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- 6.6
Haru Ichiban
- 2 players
- 20 min
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Zany Penguins
2016
Rules assistance for Zany Penguins
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.
- 2–5 players
- 20 min
- 7+
- Complexity 1.4/5
For 2 players
Rules assistant for Zany Penguins
What would you like to know?
Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
Zany Penguins is a board game released in 2016 for 2–5 players, 20 minutes per game, and ages 7 and up. It was designed by Bruno Cathala and Matthieu Lanvin and its main mechanics are Hand Management, Area Majority / Influence, and Simultaneous Action Selection.
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About the game
In Zany Penguins, you want to make sure that your tribe of penguins is the one that takes control of the Earth, so do what you can to take charge of regions such as the desert, jungle, and the North Pole. In game terms, each region has a set of cards numbered 1-9. To set up, shuffle the deck, then deal each player a personal deck of 18 cards. Each player starts with two cards in hand. On a turn, you draw two cards, pass one card each to your left- and right-hand neighbors, take the cards passed to you, then simultaneously play and reveal one card in front of you on the table. If you play a 1, on your next turn you play and reveal two cards instead of one; if you play a 2, it blows up all 6-9 cards played that same turn; and if you play a 3, on the subsequent turn everyone else plays before you do. After eight turns, for each card color on the table in front of you in which you have the highest sum of all players, you score the sum of all cards of this color in your hand. For each color in which you don't have the highest sum, you score the single lowest card of this color in your hand. Players tally their scores, and whoever has the most points wins.
Designers
Publishers
- Rebel Sp. z o.o.
- GoKids 玩樂小子
- Mandoo Games
- Bombyx
- Mancalamaro
Questions and answers
Zany Penguins supports 2–5 players according to the catalogue. This range comes from the publisher’s listed player count, so the game can be set up for any group size within it. Some setups, rules and scoring details may still vary by player count, so check your edition’s rulebook for the exact configuration.
The listed playing time for Zany Penguins is 20 minutes. This is the publisher’s estimate for a full game. The actual duration depends on the group, the player count and familiarity with the rules: first sessions usually run longer, while experienced groups often finish faster. Setup and teaching time are not included in this estimate.
The catalogue lists Zany Penguins for ages 7 and up. This is the publisher’s recommendation and reflects reading demands, rule complexity and small components rather than theme alone. Younger players can often join with help from an adult, so check the age guidance on your edition and consider your group’s experience with board games.
Zany Penguins has a complexity rating of 1.4 out of 5 from BoardGameGeek players, which makes it a light game. The rating reflects how much rules knowledge, planning and decision-making a typical game demands. Expect a longer first teach for heavier games, and use a preparation guide before game night.
Zany Penguins belongs to these categories: Card Game and Animals. Its main mechanics are Hand Management, Area Majority / Influence, and Simultaneous Action Selection. Categories describe the theme and setting of a game, while mechanics describe what players actually do on their turns. Each mechanic links to a catalogue hub with similar games, which helps when you want something comparable.
The credited designers of Zany Penguins are: Bruno Cathala and Matthieu Lanvin. These credits come from the published game data and name the people responsible for the game’s design, not its illustrators or publishers. Designer pages on MeepleRules collect other titles by the same designers, which helps when you enjoy a game and want to find similar ones.
The catalogue lists Zany Penguins as a base game. It can be played on its own with the components in the box and does not require any other title. Expansions, if any exist, add new content or rules on top of it and are listed separately in the catalogue with a link back to this base game.