Launch Pad

The game is entirely card based, so I'm not sure why the packaging is so large. To make it more portable, you can just travel with the deck, which is equivalent to about 4 or 5 packs of standard playing cards.It's a fun game with a moderate pace. Some mechanics are a little complex and some cards are a little too rare for my taste, but it's very accessible. The luck of the draw can make or break a player, though you may choose to discard as many cards as you like each turn, so there can be strategy to just dumping your hand and getting a new one next round. I haven't figured out all of these strategic nuances yet, but I'll definitely play it more in hopes of figuring them out.

I bought this because I played Launchpad at a friend's place. The card set up was complicated at first but after playing it once it seemed quite easy and based upon luck. We tried a few wacky strategies just to test how the game worked. My friend played every rocket he got, I played a few rockets but tried to maximize points on them, his wife played a middling amount of rockets. There are these green cards that give you special benefits and protections. At first card that gave extra cards in your hand looked good but then the protect your rockets card looked good and then other cards. It depends on your current strategy and the state of the game. For a simple seeming game it has real strategic depth.

Great artwork, lots of fun, but it does rely on some lucky draws from time to time. Well worth the $5 it currently sells for.