Vivo Review

"This brings us to today's review of Vivo from Allplay. This trick-taking game is where players play cards and try to follow the harmony cards to score points, and after two rounds, the player with the most points wins. Vivo is for 3-4 players only; it plays in about 20 minutes or less. Is Vivo another great trick-taker? Read on!"

"The player who leads will start the trick with any card, and each player will only play 1 card from their hand. The next player must look at the harmony card and either follow the lead player's suit or play another card from a different suit to follow the harmony. So, this means if a solo harmony card is played, then all players must follow the lead suit; if a duet is played, then two suits should be played, and so on with a trio or quartet."

"If a player cannot follow the harmony suits, then they are playing off-harmony, and their card is ignored for scoring that turn. After each player has played a card, players will then collect their cards for scoring or discarding. The player who played the highest value card that followed the harmony flips over the card, and that card will be worth 2 points at the end of the round. The player who scored the lowest card that follows the har"

Vivo uses four suits with cards numbered 1–12 and special harmony cards labeled solo, duet, trio, and quartet. Harmony cards remain in the center and one is placed face-up for each trick. The lead player may play any card; each subsequent player plays one card and must follow the harmony by matching the lead suit or by playing another suit as allowed by the harmony. A player unable to follow the harmony is off-harmony and their card is ignored for scoring. After each trick players collect cards; the highest value card that followed the harmony is flipped and becomes worth two points. The game supports 3–4 players and plays in about twenty minutes across two rounds, with the highest total points winning.

Read at Board Game Quest