News: Issue 20 of Kardify Magazine Now on Patreon

Issue 20 of Kardify Magazine is now on Patreon for our Patrons who pledge $3 or more on our Patreon page. The latest issue compiles selected articles we’ve published from mid-December to mid-January. Our goal is to help you stay on top of the latest playing card news, releases and previews.

Also, we’ve added new reward tiers on Patreon! The new tiers include monthly desktop and smartphone wallpapers, mystery deck shipped to you every 4 months of ongoing contribution, social media shout-outs and multiple sponsorship tiers! Check it out!

Funds received from the magazine will help us keep the site running and growing, and bringing new quality content to you. Our aim is to support designers by backing on crowd-funded projects and supporting magic and playing cards retailers with their new releases. If you want to support us, please head over to our Patreon page. If you have an idea for an article you would like us to pursue, do get in contact with us. We hope you enjoy the read. In this issue:

+ Blackstone: Check out the follow-up to the legendary BUND18 playing cards currently funding on Kickstarter.

+ Mantecore v2: Designed by Edo Huang and Benjamin Loo, the deck is inspired by their love for the majestic beast! Have a look at the stunning deck from Cartamundi.

+ STAY: A collaboration Patrick Kun and Stay, a curated lifestyle shop for Travel on Instagram. The deck was designed from the ground up o enlighten the joy of travel.

+ ENTRY 03: The 3rd release from ENTRY, crafted specifically for cardists... subtle yet impactful!

+ El Recuerdo: One of our Top 12 decks of 2018. Find out more about this stunning decks created with the spirit of freedom in mind.

+ Darkfall: An intriguing fully custom deck released by Murphy's Magic with a modern street art vibe.

+ MARCDeck: A unique deck designed through a collaboration of artists, designers, illustrators and innovators from around the world. Have a look!

+ Watermelon Fontaines: A surprise first deck release of the year, sold out in 20 minutes!

… and more! 43 pages of articles and deck images. Enjoy!

Card Game: Unlock! Squeek & Sausage from Asmodee

On our first ever card game review, we look at Unlock! Squeek & Sausage from Asmodee, a cooperative card game inspired by escape rooms that use a simple system which allows you to search scenes, combine objects, and solve puzzles. Yup, all with a deck of cards!

In recent years, Escape Rooms have mushroomed around the world and board game publishers are capitalizing on the popularity by creating an "escape room in a box” experiences for a fraction of the price. There are several games/scenarios published by various publishers and even crowd-funded on Kickstarter, utilising different game mechanics.

Unlock!, however, is one of the few that utilize only cards and a companion app that provides clues, check codes, monitor time remaining, etc.

SETUP

The card backs feature (at first glance) random numbers and the face cards are color-coded: yellow cards have four-digit unlock code, grey cards are informational, blue and red cards combine to open/discover new things. The basic idea is, you pair the blue card and red card, add their numbers together and reveal that card if it’s in the deck (hence the number on the card backs).

I would recommend a calculator handy to help with the addition if you are playing with kids. Also, the deck order out of the box is random. Considering you have 60 minutes on the clock, I would re-order the cards sequentially (numerical and alphabetical) to save on time when looking for cards as you discover new clues.


GAMEPLAY

The game mechanics are relatively simple- on each scene, you search for clues, hidden objects, and information. Pair them up by combining the blue and red cards and reveal the next card for more clues/information and progressively moving on to the next scene.



However, Beware! Many red and blue cards are not meant to be combined as some combination will result in time penalties- 2 to 3 minutes! That is pretty heavy as it deters players from exploring and trying new combos.

We were stuck on the first scene for 15 minutes trying to figure out what to do. Like Escape rooms in the real world, you can use call for hints to keep you moving. There's where the app comes in. Each card is associated with a number, and you can type that number in to get help with the card. The hint system is very well done. It has 3 levels of reveal without giving too much away initially.

Once you get to a yellow card and obtain the hidden 4-digit code, you type the code in the app to progress (or not) to the next scene.

OVERALL

Squeek & Sausage is our first Unlock! game and We really enjoyed it! The cartoonish artwork suits the theme and scenarios well. The puzzles are consistent, challenging but not overly difficult. There several Eureka moments and a few puzzles that make you swell up with pride in solving them. The gameplay flows nicely as well without feeling a sense of frustration or lost.

The only gripe we had are the hidden objects. These are simple, tiny numbers that, if you actually spot them, allow you to reveal the corresponding cards. The app has a setting for beginners that prompts you to look out for these hidden objects.

Also, the app provides ambient sound for each scenario, which I think is a nice touch. It adds to the feel of being in a locked room.  We found that the game mechanic works really well and it is quite fun once you understood the system. We took an hour and 20 minutes to solve all the puzzles and used the hint 2-3 times.

Looking forward to the next Unlock! game and we hope to solve all the puzzles before the clock hits zero.

.thecuso Releases the Poop Emoji Playing Cards!

.thecuso is BACK! The iconic cardistry channel posted for the first time in 6 years and it is a tribute to the recent Buck twins x Anyone ad. The black and white video features Alejandro Portela (Instagram: @aleporte) and Michael Stern (Instagram: @myturn4real) shaving their hair and promoting the new Poop Emoji Playing Cards.

The deck was first made available to the participants of Cardistry-Con HK in September and was just made available to the public during Christmas day. The dynamic deck features all your favorite emoji in one hilarious and functional deck.

The deck is fully custom! Instead of the traditional suits, you have Banana, Taco, Donut, and Peach. The Royals are updated with the different emojis strategically placed on the vibrant court cards.

The eggplant emoji are the jokers but with a twist. The card backs feature a repeating poop emoji pattern. Simple but effective.

These poop emojis have invaded the real world! Get it now from poopemojicards.com for $15.

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The First Teaser for Six Strings Playing Cards

A collaboration between Kardify and Murphy's Magic, Six Strings is a fully custom deck of playing cards inspired by the most majestic and fascinating musical instrument- the guitar. This limited edition deck is designed by Ade Suryana and features fully custom design, reimagined courts, and a beautifully crafted letter-pressed tuck case. Six Strings is as beautiful as it is functional – versatile for themed magic, game nights or to have in the collection.

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