Hanabi is one of the most addictive and challenging games around, and it takes little time to learn but a long time to master. And Hanabi Deluxe II is a premium version of the original concept. The tabletop puzzle is a “co-operative game in which players try to create the perfect fireworks show by placing the cards on the table in the right order.” Sounds easy enough, right? But the difficulty lies in the restrictions on communication.
You don’t know what cards you have because “you hold your cards so that they're visible only to other players. To assist other players in playing a card, you must give them hints regarding the numbers or the colors of their cards.” You can’t explicitly say what they have or which card they should play.
There are all sorts of suggestions and strategies that players have devised in order to overcome the language barrier integral to the Hanabi experience. Until now, the card game has relied on exactly that—cards. But Hanabi Deluxe II replaces those components with mahjong-like tiles and it includes the Master Artisan expansion.
So if you don’t have a copy of Hanabi, this would be the one you want. No cards to wear out over time. Just endless fun and persistent exasperation.
