Review: Killer Bunnies - the next best thing to being waterboarded

Part of the reason this game is so awful is because it seems like it has so much going for it.  It practically screams, "Hey, I'll make sure you have a good time."  Like Munchkin, Killer Bunnies and the Quest for the Magic Carrot touts itself as a fun, fast paced game where you get to stab your buddies in the back.  Or, in this case, kill their bunnies. 

Plus, when I first found it, it was sitting on the shelf at my local game shop.  It had three great things going for it: (1) Cardboard box.  Card games that come in a sturdy cardboard box (San Juan, Citadels, Bang!) tend to be better than ones that don't (Uno).  This doesn't hold true in all cases, but I think its a good rule of thumb.  Number (2) it was sitting between Munchkin and Gloom.  Both those games are pretty fun and I was hoping some of that would rub off by proximity.  And, finally, (3) it had a wacky name, art, and premise.  How could it go wrong?  I'll tell you exactly how after the jump. 

First, the game is the product of money grubbing money grubbers.  The game has ten (10!) expansions.  True, the first expansion (Yellow) is contained within the blue box.  Then comes Red, Violet, Orange, Green, Twilight, Steel, Pink, Khaki, and Onyx.  Normally, I like expansions.  But, Killer Bunnies does something sinister.  See, the Red box includes cards that need a new Red die to work.  Sounds reasonable.  But, the yellow booster (the one prior to red in the series) also has a few cards that require that red die.  Want to play with your entire yellow set?  Buy the red set.  But then the red set has a few cards that need the clear die from Violet.  And violet has a few cards that need the pawns in Orange.  And so on.  So that reasonably priced blue box just became an investment in nine additional purchases. 

Second, and more importantly, the game is fundamentally broken.  Doesn't work.  Is bad.  Dumb. 

Players draw their starting cards and put two in front of them, face down, one on top of the other.  Each turn, the top one is played, the bottom is moved to the top, and a new card from the hand goes to the bottom.  Thus, the card you lay down this turn won't actually be played for two more turns.  This mechanic works thematically well in a game like Nuclear War where peace might break out but someone has already pushed the launch button.  In Killer Bunnies, it makes no sense. 

Then, you play your cards.  If you have Bunnies, those go in front of you.  Many cards (especially the good ones) require you to have a bunny in front of you to play.  So its important to keep bunnies up and to kill the other players'.  Finally, there's a pile of 12 (later expanded to 20) magic carrots.  There's a set of small ones and a set of larger ones.  One set is placed aside with the winning carrot randomly decided face down so that no one knows.  Then, the rest of the game is getting as many of the carrots in the other set as possible so that you have the best chance of having the Magic (winning) Carrot at the end.  I find this mechanic one of the few good points of this game.  A player down on his luck with but a few carrots at the end might still be able to pull off victory.  But a lucky player can still maximize his or her chances. 

Here's where it breaks.  There aren't so many bunnies that every player will get one in his opening hand.  And, because of the mechanics, even if you draw a bunny that turn, it'll be two turns before it comes out.  Thus, you've basically been set back three turns.  And heaven help you if it takes longer than that.  Thus, the first round is usually a few players who get their bunnies out, and a few players who throw cards away or take minor actions.  Next, since you place down two cards, the first player who got a bunny out plays a "kill a bunny" card.  So he kills the next player's bunny.  That player also probably had a "kill a bunny" card - but those cards often require a bunny in order to be played!  So now his card is worthless.  And he may have to wait up to two more turns to get another bunny.  So, the game is often decided in the very first round by the luck of the draw.  Once someone gets that first initial lead, it is easy for him or her to continue playing the best cards, getting out more bunnies (so that there's a buffer), and getting the majority of carrots. 

In fact, there's very little point playing after the first round.  You might as well shuffle it up and start again. 

Components: 4 of 5.  For its other flaws, the game has nice components.  A solid box along with good dice and nice glossy cards.  The artwork is comical.  If you purchase all the expansions, though, you've got well over 600 cards to shuffle and manage. 

Strategy/Luck Balance: 1 of 5.  This game is supremely unbalanced.  The early lead, based entirely on luck of the draw, is difficult to overcome.  Bad draws in later turns aren't as devastating because you may already have bunnies.  Without a bunny, you can't play the game's best cards - or even most of the moderately worthwhile ones.  The single point in this category is for the random winning condition which gives devastated players some slim (and often false) hope of success. 

Mechanics: 0 of 5.  Totally broken.  There is no reason for the turn delay thematically and it completely hampers game play.  It allows the strong to remain strong and forces the weak into a very difficult game of catch-up.  If anything, a good game should give the advantage, however slight, to the person struggling the most.  Many games do have such devices which rearrange turn order or other benefits based on the game's progression.

Replayability: 4 of 5.  With the random win condition and the numerous cards, this game sees different abilities most of the time - especially with multiple expansions. But who would want to play it?

Spite: 5 of 5.  The game actively encourages you to stab your buddies.  While not a bad thing in and of itself, it is terrible as applied in this game.  The spite encourages you to kick the other players while they are down (lest they get a surviving bunny that retaliates) leading to an unenjoyable experience for some at the playing table. 

Overall: 0.5 of 5.  Avoid this game at all costs.  Some people may like this game.  But as Bill Murray said in Groundhog Day, "Some people like blood sausage."  This game is great if you draw well that first turn, but will lead to a completely frustrating time if you don't. 

With all that said, if you'd like to own this spectacle of broken gaming, be sure to at least get the best price for it at Boards&Bits.

If its unavailable, you can also procure it from FunAgain Games.