The Sensu card game asks you to construct beautiful Japanese fans
It’s so simple, how come we didn’t think of it before? We even talk about fanning out your cards. In hot weather, you may even use a hand of cards to fan yourself or your favourite opponent. Sensu is a game consisting of cards with different values that asks you to construct – you guessed it – beautiful Japanese fans. The game was created for the 2023 Gioco Inedito competition, an Italian competition for unpublished game proposals. The prize was a small print run. A few tweaks later and it’s back for a full run of the game. And it is wonderful.
Sensu is quick to learn and simple to play. I think the numbers involved might be a turn off for those who feel “being bad at maths” is part of their personality, but I’d like to think some of them could be won over by how stunning the game looks. The cards are intensely good quality with gold foil pieces, embossing, bright colours and lovely fan designs. But don’t think I’m talking about how it looks because there’s nothing to say about the game. You might be drawn in by how gorgeous it is, but you’ll be staying for how well it plays.
Cards come in five colours, and various numbers. On a turn, players can draw from the deck or any player’s discard pile. When you have a set of cards in your hand that adds up to 15, you can play them. You can redeem the card with the most sticks, which means you play them in front of you. If you have played two cards of the same number or colour, you earn the right to redeem one or, if you’ve done both, two of the cards with the fewest sticks. Ultimately, you are aiming to make fans with seven sticks, one in each colour. There’s a base version of the game and an advanced version with extra abilities on cards.
It’s lovely to have the base version to get you used to the idea of how to collect cards and build fans. This works nicely on its own as a slightly easier game. The advanced mode doesn’t take too long to learn, but it certainly multiplies the options and strategy you can deploy. We played with two players, and the option to draw from someone else’s draw pile is nice. As with Arboretum (another stunning, colourful card game), it adds another aspect to how you can manipulate your hand. Even if you give your opponent exactly what they need, they still have to find a way to be able to use it. In a five-player game, I can see this aspect coming into its own – at any one time, you are able to draw from one of six piles of cards.
It’s brilliantly strategic, as you manage your hand to get totals of 15, allowing you to redeem the cards you need. I like the ability to draw from different places, and cycle through cards even when you reach your hand limit. Despite the wealth of options, you don’t have long to think about things as it’s a race to get to three complete fans.
Sensu looks amazing on the table. What artist Andrea Guerrieri has managed to create with a deck of 85 cards is stunning. These cards are truly pieces of art and it’s so exciting to get to display them on the table in their full glory.
There’s been a space in my card game collection for a beautiful, thinky, fan-themed game for a while. This one will make it into the regular rotation in my household.
Written by Emma Garrett
Designer: Enrico Vicario
Publisher: dV Games
Time to Play: 25 minutes
Players: 1-5 players
Age: 8+
RRP: £18
5 Player boards
85 Fan cards
25 Sensu cards
25 Power tokens
4 Bonus markers
Rulebook
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