I come from a family that loves to play games. Whether it was charades on vacation, crazy eights and hearts when my grandparents visited, or Monopoly property disputes that lasted late into the night, there was a game for any occasion. Unfortunately, growing up, moving out, and attending college crowded my life with responsibility, and I lost not only my competition (my family) but the time to pay games. It wasn’t until COVID sequestered my roommates and me indoors that we fell into a gaming habit with one another, and it was then that I discovered Gamewright’s Sushi Go!
I was introduced to Sushi Go! by friends who already knew how to play, yet the game’s mechanic of passing and discarding cards was easy to pick up. The goal of this passing and selecting is to build the hand with the highest point value. And have I mentioned that this is all sushi-themed? Nigiri cards triple in value when paired with a wasabi card, dumplings increase in value exponentially as you add more to your hand, and the player who hoards the most maki rolls is rewarded with a hefty sum of points at the end of the round. As mouth-wateringly complex as all this sounds, the gameplay is deliciously intuitive. Within one round, I had picked up the game’s fast-paced rhythm, and within a few more I was holding my own against seasoned card-sharps. Sushi Go’s speed means that even if you’re losing right now, another round will be coming so soon that you always feel like you have a shot at redemption, and the plethora of possible hands means no one strategy dominates – it’s anyone’s game.
I found Sushi Go! Before I came to work at JANM, but it made complete sense to see it on the store’s shelves. It has become, at least for me, ubiquitous – played not only by my roommates and I, but by friends and coworkers, even my family back home has played a hand or two, not to mention the many orders for the game we’ve fulfilled here at JANM. When the holidays came around, I even bought a couple tins myself, to spread the Sushi Go-spel even further. As children, college students, and adults have all sung the praises of Sushi Go to me equally, it truly is a game for kids of all ages. For those looking to pick up a new game, or to rediscover the magic of game night, I highly recommend Sushi Go!
Moses Mascuch
Author