by kentonwhite
I had been reluctant introducing my family to Downforce. It was just so different from games we usually play. Would they pick up and enjoy the unusual mix of mechanisms? The game begins with the most difficult mechanism — an auction. I'm bidding future points for the car of my choice. Bidding continues until all 6 coloured cars have been distributed among all the players. This start had me really worried. Auctions are difficult, even when I know what items I want. But without having played the game, I’m blindly bidding on a car I think might win. Which car should I pick? I was prepared for a barrage of questions which would require playing the game before being answered.
All cars are identical. No one car is better than another. The decision comes down to which car I can play best. Because I'll score more points if my car comes in first place, I'll want the car which I can move the furthest the fastest. This comes down to my hand of cards. Each card has 1 to 6 colours, each with a value between 1 and 6. When I play a card I move each coloured car the number of spaces matching its colour on my card. Since I have only a few red cards with low values, I'll have trouble moving red quickly. I probably don’t want the red car. On the other hand, I have a 6 and a few 5s for green. I could do very well with that colour. So before I can decide which colour car I want, I really should analyze all the cards in my hand, calculating which colour I can move fast and frequently. That is a lot for a first time player.
Despite my fears, the actual auction went silky smooth. No questions, no frustration choosing the right colour. That is because Downforce handles the auction smartly. Rather than going around the table, progressively bidding future points (I bid 1, my Mom bids 2, my son bids 3, I bid 4 and so on) we each play a single card with our bid. The bid amount will be the value associated with the car colour we are bidding on. If I want to bid 6 for the green, I play my card with the green 6 value. I'll get the card back after the auction, so I loose nothing. I'm the only one with a green 6, so I win the green car — just what a I wanted. When the red car comes around for auction, the highest red value I have is a 4. I'll play this card, but my Mom has a red 6 and wins that auction.
Tying auction bid with the correct card ensures I'll win cars I can play well. Bidding the highest colour card I have, the simplest strategy and the one a novice will employ, will win everyone a car for which they have some high cards. What I like about this system is I can use more sophisticated strategies if I want. I don't have to bid my highest card for a colour. Each car is paired with a special ability. Maybe I don't like the special ability with the green car. I could bid a green 2 card from my hand, letting another player win the green car. As I play more and learn what I like, the auction becomes an interesting choice. But the first few times playing Downforce, the auction acts as a fair distribution mechanism, matching each player with a car they could play well.
My first fear proved unfounded. Now for the real test. In Downforce players don't just control their car — we control all of the cars. When playing a card each turn, I must move each coloured car on the card the indicated number of spaces. I'll play my 6-green card, moving my green car 6 spaces ahead. Great! But I'll also have to move my Mom's red car 4 spaces and my son's yellow car 2 spaces. Bummer! I imagined the complaints — "But I don't want to move the red car!" or "Why are you moving my car?" This had high failure potential.
I explained how the cards worked. At first my family looked for cards with only their car. This was interesting. They were choosing cards that only moved their cars — a completely valid strategy. So while I played cards that moved many cars, demonstrating how cars can move forward and weave diagonally through traffic, my family focused on moving just their cars.
This strategy is quickly exhausted. In a turn or two my Mom is faced with playing a card that may help me. She makes the next sensible choice, playing a card that moves my last place car ahead a single space. Yes, I realize that these are pretty simple choices. Up to this point my family are choosing cards that benefit them most and me least — a simple min-max strategy. What is cool is that this strategy emerged naturally. I didn't explain this concept or demonstrate the idea. The simple rule system, play a card and move the cars, naturally leads novice players down this essential path. Cool!
At this point we are reaching the first turn, where the track narrows from 3 spaces wide to 2 and then 1. At bottle necks like these, a car in the lead blocks all cars behind. Unless there is an open space to the left or right, cars cannot pass. I demonstrate how cars can black other cars and describe what is the core idea behind Downforce — blocking other cars with bottle necks while moving my car ahead unchallenged. This core idea is a revelation. My family is now looking at the game differently. Instead of min-maxing her cards, my Mom, who is at this moment blocking us with her red car, burns off her high value green and yellow cards. Our cars can't go any where! On my turn I play my red 5 card, moving her out of my path.
Alternating between playing high value cards on the straight aways, jockeying ahead of my opponents, and low value cards in the curves, blocking cars behind me, really captures the essence of racing. But it also serves a more subtle function — sloughing off cards. If all I did was min-max my turns, playing the card that moves me further than my opponents, eventually I reach a point where all I have is a red 6 and green 1. Not the most exciting turn for me. With bottlenecks, I can get rid of those less than optimal cards. Playing that red 6 and green 1 when my Mom is stuck behind me is a very satisfying turn.
Bottlenecks also introduce a light layer of player interaction. Downforce resists the take-that temptation. I can't play a card causing my son to lose a turn or use a special ability that sends my Mom back a space. But had Downforce only been a play-and-move game, there might be little excitement. Blocking players keeps us on our toes while never being outright mean. The worst this mechanism gets is when I must decide between blocking my Mom or my son. The affected player may send me nasty looks and vow revenge, but there are no tantrums or tears.
So far everything is going smoothly. Now for my third fear. At three points in the game, I place a bet on which car I think will come in first place. Betting introduces a nice mitigation mechanism. If I'm having a hard time, if my family is ganging up and blocking me, and it's obvious I won't come in first, I can earn points by correctly picking the winning car. This can be a pretty heavy decision, requiring analysis of not just player position but which cards have been played so far. For the mathematically inclined (like me) it also provides a nice odds-making puzzle. Can I figure out a betting distribution that will favour me in all outcomes.
My fear was that the betting might be a bit much for my family. In this fear I was correct. Rather than taking the mid-game bets as an opportunity, my family will bet on their own car each and every time. My Mom, a few spaces behind me, will bet on herself, and my son, even though he is firmly in last place, will bet on himself. Maybe with more plays my family will embrace the intricacies of the betting, but I doubt it. There is something awkward about betting on another player winning, like I'm already conceding defeat. Of course, the game winner is not determined by which car comes in first, but who ends up with the most points. So optimizing betting is essential for winning. I can come in second or third and still win because I correctly picked the winners. It's too bad that successful betting contradicts what so many people believe — always bet on yourself to win.
Betting aside, Downforce plays really smoothly, providing several tense moments right up until the finish. Here is, I fear, an unavoidable problem — one player will be kingmaker at the end. Ideally, the final turns end in strategic card play. I've saved my green 8 card, pulling ahead of everyone and taking the checkered flag. More often we have only a couple of cards left. It's my son's turn. He can't possibly win, but still must play a card. One card will move my green car, the other my Mom's red car. Which one he plays will determine who is first and who is second. Sometimes he'll have a reason for picking my Mom over me. Maybe he bet on the red car, in which case he deserves congratulations for a well played turn. But this level of play for us is the exception. A more common scenario is he picks my Mom because he doesn't want Dad winning.
Kingmaking is an unfortunate flaw in an otherwise great game. Downforce has many interesting mechanisms — an introductory auction, playing cards to move the cars, strategic blocking, and mid-game betting — that will appeal to experienced gamers. At the same time, the game is simple enough that novice players can pick it up quickly and do well. There is a lot to love in Downforce that keeps my family coming back again and again to this fun game.
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