Lunch Money From Atlas Games

Lunch Money
From Atlas Games

Lunch Money is an exciting, fast-paced, multi-player card game that combines dark, psychological images with the raw dynamics of a merciless street fight. One set is a complete game that supports 2-4 players. Additional sets may be combined to accomodate even more players!

Product Details

• Brand: Atlas
• Model: 1100
• Dimensions: 3.30" h x .90" w x 5.30" l, 1.55 pounds

Features

• Simulates being little girls running around the playground beating up each other and stealing their lunch money
• Beat each other senseless with cards like 'Poke in the Eye', 'Uppercut', and 'Humiliation.'
• Not for the weak willed
• Game is mean
• Last player still standing wins.

Customer Reviews
Fast. Fun. Violent.
This is pretty much a perfect game. Easy to learn, but with enough complications that a bit of strategy does get involved. Fast action and no set-up, so that you can easily just whip out your cards and play a few rounds when you are in the mood. It has a funny premise, with schoolgirls punching it out for lunch money, but what really sets this game apart is the artwork. The dark, gothic pictures and quotes elevate a fun game to something much, much cooler.

Game play is simple, with each person having a set number of "life", and then attack cards doing a set amount of "damage" which is subtracted from the life counters. From there, there are cards to block as well as various combinations that can be done. One thing I really like about this game is that non-gamers are usually happy to jump in and play. It's a great party game, although you can't have two many players unless you own multiple decks.

I have owned the same set of "Lunch Money" for probably about 10 years now, and I still enjoy playing it. Like most games you play for a long time, I have adjusted a few rules and tossed out a few cards that didn't add to game play. I recently picked up the booster set, Sticks & Stones, which added fun new elements and got me excited to play again. I am interested to try out the other release, Beer Money , which is a similar game to "Lunch Money" but not compatible like "Sticks and Stones".

Desperately needs an update.
Lunch Money is about ten years old. It is in desperate need of an overhaul. This game is sorta fun, but it gets old a little fast. The art is gothic and pretty photography, with little witty (or silly) puns and such. Some will make players laugh and others will make them groan.

The rules can be found pretty much anywhere, but basically you're a schoolgirl (I guess you can pretend to be a ninja or whatever if ya want) beating up other schoolgirls for their.. Lunch Money. Most cards have a number value printed, and they cause that number in damage to an opponent. There are a few life gaining cards, and when attacked, a player can play dodge or block cards to avoid taking damage. Some cards combo with others for more damage or to counter damage and instead cause the attacker to slip up and get "hurt".

That's pretty much the good on this game. As old as it is, the faint colored hues (4 colors for 4 categories of cards, in antique yellow, blue, orange, and red hues basiccally) can sometimes be mistaken for another color. Why the publisher doesn't give a solid border (at the very least) around each card, I don't get.

After that, the confusion at teaching a new player this game can be frustrating. I tried teaching it to a friend, and his being colorblind lead to us putting it back in frustration. The constant consultation with the rules (for newbies and myself, as I've not played in a couple of years) wasn't fun. If you play regularly, the rules should pose no problems, but for noobs and returners, it's not fun AT ALL.

Additionally, 90% of the game's problems would be solved with rules printed somewhere (whether a text block or sort of circling the border, either mechanic would be fine) on each card. I decided to take a marker to my deck and color code the borders with a solid color for quick reference on whether its an attack defense special card or weapon, and after the marker dried, I wrote in what each card does along the border.

That's about the only way to really play this game. Not worth buying at all unless you're absolutely tired of other standalone (non collectible) card games.

A fun game, if you can get your friends to play it.
Lunch Money is a card game which is quite enjoyable to play, once you become familiar with the rules. While some card games have many of the rules on the cards (see most Steve Jackson games for example), you'll need to know the rules well to play these game smoothly. Fortunately, they aren't terribly complicated and are actually quite intuitive, as the game imitates a street fight very well and the rules fit the moves perfectly. This game is also very quick to play, which is a welcome change from the full hour many card games require. In the two-player games I played, only a few minutes were needed for each game.

The problem I encountered was convincing additional people to join us. You see, this game is extremely creepy, and whether you'll find it humorous or terrifying depends on your personality. The cards consist mostly of monochrome images of little threatening girls, along with a flavorful quote. Some people will jump right in, but others will stay away. Other than this, however, the game is quite enjoyable and highly recommended.


Buy Lunch Money From Atlas Games