Firefly: Misbehavin'

I approached Firefly: Misbehavin' with the caution reserved for a game when neither its designer nor GF9's recent form inspires much confidence. But I am a browncoat; I would probably buy an Olympiacos shirt with Firefly printed on it. Happily, this weakness was not punished. This is a pleasing surprise.

It is a faction-based deck-builder, but it does not hand you the usual bland opening deck and ask you to wait for the game to begin. Each starter deck has its own identity and arrives with one or two small engines already in place, so you begin with a direction rather than merely hoping to draw into one.

You win either by meeting an episode's win condition — and there are several — or by holding enough power in play for a turn. That is where the trouble starts. Your opponents have every reason to watch you, lean on you, and refuse to leave you alone. At four players, everyone reaches the edge of victory quickly and the table becomes a continuing incident; you will spoil each other's plans, and enjoy doing it.

It is clever, highly interactive, and honestly tied to the Firefly theme, even if four players can fray your nerves. Firefly: Misbehavin' is not the game I expected to like, but it is precisely the pleasant surprise I was hoping to find.