The Big Idea, a Cheapass game by James Ernest Start: 3 cards per player, 5 tokens of the player's colour "chits" each representing $1 million of someone else's venture capital, and $10 ($5,5x$1) representing the investor's own money. You'll also need one six-sided die, and lots more play money. Object: To invest the million dollar chits wisely in successful products to make the most money from commissions. Each Round: - Dealer gives two new cards to each player. Shuffle in the discards if you have to. - Seed/Product phase: Each player picks two cards from their hand, and puts it face down in front of them. Simultaneously, players reveal these cards. If they're two of the same type, discard them. Starting with the dealer, each player gives a sales pitch to the other players for their new product, and invests one chit (if they have any left). - Venture/Secret phase: Players put a finger in the air, and on the count of three, simultaneously point at a player. Whomever they point at, they place a chit on that player's new product if the pointer has any chits left. If they point at themselves, they do not invest a chit this phase. - Mezzanine/Open phase: Starting with the dealer going clockwise, each player may in turn do one of the following: a) put another chit on any product on the table. For each chit already on that product, they pay $1 to the owner of that chit (this may result in paying more than $1 to a single player. The player's own chits aren't counted). b) take back one of their own chits from any product on the table. c) move no chits - Offering/IPO phase: For each product on the table (it's easier to start with products left over from previous rounds), the dealer rolls the die. If the die roll is equal to or less than the number of chits on the product, the product has a successful offering on the public market, and the investments pay off. Each player takes their chits back and receives twice the value of the die roll, in dollars. (eg: if there are four chits on the product, and the die roll shows a "2", the product is removed, the players take their chits back and receive $4 for each chit that was on the product. If the die roll was a "5", the chits stay on the card.) Any products that have zero chits on them in this phase are discarded. - Any products that were introduced this turn that did not succeed are pushed into the centre of the table, and deal passes to the left. Ending: The game is over when every player has been the dealer twice. Whoever has the most money wins. The $1M chits don't count. Variant: You can make larger products by adding more Type 2 cards ("dangerous love umbrella") or omit them for smaller products (just "umbrella"). During the Mezzanine/Open phase, you must pay $.50 for each card comprising the product to each chit owner. During the Offering/IPO phase, the payout is $1 * number of cards * die roll. Variant: Give each player only 4 million-dollar chits. Type 1 cards: beer It's like a full-bodied lager... bulb It's like a light bulb... car It's like a high-performance luxury car... cat It's like a cat... chair It's like a chair... cheese It's like a brick of cheese... chicken It's like a farm animal... clock It's like a clock... .com It's like an e-commerce portal... dish It's like a fine ceramic dish... drink It's like a refreshing beverage... flower It's like a flower... game It's like a family board game... hat It's like a hat... lotion It's like a soothing hand lotion... pants It's like a well-tailored pair of trousers... projector It's like a 16mm film projector... radio It's like a radio... robot It's like a high-tech robot... shack It's like a house in the woods... smokes It's like a pack of cigarettes... soap It's like a personal hygiene product... sushi It's like raw fish... tongs It's like a pair of tongs... tool It's like a handy household tool... toy It's like a fun child's toy... umbrella It's like an umbrella... Type 2 cards: accelerated ...but twice as fast! addicitive ...that you can never put down! confusing ...that you can't understand! crystal- ...but completely transparent! cyber- ...that exists only in your computer! dangerous ...that could explode at any minute! disposible ...you never have to clean! edible ...you can eat! erotic ...but genuinely erotic! evil ...but genuinely evil! frozen ...that's frozen in a block of ice! gigantic ...but it's huge! happy ...that makes your troubles melt away! laptop ...you can put on your lap! love ...you can share with someone special! metholated ...but it's also invigorating! mexi- ...that comes from Mexico! moistened ...but moist! natural ...but it's completely natural! old-fashioned ...for your grandparents! perforated ...that's full of holes! portable ...you can take anywhere! simple ...with no moving parts! surprise ...but not like you'd expect! swiss ...but made in Switzerland! unholy ...but it's also a crime against nature! zen ...that puts you in touch with the universe!