For Sale

Today's review is of the 1997 release, For Sale. For 3-6 players, it takes 30 minutes.

Overview

You are a real estate mogul, intent on buying the best properties—and selling them for the most profit.

Each player starts with 14 coins (each is $1,000), the two types of card decks are shuffled independently, and then the game is played over two rounds.

Round 1: buying buildings

There are 30 building cards, valued 1-30. Each turn within this round, X building cards are placed in a row (X= number of players). The players bid clockwise and can either raise the current bid or pass. If they pass, they take the lowest-valued building still in the row (and return half of their bid, rounded up, to the game box). That player is out of the rest of the turn. The other players continue bidding or passing until all buildings are purchased. (The last player standing must pay their entire bid.) Then the next turn begins, with X more buildings laid out in the row. Turns continue until all buildings have been purchased.

example building cards; image from here

Round 2: selling buildings

There are 30 "check" cards, valued 0 or 2-15 (and there are two copies of each). Each turn within this round, X check cards are placed in a row. The players secretly choose one of the building cards they received in the first round. When all have chosen, the cards are turned face-up, and the owner of the highest-valued card takes the highest-value check. The owner of the next highest-valued card takes the next check, and so on until all checks are taken. Then the next turn begins, with X more checks laid out. Turns continue until all checks have been taken.

examlpe check cards; image from here

At the end of the game, the player with the most money (total check card value + remaining coins from round 1) at the end wins!

Review

This game is a light, fast, and fun auction experience—both open and secret. Better with more people (5-6). Since you start the game with only 14 coins, you must bid carefully; run out of coins early in round 1 in the open auction, and you'll be stuck with low-value properties the rest of that round. And round 2 has that secret auction element, enabling you to get back in the game even with lower-valued properties if you can play your cards correctly. Overall, this is a winner.

Rating: A-