I'm not a big fan of games that require physical prowess. I'm much more interested in games where I can exercise my brain. After all, if its physical gaming I want, I can always get together for a game of football with my friends. For me, gaming is about using the muscle inside my head. However, there are some games which give you the best of both of those worlds. While these games are few and far between, I have found one that stands out amongst that crowd. Jungle Speed is the game that combines pattern recognition with speed and reflex to create a game that is equal parts mental and physical. Jungle Speed is really unlike anything in my collection and as such deserves a review. So is Jungle Speed a false idol or a totemic masterpiece?

Rules

From the official Jungle Speed website:

All the cards are dealt face down. One by one, players lay down cards. As soon as two cards with matching symbols are revealed (matching colors do not count), the two players who dealt the matching cards must grab the totem situated in the center of the playing area. The player who grabs the totem first gives all of the cards he has turned over to the player who did not grab the totem. The aim of the game is to get rid of all of one’s cards. But watch out! The symbols look alike and there are many traps. If a player grabs the totem when he is not entitled to, he will be obliged to collect all the cards on the table. All «Arrow» cards indicate special rules to be observed during the game.

Warning : A game of JUNGLE SPEED played with fair-play in a politicly correct maner can be utterly boring !

Thats basically all there is to the game. You flip cards and when cards match, the matching players race to grab the totem. The loser takes the winner's cards. The first player to run out of cards is the winner. Of course there are a few more rules, but thats what you need to know to play the game.


Components

Jungle Speed doesn't have a lot of components, but the small amount are of good quality.

The game revolves around the totem. Players will be grabbing it, knocking it over, and dropping it constantly. Luckily, the totem is made of solid wood in a very easy to grab shape. The wood provides good weight while the shape allows the totem to fit perfectly in a hand. It also has a wide base which allows it to stand very well and provides good balance. The wide bottom also provides a great way to grab the totem which is doubly important because the lowest person on the totem wins ties if multiple players grab it simultaneously.

The cards also take a lot of abuse because players are constantly flipping them and moving them around. These square cards are of a good thickness and also have a great semi-gloss coating. This makes them easy to shuffle but also allows them to take a lot of punishment. Like I said, players will be flipping, moving, and shuffling these cards so good quality is very important. The colors of the symbols are very easy to distinguish so there should be no confusion between like colors such as yellow, red, and orange.

Lastly, the game comes with a small bag which is big enough for the cards, the totem, and the rule book.


Gameplay

A simple turn
A player's turn in Jungle Speed is easy. Simply flip the top card. If it matches someone else's shape, those players simultaneously grab for the totem with the loser taking the winner's cards. If there's no match on your turn, your turn is over. Thats it. There's no decisions to make, only to flip your card and grab if you have to.

Downtime
So if your turn is that simple, then there must be downtime right? Not at all! When its not your turn, you need to pay careful attention because if someone flips a card that matches yours its a race for the totem. So while you don't have any calculation to do or optimal moves to plan, you absolutely must pay attention to the game. I believe you actually have to pay more attention when its not your turn than when it is.

The outward flip
There's a proper technique to flip your card and I think its really what makes the game interesting. When you turn your card over, you need to flip it out so that everyone else gets to see it before you. This is a big key to how the game works because it gives all the other players a chance to see the new card before the active player. If you flip it the wrong way, so that the active player sees it first, its a....

Party Foul!
There's a couple key rules which when violated result in a party foul. When a party foul is committed, the fouling player has to take all the cards on the table and add them to his stack. This is obviously catastrophic because you'll generally end up getting a lot of cards when this happens. Party fouls are generally committed by new players as they learn to control the frantic dash for the totem. In addition to the improper flipping foul, there are a few others including grabbing the totem when your card doesn't match and knocking the totem down when trying to grab it.

Don't play without health insurance
Any time you have multiple hands simultaneously grabbing for the same item with wreckless abandon, you'll probably have injuries. This is really likely when you play Jungle Speed, at least if you're playing it right. Its not uncommon to have cuts from finger nails or jammed fingers. If you want to play Jungle Speed, you need to really dive in so don't be afraid of some superficial injuries.

Player numbers
While there are some ways to play this 2-player, its just not worth it. The game really needs multiple players. 3 works okay, but the game is really best with 4, 5, or 6. If you play with more, the stacks of cards each player gets is too small. The game works okay, but it can be really short with the small card stacks.

Knights of the Round Table
If you want to play Jungle Speed, you need a table where everyone is equidistant from the totem. You can do this with 4 players on a square table, but if you go over that you really need a round table so everyone is the same distance away. I suppose if you were playing on a rectangle table with 5 or 6, you could handicap dominant players by placing them at the ends farther away from the totem. But in all reality, a round table is your best bet for this game.

Not for everyone, but its a party game
Jungle Speed is definitely not for everyone. Some people won't be interested in grabbing maniacally for the totem, throwing abandon to personal injury. However, the game has the remarkable quality of drawing a crowd because its fast and fun and almost always results in laughter. Once people see how it works, they usually want to get in on the action.

I've played this game with serious gamers and it was really interesting to see their reaction to a game that's so different from standard Euro fare. I think that its popular with that crowd because its such a contrast to “gamer's games” that it offers a breath of truly fresh air.


Compare it to...

Set. Set is a great game of recognizing shapes and pattern. If you added a dexterity portion to the game, you'd have Jungle Speed. However, both games are a race to recognize similarity.


Overall

If you're looking for something that is easy to learn and play yet offers a challenge, take a look at Jungle Speed. Its a very unique game that works really well for gamers and non-gamers alike. Its fast and fun and is guaranteed to cause laughter and possibly some injuries. There aren't many games on BGG that can make that claim and Jungle Speed is the king of that category.

I rate Jungle Speed 8/10. Its a very good game that I like to play. I'll certainly suggest it and most certainly wouldn't turn down a game. I don't want to play it constantly so I can't rate it a 9, but 8.5 may be a better rating because its a game that you just feel compelled to play over and over again. Its great for new gamers as well, so I suggest it often when new gamers are around.

Jungle Speed is a fantastic game that isn't really like anything else in my collection. I'm so glad I was introduced to it because I've played it over 30 times since getting my own copy 4 months ago. Thats a pretty big compliment in a collection of over 150 games. If you're thinking about adding a dexterity/reflex/action game to your collection, I highly recommend you give Jungle Speed a look.

anyone has any of the expansions or other versions, I'll sell my soul to get them!