The Gang: Crime, but for YOUR DAD

[@JulianSildenLanglo]

I can't fucking believe that you wasted your entire patreon budget on hiring George Clooney for this episode.

[@MrBfiguero]

Gorgeous Clooney in fact.

[@Shoitaan]

​@@MrBfiguero The budget friendly alternative

[@Mark-nh2hs]

B&M bargain bin Clooney 😂

[@Kristoferpalmestal]

And Alan Dad. He can’t be cheap, look at his west.

[@TheDragonsTomb]

Your George Clooney impression is maybe the worst George Clooney impression I've ever seen while being the best Waluigi impression I have ever seen.

[@vincentskater]

Can't believe the most popular board game channel just commented on the most popular board game channel

[@metallsnubben]

You're unbelievably correct, damn!

[@StKildaFan]

George Clooney's performance of you doing a bad impression of him is flawless, he truly is a master of his craft

[@TheDoak22]

Thank you for taking intended audience seriously! Designers and publishers spend a ton of time and energy to focus on that…yet it’s often overlooked by reviewers, especially for more casual games

[@CamObscura88]

What specifically are you referencing?

[@ReptoRoamer]

Honestly this is one of the best SUSD episodes in ages (and I've loved plenty of recent ones). The Alan Dad segment calling back to all the heist bits was a work of genius. Probably wouldn't get the game, but I loved watching the review

[@danielgaldamesorellana5871]

Totally agree

[@MeanNoZarm]

6:25 Is that tiny "six" soundbite in the background from the Gloomhaven review or have I gone completely mad?

[@shutupandsitdown]

Nope it's a FRESH mouth-sound, but it WAS a reference to that, yes! So congratulations for noticing: you are officially as weird as we are

[@GlassofJ]

So glad I’m not the only one who noticed that 😂

[@_WhiteMage]

I thought it was a reference to the Ethnos review, which also had a few instances of "Six!"

[@SpoonyBard88]

I believe the "six" joke originated in the Ethnos review. If someone else knows the lore better and call say otherwise, I'd love to hear.

[@Wh0isTh3D0ct0r]

I was at a small gaming convention last week, and this game came up again and again. And we had a blast with it. It's more of a pub game than anything else, and with the right group of people, it's tons of fun, especially during the late hours. I'll also add that it gets much harder with six players.

[@Wh0isTh3D0ct0r]

By the way.....I am literally an "Allan" and a dad.

[@mercury187]

What’s the ideal player count? 4? 5?

[@Wh0isTh3D0ct0r]

@ That depends on whether your goal is to win or to have a blast playing the game, win or lose.

[@mercury187]

@@Wh0isTh3D0ct0r have a blast

[@Wh0isTh3D0ct0r]

@@mercury187 Then I would definitely recommend six players. Those were our most energetic and enjoyable games, by far. And get some fun, type-A personalities involved too, if you can.

[@oncedidactic]

The script and editing on this one are TOP. NOTCH. I'm amazed by this homage to the film. And it conveys the content of the review beautifully. I would slow clap, but instead we will all stand in front of a fountain and look at each other, then slowly walk away.

[@greenhorngamer9148]

“Wedge that mother open.” This video is a heist of genius proportions, a wonderful conceit, and reminded me what is so great about your work (besides your impeccable delivery, Matt)… you got me watching a whole video on a game I didn’t care about. You thank your audience, but the thanks has to go to you guys for creating videos so entertaining, even Alan dad will watch them. This is a genuine work of art!

[@ColasTeam]

I wasn't very sold on this game, I was initially thinking "hmmm, but idk, Poker isn't a very popular game here..." and then I kind of realized that it's actually a brilliant design, because you can just grab a regular deck of cards from your region, a local game that is popular in your region, a bunch of poker chips, and adapt this idea to ANY traditional card game...That's actually pretty brilliant.

[@videk_online]

The crescendo before looking into the camera & saying "Where's the plan" was really well done. Great video!

[@JustACuteFox]

This feels like a mechanism to train people to suck less at poker. "You mean if I pay attention to what people are representing with their actions, I can figure out what they might have and thus play better? Gasp!"

[@golgarisoul]

The mustache was built for this review

[@eopatcjo]

So was the schnoz

[@soitgoes_]

Kurt Vonnegut vibes

[@AntonAksenovClu0D]

The whole concept of mustache to be precise

[@fenixright]

On initial overview of the game I was totally gonna skip this. But your points about this being a good easy intro game completely sold me. Especially considering how easy it’s been to sell ppl on Balatro by just telling them “oh it’s like poker”

[@blackjacktrial]

I like the concept, but I can't find the audience for it.... Either you get poker, and you'd rather play poker (sorry, poker just is more interesting than the Gang when everyone knows what they are doing. If people dont know how poker works, they don't like it because poker hands are confusing. So you need people who: understand poker, but hate playing it for money, but still kind of like playing it without money. That's just such a small cross-section of people to target - people who know how to play a game but have a problem with the part of the game most people who like the game like most?

[@ghyslainabel]

@@blackjacktrial I brought the Gang in my game group. We have few, if any, poker players, and yet the game was a hit. The game includes a 6 identical cards with all the hands ranked, so everyone can see where they are.

[@jj2024-themorethemerrier]

Spot on Matt. I’m a gamer, but I don’t actually know how to play poker, but being a gamer meant I could pick this up. But the perfect audience is the guys who know how to play poker but don’t play other games. I watched this exact scenario play out at a kids birthday party yesterday, as three ppl who don’t game sat down for this game with three people who do and they all picked it up and loved it. And as you said, as a person who loves games, that was wonderful. It took the three non-gamers that much closer to saying yes to a different type of game in the future 🎉🎉🎉

[@saveversus]

I was wondering when The Crew was going to spawn other the-game-you-know-but-cooperative games. Can't wait for cooperative Crazy 8's.

[@garretnarjes782]

Cooperative checkers!

[@ConManAU]

Based on the naming pattern it’ll be called “The Bunch” or “The Team”.

[@tyleryoung3158]

Wait for it, wait for it….. cooperative Chess. You could call it…. The Fight?

[@TehShrike]

I'm looking forward to "The Crew, but Lord Of The Rings" (The Fellowship of the Ring: Trick-Taking Game)

[@cwlesli]

Do you have any fours? Let's Fish!

[@fngkestrel]

As someone who is constantly trying to get my friends to play poker or board games with me, this feels like a great fit.

[@adriansolis5362]

I really did not see the SU&SD Recommends badge coming, but your justification for it makes so much sense. I happen to be a fan of the casual games as much as I am of the more heavyweight options (and inbetween) and that's because your potential audience is so much bigger. I've brought with me casual tabletop games on occasions that I knew there would be downtime and I never had a problem getting some games in especially when they were quick. And the feeling when a newcomer starts to ask for another round is just unbeatable. They may never break into even the next tier of complexity, but at least you brought them the joy of sitting around the table with some friends.

[@Kravian729]

Matt's hair and sweater is maximum cozy this video.

[@catherinepearce834]

Love your reviews Matt! This is another great one. I think I'll check this game out!

[@thinusconradie4297]

Aaaaaaaaauuuuuwwwwww. Thanks Matt. Now I feel like an appreciated member of the audience. Been with you guys for years.

[@Notester82]

This really *does* seem like an interesting take on poker, cutting the competitive betting and instead learning how to read others' hands! Also, thank you to whoever edited in the high five sounds in at 5:27, and I appreciated the "painting replacement" heist skit at 8:55. .u.

[@Ben-qy1sq]

This review started out as informative, then moved seamlessly into Matt Berry-style comedy and then ended up being incredibly sweet and even emotional towatds the end....SUSD have an amazing way of creating and re-inventing Art whilst simultaneously appearing to just simply review it...Matt Lees I salute you, somehow you have a way of providing genius time and time again. Hats off, very very cool 🎩❤😎

[@Scarxful]

I was literally laughing at my screen when you dropped the Allan Dad bit. So perfect, exactly what it feels like teaching a game to certain people... 😂

[@t1nytim]

As I was watching this, before you got to the 'twist', I was thinking the same thing, this both doesn't look like the game for me, but feels like the game I need. The Mind being another game, we've been able to pull at with many people and they all had a more satisfying evening out than the other people thought they were getting, and this feels like more of that.

[@DT-su6xf]

Our local group just got a copy, and it's been a hit. I think one table was playing round after round for most of the night! It's kind of a sad coda to this, however, about one of the designers passing away..

[@MrRubixscube]

that last third of the video was emotional, somehow..

[@tom44323]

7:25 As a matchstick person, I've always been a firm believer that if you need to add the adrenaline rush from the risk of losing something real and turn it from a game into gambling in order to make it fun, then that game was not a good game in the first place.

[@EssPea]

Poker is a bit like Root or any other zero-sum, hyper-interactive, hidden information game: Great to play if everyone is trying to win, annoying to play if not. I would argue poker even takes it to an extreme that if there are players not playing to win at the table it is not even a game anymore. That doesn't make it a bad game though, just one that takes the right group to play. If people at the table are invested and care about their matchsticks then there will be no issue, but if they are not there is no point in playing. That is where adding some stakes that gets everyone invested comes in. It doesn't even need to be money and it doesn't even need to be a lot if it is. It just needs to make people care about acting in their best interest (no matter how wide that range may be for a given person) because if they don't Poker doesn't have enough meat to hold interest without it like a Root or something else would have.

[@gloth]

but poker is not a good game. its boils down to simple percentages. bidding and bluffing is what makes it a good game, and when you bid with matchsticks most of the bluffing goes away/

[@blackjacktrial]

Sure, but I dont think trying to sell I Can't Believe It's Not Poker or Diet Poker-Pola to people who understand how poker works but don't like playing it... works. Maybe if you could introduce a gambling component to The Gang, it might work better, paradoxically. Something like a jackpot of money if you win (paid in by everyone), but your split gets worse if you are part of an alarm (eg. If you sequence 1324 on a round, 2 and 3 lose 5% of their cut each to 1 and 4.) If the Gang win, they divvy the jackpot based on the cut earned at the end. If they don't, the jackpot rolls over, and you might not be on the next heist. Yes, the best way to fix cooperative poker with no gambling may be to introduce gambling and co-optional (co-operative but with competition within the cooperation) elements. At that point, it all feels like reinventing a wheel to make a better spinny shape.

[@Arakus99]

@@gloth why would that make the bluffing go away?

[@gloth]

@@Arakus99 because people dont associate sticks or peanuts as having the same value as even a few cents. When you bluff by raising to 50% of what your opponent has in matches, it will not have the same psychological effect as compared to raising to 50% of what your opponent has in real money, and that will make people around the table more susceptible to calling most hands instead of thinking about the risk of the bluffer actually having cards that beat their good cards.

[@andreasmalits395]

This is perfect! A nice late night game for our office Christmas Party!

[@inotterwords6115]

I'm just going to say, I would be totally down if SU&SD started focusing a little more on finding good "gateway games". I'm on the hunt to be a better games ambassador, and part of that is keeping my ear to the ground on the very best accessible games.

[@Arakus99]

IIRC they used to have a sub series about those games called “the opener” - I think those are just labelled as normal susds now tho so idk how to find them

[@BryceChristiansen]

I appreciate reviews like this. This last year, I've been able to get our team to play games at lunch every day. Games like Sea Salt and Paper, Love Letter, Scout, Cat In The Box, Flip 7 and now The Gang are all great games that opened the gateway to enjoying games. This week one of my coworkers joined me at Mox Boarding house with my "gaming group" and we played Fromage. He did better than I did. All this to say, you need these games, some variety, and consistency in playing to help people feel comfortable enough to try the bigger games you like too. So please keep doing reviews for those types of games too.

[@shanebegovic8550]

I have a mob a work who love to play poker, and before halfway through I was thinking, man, this would go down so well with them. And then of course you go into exactly why it goes so well with non-board game player. Brilliant analysis, brilliant work. Well done Matt, you might be skeevy but I can't help but love you mate.

[@henningv]

Got this game yesterday as a gift. And I love this review!

[@simland]

We played this as a warm up to the more meaty game night game. A bunch of us used to play a lot of poker. This was very fun and our favorite part was before revealing cards, we would try to predict exactly what cards each player had.

[@liampoulton-king7479]

I feel like this game would be good to play if you've got a couple of people who haven't played poker before but want to come to a poker night. I feel like you could recreate the game mostly with just a regular deck of cards and some post it notes though.

[@ttoctam3]

That intro wasn't just Boosh-esque, it was Noel FIelding's Luxuy Comedy-esque. I love Matt so much.

[@ghyslainabel]

The best part: the card can be played left and right handed (card values in the 4 corners).

[@zackferleger1278]

How'd you get George Clooney to be in this review? 5 Stars

[@shutupandsitdown]

came free in a jar of nescafe

[@Kufunninapuh]

Crockinole does feel slightly bullet timey, doesn't it? It could work! CrockNeole?

[@Dutchmijk]

I really really love this game. Got the game after watching this video. it is starting to get fun with 4 and 5/6 it gets allot more even more fun.

[@leonardquirm]

The key difference between this and The Mind seems like this has a logic puzzle that gives you interesting, even slightly crunchy info to work with. The Mind fundamentally comes down to either counting seconds or guesswork, with no real space for anything in-between, which makes it - to my analytical, jaded, experienced-gamer eyes at least - an activity, rather than a game. This game's tracked bidding system between each reveal gives you material to build on and deduce with, even if in practice that deduction proves a bit too easy. I'd turn down a round of The Mind unless there were nothing else available, but I'd like to give this a go.

[@Haldered]

If the Mind is more of an activity, I still find it more a more fun social activity. It's a bit like a co-operative magic trick and the gateway into the concept of co-operative games and a good litmus test of whether a group actually gets along co-operatively. Its also great way of getting to know and connect to people psychologically. Although there are times when someone just isn't getting it, but so long as people are having fun with the experience, I can keep it going. Usually then someone in the group will get a copy themselves and play with other friends, usually theres just a couple who actually want to play every level but as something to fill the time and being able to socialise its great

[@angeloa9041]

Mr. Lees are you aware that Cool Ghosts was quoted by Jacob "The GOAT" Geller in his most recent video?

[@shutupandsitdown]

Nope I'll check it out, thanks!

[@TheWayfarerFamily]

Dude. Love your special brand of magic you bring to the channel. Brilliant Entertaining reviews and ALWAYS a laugh. 😂

[@julienakadai9382]

I know it’s just poker but it’s a nice gateway and good game to learn howto read people

[@alanwinchester744]

"six!" 😂😂😂😂

[@HeyImBode]

If the gang is like the crew, it's a reverse version of it for me. It's perfect for me too I want trick taking to be a few rounds, not an hour long affair I want poker to be a few rounds, not an evening long affair Also, nice skits matt

[@TheAlanairey]

Speaking as a Dad called Alan, I approve this game and review 😂

[@colecohen4581]

It's a stealth Opener

[@andrewwdavvid]

omg it's a "The Opener" jumpscare!

[@Sunshine11229]

I would love to have a "Games for Alan Dad" series. Please.

[@prughman]

"solo style jackin' it" .... ahhhhmazing!

[@markcalhoun8219]

This feel's a lot like Bang! The Dice Game which to me is the best version of the "werewolf" genre because while there's no crunchy decisions, everyone knows what dice are and setup takes like 30 seconds. Is it the BEST game? No. Is it the MOST INTERESTING game? No. But is it a game that consistently hits the table and generates fun? YES! I need games like this because I don't always want to "do a teach", especially not at a party where I might want to be mixing a drink or having a conversation that night too.

[@stephenspackman5573]

I only played poker once in my life. They said, you're just learning, we'll play for matchsticks. I won all the matches in the house. Because _I_ don't smoke, and _I_ was motivated.

[@MrBunnyWizard]

I havent bought a board game in months - but I pulled the trigger on this. Thanks!

[@a4rino]

I for one am delighted about the return of the high-pitched "SIX" bit

[@Preasured_Andy]

2024 appears to be the year of American Movies Matt, and I'm here for it.

[@SgtWicket]

Poker but everyone is trying to be honest about their hand.

[@Jescribano1]

Excelent script and editing! Thanks for the review!

[@snogurt]

Great review! High art with a seasoned simplicity 👏🏼 That third act surprise recommendation twist! Was also getting some old fashioned Regular Features vibes for some reason! 😆❤

[@Naeddyr]

The high-five foley had me cackling.

[@Quitchy]

Joke's on you, I play solo, every game I buy is just for me!

[@aztecjaguar6571]

Alan Dad is a star

[@danieltunnicliffe4453]

Matt Lees... You son of a birch I'm in! Great review and a great message. ❤

[@mechfan01]

😆@ Lil' Pitt and Big Clooney!

[@BenTinney]

Huh, I never knew what ER stood for, thanks for clearing that up

[@Epyo]

the facial acting at 13:30 is god tier

[@CareyMcDuff]

As for your closing remarks: well said, and, you're welcome. That is why we're here.

[@SandRabbit]

The real heist is that this is The Opener. I do not know about you... but I feel like getting.... extravagant.

[@wouldntyouliketoknow99]

Bold of you to assume that I know a single person with access to an attic

[@cardbaudit]

The excitement of finding a clever, fun and simple small box card game you know you'll be able to easily show your non gaming friends and family is a weird but very pleasing sort of buzz.

[@ribby9069]

This is a wonderful video!

[@psyhelpandhealth]

17:47 I hope you absolutely right! Go deeper into the concept of gaming itself!

[@88kylesperhour]

I already bought this, and you've now convinced me to retroactively buy it, which I already did, so thanks?

[@denycast]

Haha, me too!

[@aginpro]

i have noticed something funny, it's purely guesswork and emperical evidence but i think you guys have actually become a real influence in the norwegian boardgame market. i see so many bestseller lists in stores weirdly and specifically reflect your lists and the exact recomendations one will get froms earching boardgame recomendations where some of your videos will pop up first. i even see this in what games get localised, like watching the rise of Scout. there are proably other forces at play but i like the idea that you guys are puppetering norway

[@Ariamaki]

The energy of a cooperative tackle at sequencing your hands blindly reminds me a lot of Hanabi, which is a good energy for a game to have.

[@willhelm94]

Is there a way to do this with a traitor mechanism?

[@jon-athan-hall]

Hear hear! I am the manual reader in my no-longer-geographically-nearby game group. We remain dear friends. We gather at least annually for a dinner and contest of wits. I research and supply the prizes, since I'm the one with my finger on the pulse of the hobby. Your sentiment at the end of the video nailed my approach. My group has an assortment of player types (and player interest), and I'm always looking to achieve a prize pool that welcomes more than intimidates. Thanks for being real; it's about play.

[@eskervandewerken9431]

RIP Kory Heath :(

[@DrMcFly28]

Methinks Matt chose this game just so he can be Jorge Cloony for a bit

[@smiller-i9x]

or Rosemary Clooney on a bender ?

[@kylesmorgabord5592]

This is the first game I’ve given a 10/10 in a long while. Our first session we played it for hours and never got tired of it.

[@blackjacktrial]

I figured out the problem I have with this game - it's essentially 'what if poker was played like Bridge?' You really do need to like both of those games, and want to play something that requires the skills from both, and not want to play either of them instead. Without a love for (merely an appreciation of) Bridge, this game didnt do it for me. Maybe if I liked Bridge bidding, it works; but I can count the number of people I know who play both games at a high enough level to make this work with none of my hands. I like the concept - I just can't find the player who I would suggest to play it with (let alone four more).

[@Gamecube700]

My family was hesitant when I introduced the game, but really got into it after two rounds. It's been a hard sale to a lot of people in my experience but always enjoyable.

[@Haldered]

My only problem with this game as a gateway game is that... a lot of people I know find Poker more confusing than, say, the Mind. If somone at the table doesn't know *anything* about poker (which is surprisingly common), theres a lot to wrap your head around. The Mind, however, can be taught intuitively to anyone in 2 minutes, and demostrated VERY easily. It is, after all, just getting cards numbered 1-100 in order. There's still a barrier to many people which is about reading people's faces, and the chips in The Gang do help there a bit at giving some kind of objective measurement even if it doesn't turn out to be accurate. As someone who personally enjoys the reaction of teaching new people the Mind, its a bit more fun to me than the Gang, but they are certainly companion games so pick your poison, I guess

[@Gebohq]

I am curious if SU&SD thinks similarly about Hanabi, which is basically just cooperative Solitaire.

[@barkardes]

If you look at the online community around it your opinion might change. There is a lot of nuance about it once you talk with the people you play with before a game and agree on a set of principles to when and how to give clues. Do you know how Bridge works with it's "conventions"? Hanabi has the same and when you play with them then the possibilities open up a lot and there is a lot of interesting ways you can express information to other players

[@connormc4050]

My guess is that Hanabi is less accessible because of its scoring system. The Gang is win-or-lose, but get 21 points in Hanabi and you go "that's good, right? .. right?"

[@SigynsHope]

Who cares about scoring Hanabi. Either you win or bust. The rest is just gravy

[@janlapple5686]

If I recall correctly, way way back when, maybe 9 or 10 years ago, the then-susd team didn't care for hanabi so much. The reason they gave was that the rules about communication are not clear enough, leading to inadvertent rule bending.

[@Haldered]

I think Hanabi has just been out for too long, the aesthetics are a bit outdated, the visual design is not clear for many people with less than perfect sight or colourblindness, and these sorts of games tend not to have a ton of replay value once you've played it. That said, I've always found Hanabi more of a challenge to explain and getting people to only communicate in very specific ways is more difficult for many people and also just less *fun* in my experience. Its always extremely obvious who messed up which can be embarrassing for some people.

[@kolomahler]

RIP Kory. Thank you.

[@matthewholland2816]

✨ Literally Poker ✨

[@kunalspeaksnerd]

15:20 is just getting too real😭

[@ape-in-a-tree9701]

Thank you for the review mat! this game sounds fun! I just got into cooperative games. I got sky team and pandemic last week.

[@dudebromanguy]

The Gang as an "anyone can play this game immediatley" feels right to me. Relatedly, I think Cobra Paw does this for me. I can literally spill the components out and begin playing by saying "roll the dice and touch the matching domino. First to 6 wins."

[@dardinoz]

"This is a flashy presentation of ideas we have seen before. And it does not really flesh those ideas out in a meaningful way." Absolutely agree.

[@petergreg101]

When you play Matrix Crokinole will you pick the red pieces or the blue pieces?

[@hmsthunderchild128]

Great video very enjoyable

[@foxbomber5]

Sounding like the Spirt Of Jazz from Mighty Boosh in that intro.

[@GustavEEriksson]

Thank YOU Matt, for comedic genius and great reviews! ❤

[@JasonSmithArch]

I’ve had similar luck with getting my hearts and spades loving relatives to play the crew

[@smartkrafter2853]

I'm the kind of boardgame collector that thinks a lot about their players and tries to tailor their set of games to the crowd they play with. So I guess I really gotta get this game someday!

[@Haldered]

One thing that Matt didn't mention is that teaching it to people who have no idea about the basics of poker can be a bit more of a challenge than other games he's comparing it too.

[@123LuffyDMonkey]

me: so just make your own chips and dont buy this game? also me: but the shiny box!!! me: - No ! no shiny box also me: its so shi ...... me: stop you its just a normal deck of cards also me: but the card pictures are different, they are all spy like

[@alliterationking2029]

Honestly, $14 USD for a really nice deck of cards and some poker chips isn't terrible value. If it was $20+ USD... yeah... However, do I need more stuff on my shelf?

[@thamesandkosmosgamesuk]

Seriously though, that box is WELL shiny. And there are all the other cards in there to up or lessen the difficulty depending whether you win or lose the round.

[@Haldered]

Well you also need the chips, you can't use normal poker chips without drawing on them, plus all the extra cards and the variety of rules. It would be a lot of work to make a replica game and you'd probably spend just as much making the extra stuff for something with zero theming, even though the theme is thin, it still makes it more inviting to play

[@alliterationking2029]

@ Yeah, I made the comment before finish the video, definitely worth the $15

[@Dr_C_Smith]

Alan Dadd sounded a lot like Adrian Edmondson.

[@GoodEggGuy]

I've got The Crew and that's a wonderful gateway drug. Not sure The Gang is nearly as good, partly because The Crew ramps up the difficulty and complexity over multiple plays, so the same game can hold a new board gamer's hand for much longer without losing its interest or needing to panic them with "That was fun - now let's play something else" while they're still wary of the whole board gaming idea.

[@jknifgijdfui]

im imagining this game now as a social deduction game where one person has to intentionally throw

[@markoos88]

You know you're into the hobby too deep when you start saying to yourself "This doesn't look like a great board game to me but, my god, this is a AAA+++ piece of board game criticism and content."

[@pokefrosch617]

Just played it with my kids tonight. They really enjoyed it.