Dixit
Every picture tells a story – but what story will your picture tell?
Dixit is the lovingly illustrated game of creative guesswork, where your imagination unlocks the tale. In this award-winning board game, players will use the beautiful imagery on their cards to bluff their opponents and guess which image matches the story. Guessing right is only half the battle – to really succeed, you’ll have to get your friends to decide that your card tells the story!
Every turn, the storyteller will call out a short phrase or word to match the image on his card. Then each player will choose the card that most closely matches that phrase, and then everyone must guess which card the storyteller saw when he invented his brief tale. Correctly guess the storyteller’s card, and you’ll move ahead. Convince everyone else that your card is best, and you’ll do even better.
Dixit is a wonderfully simple game, playable by nearly anyone with whom you share a common language. With a fantastic range of beautiful illustrations and rules that can be understood by children and adults alike, Dixit will appeal to anyone with an imagination. It’s no surprise that Dixit won the Spiel de Jahres award for game design in 2010. It is brilliant and simple, beautiful and imaginative, and fun for all.
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Dixit puts a refreshing spin on the party game genre. A game of creative storytelling that is bound to make laughs, groans, and memories. Players try to be the best storyteller by winning the most points for victory.
PROS:
Simple to learn
Wonderful artwork
Stretches the imagination
Big easy to handle cards and good components
CONS:
Not sure of the replay value with multiple plays with the same game group
GAMEPLAY:
The game is super easy to learn. Each player has a hand of 6 cards of wonderful pictures, and each player takes a turn being the storyteller. The storyteller describes one of his or her cards with a word or phrase or song, then everyone pics a card from their hand to match the storyteller’s description. Everyone lays their cards down and gives them to the storyteller to shuffle, who then turns the cards over for everyone to see. Each player picks which card they think fits the description by placing their token by it. If everyone guesses wrong or guesses right, they score 2 points and the storyteller gets zero points. However, if this doesn’t happen, then the storyteller gets three points for the card being guessed as well as the correct guesser. If someone guesses another person’s card, then that other person gets one point. The game proceeds with everyone drawing back up to six until the deck is empty or thirty points are scored. Thus ending the game.
STRATEGY:
There is no clear cut strategy other than possibly knowing your players. The hardest part is finding that fine line of not giving the card totally away as the teller, yet also making sure someone can guess your card. Makes it very hard at times depending on the card. I think it would get harder the more you play with the same people, because the more each player learns each other’s style of creativity for the same card. It’s definitely a game where even some children can excel, because they have just as much chance as other people at guessing a card right.
CONCLUSION:
Dixit really makes for a memorable game that can keep you talking long after it’s played. The funny phrases and stories people come up with can make for some good laughs and good times. My family really has enjoyed playing this game, so I highly recommend it for family gamers. Social gamers and casual gamers should also get a kick out of the game based on its interaction and ease of learning. Strategy gamers and power gamers may not find this to their tastes given it’s lightness and lack of depth. Avid gamers may find it appealing just for the sheer novelty of this game’s design. If you looking for a real interesting party game, you can’t go wrong with Dixit.
One of the problems with party games in recent years is that many of them, for better or worse, tend to riff off the extremely successful Apples to Apples formula. Sadly this tends to leave the market full of very same same uninspired party games.
Now, 2010 Spiel des Jahres winner Dixit does, in spirit, tread down this well worn path but in Dixit’s case it’s hard to hold it against the team that put this wonderful game together. It’s just done with such unique flair and style that it can easily stand on its own. Where other games trudge down the same tired path, perhaps imagining it’s a yellow brick road, Dixit skips along with wanton joy leaving a trail of flowers and colour in its wake (yet somehow tinged with a sense of foreboding gloom…)
Okay, so the basic idea of the game is that everyone has a hand of gorgeously illustrated cards. One player, the “storyteller”, is going to choose one of their cards and say a word or phrase which communicates something of its identity (but not too much). Other players then choose one of their own cards with similarities to the storyteller’s phrase in the hope of throwing off their competition. Cards are shuffled, laid out and players choose which one they believe was the story teller’s. Everyone scores points for correctly guessing the original card or fooling other players with their own card. The storyteller will score points if some people, but not everyone, correctly identifies their card. Score is then kept by jumping small wooden rabbits around a stone path. That’s right. Rabbits around a path.
Okay, so maybe it isn’t that close to the Apples to Apples formula (certainly not as close as others imitate) but it has the feel and it’s a comparison that is often made. What makes Dixit stand out on its own however is the style that the game carries and with all due respect to designer Jean-Louis Roubira, for me it’s Marie Cardouat’s outstanding art on the 84 over-sized cards that steals the show for Dixit. Her illustrations are amazing with their ability to convey a certain melancholy gloom while using so much joyous colour at the same time. And what amazes me is their ability to reveal more and more details and interpretations even after many, many plays.
The rest of the production is also top-grade. Even the rabbits and their scoring path, which my first instinct says makes no sense, is actually perfect. They just mesh nicely with joy of the art and the social play experience and in their own way actually do make sense.
With all of the details and possible interpretations possible with each card there is a good degree of replayability. However with only 84 cards it is possible that some players will tire and become frustrated with the same art over and over. Here the highly recommended “Dixit 2″ comes to the rescue with 84 more cards which mix seamlessly with the originals. Future expansions are sure to bolster this number too. If anything the biggest challenge to Dixit’s replay value is that the game kind of becomes more difficult each time you play as you are forced to invent new clues to cards you have previously used. Replay will certainly push your creative muscles.
So is this wonderful award winning game for everyone? Well, probably not. At the end of the day it is a party game and if party games just aren’t your thing then this one probably still won’t work for you. Also there is a certain pressure that comes along with being the storyteller. Many people are going to spend all of their time between turns desperately looking at their cards trying to come up with something, anything to say. For some people that experience just won’t be fun.
For everyone else though you should give Dixit a try. It actually isn’t Apples to Apples. It’s its own unique wonderful thing that really should be experienced.
I have played Dixit many times and with different groups of people and it is still very enjoyable for me, even after playing with the same cards over and over again.
The rules: the players are each dealt six beautifully illustrated cards and they take turns in becoming the “narrator”. The narrator picks a card from their hand, places it face down on the table and says a hint that describes the card in some way. The other players then choose a card from their hands that can be described by the narrator’s hint in the best possible way and place them face down as well. The narrator then shuffles all the cards and reveals them. The other players must now secretly vote which card they think belongs to the narrator. If all or none of the players find the narrator’s card, the narrator gets no points. Therefore, the narrator should use hints that do not directly describe the card, but should not be very vague either. The players who found the correct card get points, while extra points are awarded to those whose card was incorrectly voted as the narrator’s card.
The most entertaining moments of the game in my groups are when someone tries to justify how the card they picked has a connection to the narrator’s hint, when there clearly is none. This game needs lots of creativity and the ability to see through the narrator’s hints, so it may not be a good choice for people lacking these skills. Another problem is that the game may become stale and boring after playing many times with the same group. However, this can be solved simply by adding one or more of the expansions, thus increasing the number of cards. Houserules may also extend the game’s life. For example, we used a rule where the hints used must be in some way connected to a movie.
To conclude, I would like to mention something that happened to me recently: I was with a few friends who actually hate playing boardgames and at some point, I mentioned Dixit. Although at first everyone moaned about not wanting to play games, in the end they reluctantly agreed to try it, “maybe for 10 minutes” as someone said. We ended up playing from 9pm to 4am!
The Basics:
o Ages 3+ (box suggests 8+…don’t you believe it)
o Takes 3 to 6 players
o About 30 minutes to play
Geek Skills:
o Active Listening & Communication
o Logical & Critical Decision Making
Learning Curve:
o Child – Easy
o Adult – Easy
Theme & Narrative:
o Anything you can imagine…
Endorsements:
o Gamer Geek approved!
o Parent Geek approved!
o Child Geek approved!
Overview
In Dixit, players take turns telling a short story, a description, or even making a sound based on colorful illustrations. This games requires all the players to listen, communicate, be imaginative, and have their wit at the ready.
The game is comprised of 84 colorful and beautifully illustrated cards that depict whimsical and magical places and things, a small wooden “Bunny” for each players that is used to keep score, numbered tiles 1 though 6 for placing votes, and a built-in-the-box score track. All the game components are of high quality and sturdy ensuring hours of great game play for your little geeks, friends, and you.
The illustrated cards are beautiful to look at, which is fantastic, considering they are at the heart of the action. There is nothing to read on these cards which makes it a wonderful game your young little geeks can play, too. Each card shows a whimsical illustration with no context to what is on the card or anything you might consider “descriptive”. Defining the context and what is being shown on the card is the player’s job, but more on that in a moment.
The built-in-the-box score track and the “Bunny” player pieces are also colorful. In fact, even the vote markers are colorful. Shoot, everything is just “beautiful” about this game. The art design was spot on with every aspect of the game, including the packaging . The only bland thing about the game is the single, two-sided instructions, but even that is illustrated!
To set up the game, shuffle the big deck of cards and deal each player 6, face down. Each player selects a “Bunny” player pieces and takes 6 vote tiles that match their “Bunny” colorful. The “Bunny” player pieces are placed on the score track on the spot marked “0″ and the first player is selected. You are now ready to play Dixit!
In this game, all the players participate. There is no down time, but the roles of the players shift. Depending on the role the player has, the goal of their turn is different. There are only two roles, which will make it easy to remember and to play. The roles are “Storyteller” and “Everyone Else”. See? Easy to remember.
If the player is the Storyteller, they look at their cards and think of a single sentence, a sound, a quote from a poem, movie title, or whatever they can think of that would describe one of their cards. This is a little more complex than I am making it sound. First, the illustrations do not provide the player with any clues about what the illustration is about. This is intentional because the Storyteller must not only use their imagination to craft a description, but their description must also not be so descriptive as to actually make it easy to identify the card. Essentially, the Storyteller must balance their description between explicative and purposely misleading. The reason for this will be clear when it comes times to score points.
Once the Storyteller selects a card and crafts a description, they place their card face down in front of them and say the description out loud to all the other players. Everyone else in the game must listen carefully to what the Storyteller says and then select one of their cards from their hand that they think contains an illustration that matches or supports the Storyteller’s description. Once they have selected the card, they place it face down on top of the Storyteller’s card.
After all the players have placed a card on the pile, the Storyteller collects the cards, shuffles them, and places them in a line in front for all the players to see. The first card placed is number 1, next is number 2, and so on until all the cards are played. The other players now look at all the other cards and do their best to determine which card is the Storyteller’s. When they think they have figured it out, they select the vote tile that has the number that matches the card they want to vote on and then place the tile in front of them, number side down.
Once all the players have placed their vote tile, they are all flipped and placed on their corresponding cards (vote tile “1″ goes on card “number 1″, and so on). The Storyteller reveals which card was the “real card” and points are scored.
o If all the players voted for the Storyteller card, or if none of the players voted for it, everyone except the Storyteller is awarded 2 points. This goes back to what I said previously about the Storyteller being required to balance their description between explicative and purposely misleading. If they described it too well, all the players would easily select it. If they described it so vaguely as to not really be of any help, then no one might select it.
o In all other cases, the Storyteller is awarded 3 points as do any player who voted for the Storyteller card.
o Additionally, each player scores 1 point for each vote placed on their card.
After the points are totaled, the “Bunny” player pieces are moved that many spaces ahead on the score track. All the cards played are collected and set aside. One new card is dealt to all the players for a maximum of 6 cards in their hand. Lastly, the role of the Storyteller is passed to the next player. A new round is ready to begin.
The game continues until the very last card is drawn and the players are unable to maintain 6 cards in their hand. The winner of the game is the player who has collected the most points.
Final Word
Dixit is one of those rare games that can be played with a mixed age and skill group with little to no difficulty. It is because of this that this game is a big hit in my family. Whenever we have guests over with kids (or even without kids), Dixit makes it to the table. This is also a great game for the non-gamers in your life. The rules are not complex, there isn’t a high level of difficulty, and all that anyone really needs to play is good listening skills and an imagination.
Another benefit of this game is the ability to see how my little geeks interpret stories and images. Many times over, I have been blown away with some of the very imaginative stories or how they intrepidity the stories told to them. What we do when we play (with just the family), is go through each of the cards after they have been played which allows the players to describe what they were thinking. In some cases, this is even more entertaining than the actual game. Hearing my kids tell the story as they understood, it is very insightful and somewhat magical. The imaginative mind of a child is truly incredible.
But the magic of Dixit doesn’t end there. This game is also very playable in any language. Even sign language. Children and adults with speech and hearing difficulties can join right in the fun. Teachers and educators can use this game to stimulate short story writing, impromtu speech practice, or as a psychology experiment to demonstrate how people think based on what they hear. Truly fantastic.
Have I sold you on the game yet?
‘Dixit’ is a game with light rules that nonetheless manages to tap deep aspects of social cognition. If you are a person who revels in acts of interpretation, who enjoys reading people as much as exploring layers of subtext in literature and the visual arts, then chances are you will appreciate the unique invitation that ‘Dixit’ represents. It is an invitation to play with meaning.
Players are dealt hands of cards, with each card bearing a unique complex image. There are two basic roles for players. In the primary role, you will be asked to select a card from your hand (unbeknownst to other players) and use it to create an utterance that “matches” the image. That’s right, any utterance. You can recite the whole Gettysburg Address (in Klingon, if you wish); you can hum a few bars of ‘Ain’t Misbehavin’; or you can issue a monosyllabic grunt. But you should know that for whatever utterance you do make, the other players, in keeping with their secondary role, will secretly choose one image from their own hands that they feel best matches your “hint”. Then you will gather the cards bearing their selections, shuffle them, and spread them out onto the table such that your own card is included amongst the many foils.
After scrutinizing the the images, the other players will then simultaneously indicate which on display is the “true” inspiration of your utterance. Scoring is structured so that you are rewarded for offering clever clues–meaning an utterance that is neither too hard nor too easy to interpret. (If either everyone or no one chooses your card, you get bupkis.) In their secondary roles, other players will score points if they correctly interpret your utterance, and/or if they manage to deceive other players into choosing *their* foil.
Similar metacognitive “voting” mechanisms have been used before. But what makes ‘Dixit’ tick–and in an astonishingly novel way–is the artwork on the cards. Simply put, ‘Dixit’ features the most brilliantly evocative art that I’ve encountered in any game, bar none. Marie Cardouat has graced the game with hundreds of little expressionist gems that look as if they were pulled from the pages of a Jungian fairy tale. In terms of style, the illustrations are at times childlike, dreamlike, and often are subtly unsettling. Like imagery on Tarot cards, Cardouat’s compositions beg to be puzzled over. And in this capacity, they preserve the most crucial functionality of the game.
Ultimately, what makes the ‘Dixit’ worth returning to again and again, is its easy enchantment, not only with respect to what is “seen” in the cards, but in the predictions you are asked to make about others’ interpretations, and vice versa. The poetry cuts both ways, as you are both the interpreter and a text that is being interpreted. This also means that the tenor of the game is highly influenced by the personality of the individuals playing it. Depending on the group, your game may be punctuated by introspective “Aha’s” or by raucous laughter. Or both. To me, this is not just the sign of a great party game, but of a great game period.
… follow any of them. It’s Time for some creativity and story telling! I was interested in this game because of it’s beautiful artwork but I really could not say if that game was something for me.
Then Will Wheaton played it on his marvelous show Tabletop on youtube and the “Wheaton-Effect” got me. I bought the game immediately. So if you don’t want to be forced to buy Dixit just because you watched Will Wheaton’s incredible fun Tabletop video you just can read my review and hope that I’ll rate it average. (by the way: No. I won’t! I love this game!)
Components:
The game comes in a box which at the same time is the game board for counting your points. In addition there are six cardboard tokens and one nice colored wooden rabbit for each player. The only other thing that comes in the box is a package of 84 tremendously beautiful illustrated cards. These oversized cards are the centerpiece of the game and the pictures on them are colorful, creative and ambiguous. Why ambiguous? Let’s see while discussing gameplay.
Gameplay:
Each player gets a bunch of cards to their hand and the one player goes first. He then chooses one card in his hand and tries to describe it somehow. Maybe with a word, a sound, a sentence or a gesture. There are no restrictions. But he should only describe it vaguely. Then he puts it face down on the table. Every other player then chooses a card from their hands which matches the description as good as possible and put it on top of the first players card. The cards get shuffled up and everybody but the first player try to guess the original card. The first player doesn’t get points when everybody guessed his card or nobody guessed his card. In every other case he gets points for each guess on his card. Every other player gets points for other players who guessed their card.
So altogether Dixit is a game of creativity and seeing things in pictures not everybody sees or everybody sees different. And that’s when we come back to the ambiguousness of the cards. There are a lot of cards with pictures that can mean everything. For example: On one picture someone will see an old tree. But wait … the tree has a face .. and arms … and holds flowers in his hands … and looks a little bit like aunt Maggie or uncle Steven (or both .. who knows). So every card can be used with multiple stories behind it and description given. Your task is to find the right one for your cards to get the most points.
Replay Value:
The replayability is quite high because the pictures deliver the potential for so many stories. But maybe when playing with the same group over and over again it can get to this point where creativity is fading and you don’t want to use an already used description again. But for that there are a few expansions available with a lot of new pictures.
Pros:
- beautiful illustrated cards
- very easy to learn (you can explain the whole rules in about 1 minute)
- great use of creativity and storytelling without scaring off the more shy players
Cons:
- replayability with the same group can weaken after a certain time
Last Words:
I played this game a few times with my family and they are not really into gaming that much. But they loved it and even wanted to play it again and again. But it’s equally fitting for every gaming group. So if you are searching for an easy to learn game … take this one. I highly recommend it. And if you are not convinced by now … go and watch the Dixit episode of Will Wheaton’s Tabletop!
Best wishes,
Blaine101
Often, I will finish playing a new game and find myself wanting to try it out again. Maybe there are strategies I began to see that I needed to flesh out, or maybe I didn’t get a good enough impression of one of the mechanics. The game is good, but I need another go-round.
Dixit, on the other hand, we didn’t want to stop playing. Ever. Someone reached thirty points, and we just kept going around the circle. The experience was beautiful and captivating and intelligent and interesting and amazing and I can’t recommend it enough.
Dixit is very similar to games like Balderdash or Apples to Apples, but puts a clever and interesting twist to each of them. Whereas both Balderdash and Apples to Apples are focused on the written word, Dixit is based on a deck of cards covered in outstanding artwork, and a spoken phrase or word or emotion. The Storyteller chooses one of the cards in their hand, places it face down on the table, and then says a phrase out loud (I recall “Treguna, Makoidees, Trecorum, Sadis Dee!” was one last night!) and each player then chooses one of their own cards that could fit the same phrase.
The phrase is extremely important, and most of the fun of the game. It must be enough of a hint that someone picks up on it, but not everyone. Each player picks the card they believe fits the phrase best, and the Storyteller scores points based on how many people pick theirs. However, if EVERYONE picks it, or if NO ONE picks it, the Storyteller gets no points and everyone else gets two.
So, imagine that on your turn as the Storyteller, you have a hand of five cards, each a single piece of artwork, and your goal is to create a phrase that will allow a few of the people at the table to guess which card is yours, but not everyone. It requires you to be clever and subtle and creative. There are few games I could name that allow for this sort of game play.
I loved playing this game, and I was happily surprised at every new card I drew. The cards are beautifully done, and I’m extremely happy with the construction of the game in general.
My only regret is that once I learn all the cards, some of this “new car” feeling might be lost. You’ll understand if you’ve ever finished all the decks in Apples to Apples. However, I expect that this will take games and games for me to remember them all, and I hope for a series of amazing experiences until then.
This game is perfect for anyone who enjoys Apples to Apples or Balderdash or Wits and Wagers, or any of that style of game. Furthermore, it’s perfect for anyone who loves looking at artwork and thinking about the story of all the characters in the piece leading up to this one compelling and captivating moment.
I think that means it’s perfect for everyone.
When I first heard about Dixit, I wasn’t very impressed. It didn’t sound like it would be fun, and I didn’t see how the scoring would make sense, since “obviously” everyone would choose the card put down by the storyteller.
I am very pleased to have been so very very wrong. This game is a lot of fun. It makes you think in different ways (at least it makes me think differently). Playing with different groups shows how great of a design this game has. I’ve played with half-a-dozen different groups, and have never heard the same clue for the same card. I’m again and again amazed at how people think, and what they pick up on. I’m still noticing things I haven’t seen before.
I have yet to play this with someone who did not want to play again. I’ve given it as a gift a few times now, and it’s always been a hit. What really sold me on this being a great design is that halfway through the game, people don’t care about their score, they just want to play and enjoy it. By the end, it turns out I wasted time trying to keep score, since everyone wants to play again.
This is a great “casual” game that appeals to a wide number of people, especially non-gamers. I play it with groups where I would play Telestrations, or more classical games like Uno, or Pit.
I was wrong; Dixit is very right!
Basic Idea: You’re a story teller who’s job it is to describe a piece of artwork in such a way that only the select few will understand. You can’t be too obtuse or too blatant, but rather, as the story goes, just right.
Game Play: Each player is given a hand of cards with beautiful and surreal artwork on them. In each round of the game, a story teller is chosen (usually proceeding clockwise, but can also be anyone’s whose ready). The story teller chooses one of his/her cards and places in face in front of them. Using anywhere from one word to a sentence, the story teller must describe their chosen card. Each other player then chooses a card from their hand that “matches” the description as closely as possible, and places it with the story teller’s card. The story teller then mixes up all the cards and places them face up on the table. Each player (other then the story teller) does their best to figure out which card the story teller was describing, and secretly votes for it. When all the votes have been cast, the story teller reveals his/her card and the round is scored. The story teller only gets points if some of the player guessed correctly. If all or none of the players guessed right, then everyone gets points except the story teller. The idea is to describe the card in a way that’s cunning enough, that not every one gets it, but with enough hints that someone will. Players also get points if others voted for their card instead of the story tellers. Play continues until someone scores 30 points, or for as long as you want to play.
Thoughts: Dixit is a beautiful game. The illustrations are amazing and you spend half of the time wondering if you want to play a card or frame it. The scoring pieces are cute (various colored bunnies) and using the box as a scoring area is a neat idea, but almost every time I’ve played this game, our group has decided to keep playing, even after someone wins, so the scores seem almost unneeded. I get the most satisfaction in this game with coming up with hints. This is a great party game and a great game to play with non-gamers and gamers alike.
Overview: Dixit is a party game in which 3 to 6 players use creativity and psychology to communicate through intricately illustrated cards.
Gameplay: Each player receives a hand of cards portraying a myriad of full-color illustrations. They contain many fairy tale and storybook inspiring images with many details. Players take turns being the “Storyteller”. They select a card, placing it face down on the table, and say a word or phrase about it. The other players add a card from their hand that they feel matches the phrase as a “bluff”. All the cards are shuffled and placed face up on the table. Everyone votes on which card they think was the Storyteller’s.
Players receive points by choosing the original image and by having their bluff image selected. The Storyteller scores by having some, but not all, players select his image. This dynamic is what creates the psychology of the game. The Storyteller needs to use his knowledge of the other players to choose phrases and images which will only be correctly translated by at least one, thus keeping him from being too obvious and too vague simultaneously.
Everyone takes a few turns as the Storyteller until the draw deck is depleted, which typically takes less than an hour. The player with the highest score wins.
Pros:
- The illustrations contain many details with some crossover themes, thus enabling decoys to be chosen easily.
- The rules are short and easy to learn, making this accessible to all ages and perfect for casual gatherings.
Cons:
- The relatively small pool of cards can limit the replay value of the game involving the same group of players.
- Score is kept track by moving wooden bunny tokens around a numbered track printed on the game box. Bumping this knocks the markers over and hinders accuracy.
Historical Figure/ Fictional Character I’d Most Like to Play Against: Jim Morrison
Dixit will challenge your imagination as you strive to understand your opponents’. It provides fast, lighthearted fun which can be added to almost any occasion.