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In Abandon All Artichokes players must build a deck of diverse vegetables while strategically removing unwanted artichokes. By sabotaging other players and cultivating a well crafted hand players can ditch their artichokes until they are the first player to draw a hand that contains only vegetables.
Abandon All Artichokes Gameplay
Each player starts with a personal deck that contains only artichoke cards. On their turn players draw five cards, then add one card from a communal stock (fittingly called the Garden Row). Then they can play any card in their hand and follow the action on the card. The cards range from carrots and broccoli to potatoes and onions, each one gives the player the option to take a different action. These vegetable cards can be used to permanently discard artichokes to the compost pile, rescue discarded cards, pick up extra cards from the Garden Row or, if players are feeling mean, steal cards from other players.
A player can use as many cards as they like, but once their turn is over they must discard all the remaining cards in their hand. These discarded cards are then used to keep their personal deck replenished. It’s then up to each player to get rid of all the artichokes they started with, and replace them with vegetables. Play continues until, at the start of their turn, a player draws five cards from their deck and the hand contains zero artichokes.
Boredom - Eat Your Heart Out!
Like many of the popular card games from Gamewright, Abandon All Artichokes comes in an eye-catching and sturdy tin (featuring its own Artichoke based pun). The length of gameplay can vary depending on player count, but even with 4 players I’ve yet to have a game last more than 30 minutes. Those two things alone make it an ideal game for transporting to a friends house or taking with you to a family gathering.
Artichokes is designed for 2 – 4 players but having played every variation the game works best with at least 3 and excels with 4. Playing with only 2 players can occasionally feel a little limiting because there is only ever one player to steal cards from. That aside, it is an approachable game that features well explained rules where all of the vegetable cards have clear instructions on the actions that can be taken, and the additional instructions leaflet provides extra context if it is ever needed. The simple yet adorable artwork matches the straightforward gameplay, making Artichokes extremely family friendly.
The most interesting mechanic in Artichokes revolves around the need to discard as many artichoke cards as possible. This makes it stand out compared to other games where the aim is usually to collect a specific set of cards or earn points based on a series of cards. The game has 10 different vegetable cards, each with their own unique actions. This provides players with a range of options when it comes to strategy. Do they want to remove as many artichokes as they can from the game, or would they rather stock up on vegetables taken from other players? That level of vegetable-based variety makes playthrough different each time, keeping replayability and entertainment value high.
Final Thoughts
Abandon All Artichokes does a great job combining strategy and luck, you’re reliant on the vegetable cards that are drawn but the variety of cards means you always have the option to choose your strategy. The unique twist of eliminating artichokes makes for interesting gameplay and the adorable artwork adds a layer of entertainment. Overall, it is a quick, easy and entertaining game, perfect as a warm up game at the start of a gaming session or something engaging and light-hearted to play with the family.
