First Impressions

The first I heard of this game was via Instagram. One of our followers posted a picture with a bunch of people pointing styrofoam guns at each other, yelling about loot and greed. That, I thought, is a perfect game for our group. Cash 'n Guns is a fun, light and fairly quick game that drops everyone into the role of mobster, pitting players against each other to best divvy up the stolen goods--while staying alive and coming out rich. 

Stick 'em up!​

I really enjoy this game. We've only played twice, and we pooped the bed on our second game (more on that later), but even with our four-player games, I saw how ludicrous and fun this game is. It's nice that it plays with four people, but I definitely think it'd be better with more. Four players limits options and can swing the game quickly in favour of one player, whereas more players provides other options and creates more chaotic fun.

Gimme the Lowdown

​Loot laid out and bullet cards chosen. Time for the hold up!

Cash 'n Guns is quick and easy to learn. As a mobster, you and your fellows have eight rounds to divide up the loot from a recent robbery. ​Your goal is to be the richest at the end--but you also have to stay alive. Every mobster is armed with a gun and eight cards. Five say "click" and three say "bang." When the loot is laid out, everyone secretly chooses a "bang" or "click" card to play. The godfather (essentially, the leader) counts down, then everyone points their gun at another player (the hold up), attempting to scare them out of their share for that round. You can bow out, but then you don't get any loot. You can stay in, but then you might get shot, and if you're shot, you're also out of the round. (This is the courage phase.) If you're shot three times, you're dead and out of the game. To complicate it further, you don't know what card your potential shooter chose. It could be a blank, but it could be a bullet. Mobsters only reveal cards if the person they want to shoot stays in the round. 

Bullet cards

Gimme your money, punk!

It's easy, I promise, even though it is a LOT of strategy and decisions in only a matter of seconds. And yes, only seconds! The godfather counts down from three during the hold up and courage phases. The godfather has the additional privilege of telling one mobster to point their gun elsewhere. When we started playing, we jumped right in and made fast decisions without realizing the importance of paying attention to cards. We also made a few critical mistakes, and twice, Wes ended up with all the loot. Oops.

​You're welcome, Wes.

When you're divvying up the loot, it starts with godfather then moves clockwise. You can choose from any of the six loot cards or the godfather's desk, and loot isn't just cash. There's art, diamonds, cash, extra bullets and health. If you get the most of art or diamonds, you get a bonus. The more diamonds or art you have, the more they stack to add to your total. So, it's a lot to keep in your head and a lot to decide. But, unlike games like Agricola or 7 Wonders which can fry your brain, Cash 'n Guns forces you to go go go and won't give you time to overthink or over-analyze. Strategy is part of the game, but even if you suck at strategy or you're not a strategy gamer, this game is still highly entertaining and it won't give you a brain drain from all the decisions. 

Loot types and the Godfather's desk up for grabs.

Conclusion

Cash 'n Guns is simple to learn, great for a wide range of ages, quick to play and a lot of fun. It's a great game for a lot of laughs and a brain break. It's a party game where every man is his own team, and we're confident you'll love it as much as we do. This is definitely going into our collection!