Hagakure — First Impressions
Hagakure is a trick-taking card game with a hint of planning and bluffing built in.
Will your bid work out?
Hagakure Game Overview
At the start of each round in Hagakure, players are dealt a small hand of cards: numbered villagers (1-17), samurai (18-27), and old fools (value zero).
Before any tricks are played, each player may choose one of their Nobori tokens and play it face-down. Each Nobori token has a special ability that activates for that round.
One doubles your points for the round, another forces your score to zero, one gives bonus points if you capture four villagers in your tricks, one lets you swap your hand with the “Goze” (the undealt cards), and one lets you peek at another player’s hand before playing.
The lead player plays a card, others follow suit if they can but you must play a samurai if possible if a samurai is led.
If an old fool card is played and one or more old fools appear in that trick, the player who played the last old fool wins that trick.
After all tricks are done, players score one point per trick won with a bonus point if they captured the 18 samurai. Score -2 points if a player won zero tricks.
At the end of the round, you also apply your played Nobori token’s effect then you reshuffle and deal for the next round.
How Do You Win?
After all rounds are finished, players total their points from tricks, bonuses and Nobori effects. The player with the most points is the winner.
Main Mechanisms
Hagakure uses trick-taking as its core mechanism.
The mix of familiar trick-taking with the added twist of tokens and optional hand swapping makes each round feel both traditional and tactical.
USP
The combination of classic trick-taking with the timed use of special tokens gives it a twist of control and surprise. The fact that you pick a token before you play adds a layer of guessing and adaptation.
Theme
The theme draws on samurai era Japan: villagers, warriors, elders but it’s primarily a mechanical game. The art and tokens give atmosphere, but the focus stays on card play and bidding.
Setup
Deal the appropriate cards based on player count, give each player their set of Nobori tokens face-down, deal the leftover cards into the Goze pile, and you’re ready to choose tokens and play tricks.
Components & Artwork
Cards are well illustrated with traditional-style art and clear values. The Nobori tokens are simple but meaningful, and the clean layout helps at the table.
Ease of Teaching
If players know trick-taking, the basic flow is easy: deal, choose token, play tricks, score.
As with a lot of modern trick-takers, the difficulty comes in explaining the non-standard parts, in this case Nobori tokens and special cards which add minor complexity but not enough to slow the game.
Similar Games
Cat in a Box and others include bidding for tricks with a modern twist. Chronicle is a trick-taking game with special abilities layered in.
Hagakure Review
Positives
Familiar trick-taking play that works quickly and cleanly.
Nice art and presentation, with a good set of tokens that feel meaningful.
The Nobori token system adds interesting extra decision-making beyond just playing cards.
Negatives
It is one of many trick-taking games out there; does not push far into unique territory.
Despite its quality, it won’t even crack my top 10 in the genre, solid but overshadowed by stronger contenders.
Summary
Hagakure takes the trick-taking genre, gives it a small but smart twist with token powers, and delivers a clean, pleasant experience.