Disclosure: Meeple Mountain received a free copy of this product in exchange for an honest, unbiased review. This review is not intended to be an endorsement.
Recently I wrote about the Great American Roadtrip of Fluxx, Across the Country Fluxx, a version of the popular Looney Labs card game set among some of the most popular sites across the U.S. of A.
Now it’s time to board that plane and explore the rest of this big ol’ world and take our Fluxx with us. It’s time to play Around the World Fluxx.
And Then You Stopped at the Door
As with any Fluxx card game, the setup is simple:
- Set the Basic Rules card within easy reach of all players
- Shuffle all the cards well
- Deal three cards to each player
- Set the rest of the deck to the side, again within easy reach of all players to start the draw deck.
Now let’s throw the world at large into Fluxx, shall we?
Gave the Look You Know I Adore
I have covered the rules of the Fluxx card game in depth in my review of the original Fluxx game.
In brief, that Basic Rules card sets the opening rules: Draw 1 card, Play 1 card.
When you draw a card, there are four card types you’ll add to your hand. Until the rules change (and they will change) you’ll choose which card to play. Those four types of card are:
- New Rules: A new Rule that you can place on the table. The Rule change takes place immediately
- Goals: These set the winning condition(s) for the game
- Keepers: Cards that you lay down in front of yourself that will hopefully match the Goal of the game
- Actions: One-time events that are carried out, then placed in the discard pile
Players continue taking turns, changing the number of cards played and drawn, adding or discarding Rules and/or Keepers on each turn. The game ends when someone has the Keepers in front of them that match the current Goal.
Said You Expected Me to Follow You
If you enjoyed the poster-like art by Katie Melrose in Across America Fluxx, you’re in luck: she’s back on board to illustrate the Keepers in Around the World Fluxx. Her art for the global sites is consistent with her art for the American sites.
The Goals in Around the World Fluxx are a combination of the traditional two specific Keepers and a combination of any two of a set of Goals. The New Seven Wonders Goal gives you the win with any four of the Seven Wonder Keepers.
The Action cards include a few new cards that match with the world-wide travel theme including the Seven Seas and Seven Wonders, Luggage Mishap!, and the Well-Used Passport.
All Over the World
After cruising Across America and going Around the World, how do the two games compare?
My first play of Around the World Fluxx felt familiar. Very familiar. Later, when I took a look at Across America and Around the World side by side, I discovered it wasn’t just Melrose’s artwork that joined the two games together. It turns out the vast majority of the Action and New Rule cards are shared, word-for-word, between the two games. (The Luggage Mishap! and Four Directions Action cards, shown above, are two examples.)
One of the things I enjoy discovering in any new version of Fluxx are the ways the different Action and New Rules cards mix up the game. I was left wishing the two games had embraced their travel-related differences to create games that were more different than similar.
While this didn’t diminish our enjoyment of the game, it did leave me with the feeling that, unless you’re a Fluxx completist, you’d be fine with either game.
Do I have a favorite? No: they were each enjoyable and sparked similar conversations about the places depicted. If you’re having trouble deciding which to buy, take a look at Melrose’s illustrations and choose the one that appeals to you the most.
Around the World Fluxx details
- Designer: Andrew Looney
- Artists: N/A
- Publishers: Looney Labs
- Release Date: 2023
- Player count : 1 - 6
- Age range : 8+
- Time range : 5 - 30 minutes
- Mechanism(s): Set Collection
- BGG Geek Rating: - converted to Meeple Mountain scale: .
- More articles about Around the World Fluxx.
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