Are you crafty enough to survive backstabbing, treachery, murders and banishments? If you think you can get them, before they get you, then take on this challenging The Traitors card game.
This card game version that we received was Ginger Fox’s special edition for 2023. It comes with an optional choice of digital play and is a compact travel-size game. They do also have the board game version where you battle around the round table.
This card game is suitable for ages eight and upwards and for four to eight players. This is a great family or get-together game. This game comes with 40 Gold coin cards, 27 Action cards, 12 Night cards, 6 Traitor’s Dilemma cards and instructions.
Setting up is simple. If you don’t want to read the instructions, you can visit the Official The Traitor’s website to watch the tutorial.
To play the game, each player is assigned a number, depending on the number of players. For example, for a four player game, use card numbers 1 to 4. If it is six players, then use card numbers 1 to 6. And so on.
Prepare the game deck by putting the Traitor, Event and Final Banishment cards aside then shuffle the rest of the game deck cards. Each player gets three cards from the game deck face down. Shuffle the Traitor card back into the game deck then slot in the Event cards at roughly regular intervals. Finally, place the Final Banishment card at the bottom of the game deck.
Each player is then assigned to a role (Faithful or Traitor) by distributing the role card to each individual with one of you being given a Traitor card. Make sure no one knows you are a Traitor.
Scan the QR code and it will bring you to the website. When there is an event card drawn, click the screen and it will show you if there is a murder, a quiet night or banishment. For banishment, you will cast your vote by writing the number on the blackboard screen. Later via the website, you can view all the votes cast.
If you don’t have internet access, you can also play via the non-digital method by writing it down with pen and paper.
Now, everyone works together to build up a central pot of gold. If you have a dagger card in your hand, you can use it to blackmail another player to let them show you all their cards. If you have a shield card, it will protect you from a murder attempt, but it does not protect you from banishment or blackmail.
The Faithful must identify and banish the Traitors in their midst to win a share of the gold. The traitors must stay undetected until the end so that they can steal the prize fund. The game ends when the Final Banishment card is drawn, or there are only two players left, play the final event, and then all remaining players reveal their roles. The player with the most gold coins is the winner!
We played with eight players and it didn’t take long for everyone to understand our roles. It is a straightforward game but there was a lot of speculation! It was fun to discuss our thoughts as everyone was trying to prove they were not the Traitor. It does get frustrating if you get murdered very early in the game. We all enjoyed playing this strategic game. It is fun and keeps everyone in suspense. Trust no one, except yourself. This game has endless playability, which means it’s great value for money. It is compact that you can bring out with you.
Love board games? Read our review on Taskmaster, PopMaster, Who Wants To Be A Millionaire and Richard Osman’s House of Games. All these games are available to buy from GingerFox.co.uk.
Disclosure: We received the sample for the purposes of writing this review, however, all thoughts and opinions remain our own.