Downforce is a remake of a game from the 70s. It is a car racing game where you are controlling the movement of the cars by cards. What makes it interesting is you aren’t just moving your own car but all the cars listed on your card and in that specific order.
For the auction you want to bet high on cars you know you have a good chance of moving forward. You don’t want to over pay or get stuck with a car you can’t move. You need to pay attention on what cards you have in your hand.
For the race, when you choose a card to play, you want to pick the card that gives you most benefit without moving the rest too far forward. If a car is stuck and can’t move, it’s a good time to take advantage of that. I love that during the race you get a chance to bet on different cars. It’s an extra chance to get extra points, especially if your car isn’t doing well.
I also like that there are some rules variations that make it easier if you want to play with kids. It’s a nice added touch.
Components are good, the board has two sides so you can switch up the track. I wish the game came with pencils, or used a white board for betting but they do have print outs available on their website if you run out of score sheets. That’s an extremely small issue. This game is fun with a bit of strategy and easy enough for the whole family to play.
Downforce is published by Restoration Games. It is for 2 to 6 players ages 10 and up and takes about a half hour to play.
Components
- 1 Double-Sided Game Board
- 6 Race Cars
- 42 Regular Speed Cards
- 6 Speed-8 Speed Cards
- 6 Power Cards
- 6 Driver Plaques
- 1 Pad of Score Sheets
Set Up
Place the board on the table and randomly place the cars in the starting positions.
Give each player a score sheet and a pen.
Shuffle the speed 8 card deck and place face down on the table.
Shuffle the power cards and place the deck face down on the table.
Shuffle the deck of regular speed cards and deal them out equally to all players.
Place the driver plaques on the side of the board.
How To Play
Downforce has three steps to the game.
1. The auction where you will bid on cars
2. The Race
3. The Betting, Bet on the car you think will win
Once the race is over, the player with the highest score will win.
The Auction
Cars are auctioned off one at a time. The first Speed 8 card and power card are flipped over. This is the colour car you are bidding on. To bid each player chooses a card from their have and places it face down on the table. Once everyone has chosen a card, the bets are flipped over at the same time. The card with the highest number for that colour card wins the auction. That was your bid. If there’s a tie the card with the most cars on it wins. The card you use to bid will go back in your hand after the car has been auctioned.
When you win a car, write the amount you bid on your score card. This will be subtracted from your winnings later in the game. You gain the power card driver plaque and place them face up in front of you. Finally you get the speed 8 card to add to your hand.
All cars will go through the auction. Every player must have at least one car. When the number of cars left is the same as the number of players without cars, only they can bid. For the last player without a car they can use their card with the lowest value of that card to bid.
After all the cars have been auctioned, if a player has more than one power up card, they must choose one to keep and return the rest to the box. The power they keep will work for all their cars.
The Race
Starting with the car in the first spot, players will take turns playing speed cards from their hands and move the cars. The race continues until all cars cross the finish line. If a car is trapped it won’t move regardless of what is on the card.
SPEED CARDS:
The speed cards will have various different amount of cars and movements listed on them. Cars will be moved based on the order on the card. You will move all cars listed on the card, even the cars that aren’t yours. Some cards have a wild option, for this you can select a car colour that isn’t already on the card. Once the card is resolved it gets discarded.
MOVING CARS:
Cars move straight or diagonally. They can’t move backwards or sideways. Cars cannot move through other cars. Any blocked car will not move forward. That is a huge part of the strategy for this game, playing cards that will hopefully block movement.
The Betting
When the first car goes past one of the yellow lines, everyone will stop and place their bet on who they think will win the race. You can bet on any car. There are three chances to bet during the race.
END OF THE RACE:
When a car crosses the finish line it gets moved to the appropriate winner’s space on the board. Once all of a player’s cars have passed the finish line they will discard the rest of their hand. Keep playing until all cars are done the race.
If players run out of cards before a car finishes, it stalls and doesnt collect any money.
END OF GAME
Once the race is over, players calculate what they won through betting, how their cars placed and then subtract the money they bid for their cars. The player with the highest total wins.
If you like Downforce try:
Camel Up
Heat Petal to the Metal
The Skillful Meeple 