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MEMO STEAL and TRACKO


MEMO STEAL and TRACKO

Two educational games by Carlo A. Rossi



MEMO STEAL

Find the pairs and steal them from your opponents

A fun and easy game that stimulates memory, emotional self-control and speed.

To be named “King of thieves” and overcome the notorious Arsène Lupin, each player will have to show that he/she has an iron memory and be quick enough to steal not only the cards on the table, but also those already won by the opponents.

The game is designed for 2-4 players, from 5 years of age onwards. Each game lasts about 10 minutes.

Find out more!


MATERIALS

21 cards with a red background
representing not-precious objects

21 cards with a blue background
representing precious objects


GAME OBJECTIVE

Be the first player to win 2 challenges.
To win a challenge you need to collect as many cards as possible.
If a challenge ends in a tie, victory is not awarded.

 

PREPARATION

For the first challenge, mix the 21 cards with the red background and spread them face-down in the centre of the table.
For each challenge, cards with a different background are used alternately (cards with a blue background for the second challenge, cards with a red background for the third challenge, and so on).


HOW TO PLAY

Play begins clockwise.
Each turn, the player can choose to:

  1. Turn over two cards
    If 2 identical images appear on the cards, the player can put the cards face-down in front of him and the turn passes to the next player.

If there is no match, the cards are turned back over and the turn passes to the next player. 

  1. Turn over one card and ask another player for a card
    The player turns over a card in the centre of the table and points to one of the two images, saying the name of the opponent who he/she thinks has a piece with the same image.

The opponent checks his/her cards to see if he/she has the indicated image:

  • IF IT IS PRESENT, the opponent has to give the card to the player who requested it.
  • IF IT ISN’T PRESENT, the card in the middle of the table is turned face-down and play continues.  

Each challenge finishes when there are no more cards left at the centre of the table.

WHO WINS

The winner of the round is the player with the most number of cards.  
The overall winner is the best of the 3 rounds, so the winner is the person who wins 2 rounds

To make the rounds more challenging, the players can choose to follow some of the variations proposed in the instruction booklet. 


TRACKO

On the trail of the Mayan treasure

An adventure game that trains memory and visual-spatial skills.

The Mayan temple hides precious treasures and riches. To collect as many coins as possible, each player must be able to remember the correct position of the tracks left by the ancient Maya and trace the path to exit the temple, avoiding obstacles and curses.

The game is designed for 2-4 players, from 7 years of age onwards. Each game lasts about 15-20 minutes.

Find out more!


MATERIALS

12 «treasure maps» game boards
with different coloured margins: 3 light green, 3 yellow, 3 orange and 3 dark green, which correspond to the different levels of difficulty

4 «temple» game boards

4 transparent sheets and 4 erasable pens

1 score pad


GAME OBJECTIVE

Within a limited time, players must memorize a map showing the gold coins to be collected, but also trapdoors and obstacles to avoid. Next, players must trace a path on their folder and check if they have managed to exit the temple and how many gold coins they managed to collect.
The aim is to accumulate the greatest number of gold coins.

PREPARATION

Form a pile consisting of 7 treasure maps (1 light green, 2 yellow, 2 orange and 2 dark green), to be placed in the centre of the table with the illustrated side face down.

Each player takes:

  • 1 «temple» game board;
  • 1 erasable pen;
  • 1 transparent sheet, to be placed over the «temple» game board.

The «temple» game board should be placed in front of you so that the box on which the staircase is located is in the upper right corner of the game board, while the box with the entrance is in the lower left corner.

HOW TO PLAY

The youngest player is the Chief Explorer in the first round. In subsequent rounds, this role passes to the player on the left of the previous Chief Explorer.

Each round of play includes three steps:

  1. Memorize the path
    The Chief Explorer uncovers the map that is at the top of the pile, showing everyone the illustration.
    All players must try to memorize the map as accurately as possible in the time allowed by the Chief Explorer.
  1. Trace the path
    At the same time, each player traces a path on the transparent sheet that covers his/her «temple» game board.
    The route must be traced carefully following the rules described in the instruction booklet. For example:
  1. Collect the treasure
    Starting with the Chief Explorer and proceeding clockwise, players must check the paths they have traced. To do this, they must place their transparent sheet on the treasure map and check if they have touched the locations of the gold coins and/or if they have encountered trapdoors or pitfalls.

After checking their routes and writing down the coins earned on the score pad, the players will clean their transparent sheets and be ready for a new exploration.

 

WHO WINS

The game ends after 7 rounds, i.e. after all the treasure maps have been discarded.
The winner is the one who has collected the most gold coins.

To make the game more complicated and compelling, players can choose to apply the advanced rules proposed in the instruction booklet.

 

THE AUTHOR

Carlo A. Rossi is author of 31 games currently published by the main German publishing houses. He is specialised in quick-play games and has received 2 nominations for the prestigious Kinder Spiel des Jahres award in 2010 and 2017.