Office 21 (2013)

About this game

In Office 21, players take the role of CEO and try to maximize their profits without going over the governmental set limit of 21K. To win, players must figure out how best to play different characters and their special abilities. Players start with three character cards in hand. On a player's turn, she draws back to three cards in hand, then must play one card without exceeding the 21K limit after activating the power of that character; if she can't play a card without busting 21, she's out of the game. When a player reaches 21K, all other players have one final turn to stop her — but if her profit still remains at 21K, she wins. If no more cards remain in the draw deck, whoever has the highest profit total in their play zone and is still in the game wins. There's also a chance that the player with the lowest profit wins...

Does it fit your group?

• Group size. Works with 2 to 5.
• Rules load. At 1.5/5 this is a light game — explain it in a few minutes, good for a table that has not played much.
• Age. The publisher suggests 8 and up. That rates the rules rather than the artwork, so judge the box yourself for younger players.