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Jetpack Joyride is a 2019 real time, puzzle race game that has been adapted from the popular mobile game, Jetpack Joyride. It is designed by Michal Golebiowski can play two to four players and is published by Lucky Duck Games. Players will race through a lab using a stolen jetpack over the course of three rounds whilst avoiding various obstacles.
Overview
Setup
Setup is very straight forward. A number of polyomino shapes are placed randomly in the middle of the table and then each players takes four lab cards and lays them out in number of in front of them.
Gameplay
During each round all players will, in real time, grab and place polyomino tiles from a common supply and lay them on their lab cards. Players aim to collect gold coins and score points based on the mission cards available whilst avoiding hazards. The first player that reaches the end of the lab and escapes triggers the end of the round. Points are tallied up, lab cards are passed to another player and the process is repeated over the course of three rounds. At the end of the round each player, starting with the player with the lowest score picks a gadget card to help in future rounds. The gadget cards allow rules to be broken and offer ways to score more points.
Whoever has the most points at the end of the third round is the winner.
Final Thoughts
Jetpack Joyride is a super fun, super quick, race game, which is a blast to play. The real time aspect of the game instils a large amount of urgency and panic driven tile laying. This often results in some hilarious comments and grabbing of a tile that is not in the supply.
Players who like the tetris/polyomino style games then this is to be a sure hit with them. It takes the polyomino genre and adds a twist with the real time race element which I really like.
The mission cards give players something to focus on and is a good way to score points if they can be achieved. The pay off for maximising these and racing to escape the lab is something to be considered. The gadgets are fun and offer ways to break the rules and score additional points.
Jetpack Joyride is easy to set up, easy to teach and fun to play. It would be great to see an expansion to this in the future with additional missions, additional labs and extra gadgets. Basically more of the same.
