth for such a wee package! I am always a little surprised that this game doesn’t get mentioned more often by the Kosmos two-player faithful, but heck, so be it—if it’s the one of the better kept secrets in gaming, let’s open Pandora’s box already and let it free!

I consider this sweet little card game to be one of the best two-player titles I own, one that has hit the table a great many times and is still likely to hit it a great many more. If you’re on the hunt for something to play with friends and lovers alike, light enough to finish in 45 minutes or less, yet deep enough to invest some strategic mind-share in, I suggest you give this gem a shot.