Wrath, Greed and Gluttony

# of Players: 2
Time: 10-30 mins
Age 14+
Game Type: Card/Engine Building
Gamer Type: Casual to Moderat

Story

The story of the game is quite simple. You are trying to achieve dominance over your opponent, while facing your own weaknesses and contributing to theirs. Likewise, your opponent is trying to cause you to fall victim to your weaknesses while they try to overcome theirs. The game is a battle royal on the metaphysical plain, which leads to an interesting feel for the game. This earns SINS a 6 out of 10 for the story.

Art

As with all card games, this game lives and dies by its artwork. The artwork is dark (no one really expects a game about sin to be full of puppies and rainbows). The card art matches the flavor text and the card abilities quite well, which is always a nice tie in. The boxes are works of art, each featuring a card face from the game. They are standard card sized so they are easy to store. The artwork really adds to the felling of the game, earning the game 7 out of 10 for artwork.

Mechanics and Strategy

Card game mechanics scores are about how the designers use the limited resources of a deck of cards as a vehicle for the game. SINS does quite well in this category. Cards act as counters, markers, and of course the bulk of the game. This makes SINS a pure card game. Players have a simple matching system to “attack” their opponent, which makes this easier to learn than many of the new card games on the market.

Simple does not mean without nuance. Players can build an excellent strategy in this game. Offense and defense are well represented in this game, so we have a strong base score for strategy. This game thrives around engine building. If you build your deck correctly around the vices you intend to use, then you have a strong pathway to winning the game. This earns the game 5.5 out to 10 for mechanics and 7 out of 10 for strategy.

Novelty

SINS is a pure card game, so this is a tough fight for them. They earn a solid 5.5 for novelty. The integration of the mechanics in the game in interesting, counter cards and marker cards are useful and easy to store. The theme of the game is a classic one. However, you do not really feel like a good guy as you force your enemy into the pits of despair and dominate them. In some ways this is unique, in others it is morally ambiguous. Regardless, SINS is still a fun game.

Overall

SINS has all of the elements of a great game in a small package. The subject matter may be a little dark for casual play with friends or during breaks at work. One of the best features of the game is that each “deck” has unique cards that highlight the vice that the deck is built around. The game itself has a great theme that people need to overcome their weaknesses.

It does feel weird trying to force your opponent to confront theirs before they are ready, but a game has to have conflict. The deck building in the game uses a rotating market structure, which is really fun. This is a cool little game if you are ready to challenge your own weaknesses. Total score 31 out of 50.

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Christopher W Smithmyer

Dr. Christopher Smithmyer is a writer for NRN, the Vice President of International Affairs at Brav Online Conflict Management, and an Adjunct Professor of MBA Business at Doane University. He is also part of the founding team at BlackWalletLTD, one of the leaders in stable coin 2.0 ecosystem maintenance. Dr. Smithmyer’s focus is international business and finance, along with reviews of board games, weapons platforms, and survival items.

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