Red7 App Review

I'm not entirely sure this blog post constitutes a review. I've had the iOS version of Red7 for quite some time and I have never really felt that I got on with the game.  Every few weeks I would start up the app ready to try the game and every time I would be ready to throw my phone out of the train window in frustration, and I'm not sure if it’s the app or the original Red7 rules that are the issue.

Red7 is a card game in which cards are numbered 1 to 7 and come in all the colours of the rainbow (in other words, seven).  At the start of the game the aim is to play the highest card, and if at the end of your play you don't have the highest card in front of you, then you are out of the round. If you can't play a card that can keep you in the lead, you can discard another card to change the rules of the game, the colour of the discarded card dictating the new rules.

The new rule could be having the most cards in a sequence, or having the most odd-numbered cards, but if the next player also can't meet your new rule they can change the rules again to something more in their favour.

My problem with Red7 is that you can be knocked out of the round without ever playing a single card. You can be left in a situation where it is impossible to continue, simply down to the luck of the draw and what cards others have played. It's like playing tennis with a particularly skilful player and being hit in the nether regions with the opening serve; it’s painful and degrading, and you're left to sit off to the side for the rest of the game.

But just like tennis, if you can get past this opening onslaught then the game does open up into an enjoyable rally.  With a few cards out on the table the strategy deepens and it no longer becomes a matter of playing the card you need to simply stay in the game, but consideration of what other cards player’s may have available to twist the rules further.

 

It's hard to fault the app itself, it’s colourful, intuitive and works splendidly on a small screen.  It is also resplendent with features such as online multiplayer and a whole host of game rule variants.  My one gripe is that if you are in an impossible situation the app doesn't tell you, so you can be left scratching your head trying to work out how you can stay in the round when you don't have an ice-cream in hell’s chance. Half my frustration with Red7 could be mitigated by the app simply saying "Give up Steve, you're stuffed".

So if this blog post were a review (which I'm still not sure what exactly it is), now would be the point where I round up my thoughts into a neat little conclusion. The problem is though, I don't like Red7. That's not because it’s a bad game or a bad app, I just don't like it.  Even when I can get past the frustration of being kicked before I make a single decision in the game, the resultant puzzle just doesn't interest me, and I feel I need to apologise for that. Sorry.

This review is based on the iOS version of the game provided by the publisher.