String Theory – An ito Review

While I couldn’t muster up much enthusiasm for another recent entry in the Dice Tower Essentials line, ito is an entirely different story.

This Arcane Wonders party game doesn’t look like much. It’s a small box holding two decks of cards; one comprised of numbers and another with various sentences. In the midst of play, all there is to look at is a single row of facedown cards. It’s like the inverse of Star Wars: Queen’s Gambit. Nothing to see here, move along.

But this little guy has gumption. All the magic is happening above the table, first in player’s minds and then in their voices.

A significant part of the appeal is its simplicity. A random card is flipped and a prompt is read: “A Surprise.” At the bottom of the card the words show “Worst” is at position 1 and “Best” is at 100. Juicy.

Then each player is given a random secret card. On this card is a number ranging from 1 to 100. The goal now is to conjure an answer to the prompt that maps to your number. The answer you come up with is the clue to the rest of the table, as you all need to work together to organize your facedown cards in the correct order, from lowest number to highest.

I’m dealt “73”. That’s not too bad.

Everyone is thinking of their clue simultaneously. Anyone can speak up as soon as they’re comfortable. It’s loose and emotive, reminiscent of The Mind.

With the others hesitating I place my card in the middle of the table and stammer, “discovering a crisp Benjamin on the sidewalk.” That’s a $100 bill for the non-yanks.

It seems reasonable to me. That’s a sweet find, but it’s not the same as getting a hefty bonus at work or maybe winning the lottery. It’s a smooth “73”, at least in my mind.

Marcus chuckles and then slaps his card to the left of mine, signaling that he believes it to be a lower number. After a dramatic pause he snorts, “finding a hypodermic needle in your Cracker Jack box.”

Damn, Marcus.

We all nod, lower it is. Jeremy then cocks his head to the side before slipping his card in between our two, mumbling, “love at first sight.”

I start to object but pause, my mouth open and ready to vocalize my reaction.

Now the fun part begins as we start to pick apart the answers given and argue various perspectives. If we line up the cards in order from lowest to highest, we win. But if even one is out of place, then we fail and finger pointing starts. No, lemonade is not a more popular drink than coffee you Muppet.

ito most closely resembles the wonderful party game Wavelength, with a touch of the spiel nominee Fun Facts. If you’ve noticed, all of the games I’ve referenced in this review are prime cuts. ito is such.

One thing this title has over many of its peers is that it’s that special type of design with the cleverness we expect of a modern hobbyist title, while also possessing zero barriers to entry. The accessibility here is off the charts, measuring up to the ever-successful Just One. I hold this quality in high esteem, for it means I can actually introduce this to members of my family that hate learning new games yet love playing them.

I hear you; Wavelength is not complex. Yet, I have witnessed far too many non-hobbyists struggle with the concept of its scoring wheel and how to convey the necessary information to their team. ito doesn’t have this problem. First off, we’re all working together and doing the exact same thing. There’s no clue-giver role that functions differently, which creates a situation of teaching two distinct modes of play. Second, it takes a minute or two to complete an entire round. You don’t even need to explain a single rule before you deal out the components and get going. This is immensely powerful.

It also has the power of addiction. Try and play just one round of ito. You can’t. No one can. It has people backing up from the door, telling themselves they can stay just a little longer and keep playing.

But the really beautiful thing about this style of game is how it brings awareness to different philosophies and experiences. It’s a reckoning of disparate worldviews, people coming together to share their thoughts, pull them apart, and then throw them back. It’s the type of thing that cuts through a wall and really tells you something about how someone else views things and concepts. I find this totally mesmerizing. When people say they are attracted to board games because it’s a form of shared play – as opposed to playing video games or reading a book or whatever – it’s the itos of the world that really dig into this most forcibly. And it’s all so easy.

So ito is great, right? It is, but there are some more details to consider.

I don’t think it works particularly well in small groups. With smaller player counts it requires individuals draw multiple numbers and give multiple clues, and sure, it functions. But it’s not the same as the larger games. With four or more players lively and interesting conversation emerges organically. The discussion is really what I find interesting here, and it’s simply less so with fewer perspectives in the mix.

The other quirk that legitimately irks me is the clumsy dance players must perform to discuss their clues. Since cards can be re-adjusted, thus forming the entire basis for end of round talk, there’s a certain dance you must perform to argue for your own card’s position without giving anything away.

For instance, Jeremy’s old clue of “love at first sight”. That’s surely a better surprise than finding a hundo, right? A shrug is a perfectly reasonable response here. Can Jeremy then say that love and serious relationships often end in pain? Or what if you were already with a committed partner when you were struck with love at first sight?

The rules state that you can even change your clue in the middle of the round, so he may – in response to us arguing a certain point – change his answer to “falling in love with a person when you’re married to someone else”. It seems that the rules give wide leeway to tweak and tailor your clues in reaction to the current argument.

Lame.

We immediately house-ruled that you can’t change your answer. This feels more in tune with the game’s spirit. It doesn’t fix the awkwardness of discussing your own card while trying to keep the number itself secret, but it smooths the experience somewhat.

A lesser blemish is that you can sometimes be undone by misfortune. For instance, what if three players receive cards numbered “41”, “43”, and “48”. Good luck. It’s unlikely, absolutely, but it can and will happen to various extents. On the other hand, winning a round with cards like this feels extraordinary.

These few cracks in the foundation are part of why I still prefer Wavelength for this type of game. The team aspect also helps there. But Wavelength doesn’t hit the table with my extended family. ito does. It’s received a great deal of play alongside titles such as Wits & Wagers, Fun Facts, and Just One. They can’t get enough of it.

I am concerned that it might be a little too faint to really establish its presence when it comes to sticking out in hobbyist circles or appearing in top party game lists. You can fly through plays and the experience sort of float away. It doesn’t land with the same overture as something like Time’s Up or Monikers. Some would certainly call it more of an activity than a proper game. Call it whatever you want. I’ll call it a winner.

 

A review copy of the game was provided by the publisher.

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