Love Letter is a basic social deduction card game. Each player has a role card that you have to figure out in order to knock them out of the game, but each turn that role can change. If you haven’t played it before, it’s one of my favorite simple card games. Rounds are quick and the game is easily played with a group when you just have a little bit of time to kill.
The latest iteration of the game is Star Wars themed, Love Letter Jabba’s Palace. The game divides the roles into Rebels and Palace members with different effects based on which faction they represent. Not only that, there are now agenda cards you can choose to play with that will change how to determine the winner. Normally it’s whoever has the highest number card when the deck runs out, but now it could be whoever played the most Rebels for example. The agenda cards add a new element to the game that will help keep it fresh across multiple plays. I really liked having the agenda cards as it really changed how you played the game. There was just one that didn’t work as well in a two player game, it gives victory to the players with the highest Palace and Rebel cards at the end of the game. These agenda cards only come into play if the deck runs out with no winner, so sadly no matter how well you are doing if that condition isn’t met you won’t win with the agenda. I think it could be fun to ignore that rule to see how differently the game is played with regards to how quickly you decide to try and knock out other players.
The game is well made. The cards are a good weight and size. I really like that the point tokens and carrying case bag have a nice decal of Jabba’s Palace on them. The point tokens are also thicker pieces of plastic so they won’t fall apart easily. The artwork for the cards is really well done too.
Overall, this game is a fun new version of a classic game.. Whether you’ve been playing Love Letter for a long time or you are just getting into the game, this will be a worthy addition to your game collection. With the additional rules and mechanics, this game is more than just a money grabbing reskin.
