CMYK Games had two games that came out last year that people have been clamoring to get. One was a remake of an older game. The other is new and has been in and out of print as CMYK Games has tried to keep up with the demand. This is the game Hot Streak. A silly game of mascot racing, what is it about this game that makes it fun to play and how do you even play Hot Streak? Is it really that much of a racing game or more of a betting game. Let’s dive into all of that.

How To Play Hot Streak

Hot Streak is a racing and betting game with almost an auto-battler element to it. In this game you are trying to win the most money by betting on three mascot races. In each race you flip over cards from a race deck to see who finishes first. Then players are paid out money based off of where the four different racers finish. But let’s see how we get there.

The race is split into three parts and there are three races. Each part is pretty simple. At the start of the first race you flip over four starting cards and then a number of cards based off of the number of players. These are the majority of the cards that are going to be in the deck. Each player also gets three cards, and one of those cards they will add to the deck.

Then in turn order, you decide what that is to start, and it’s lowest money total after that, and you snake draft betting cards. These cards might be for where the different racers finish, or it is going to be for a prop bet. Once each player has two tiles then every player adds a hidden card to that deck of racer cards.

Then you flip cards from the deck doing what it tells you. It might cause the racer to swerve, potentially off the board, or fall over or turn around. You go through the deck, shuffle up again as needed and repeat the process until all the racers are eliminated or finish the race. Bets pay out, deal one card from the deck back to the players and repeat the process.

What Doesn’t Work

This is a chaotic game and you need to be okay with that. I don’t think that it doesn’t work in the game, but it is something to be aware of. You want to try the game, you need to understand that the game is going to be chaos as it goes. It might look like the Hotdog, Hurly, is going to be racing really well so you bet on them, but if someone turns them around or knocks them down and they don’t get up, that can change everything. So that randomness is what makes the game fun, but also is going to be challenge to some players.

The other negative I have is the board. Now I like the board a lot and how it rolls in, but the board is backwards. What I mean by that is that with how racers get eliminated, it would make sense to roll the section back in. But they race towards the box. And just that one little tweak to the design would deal with the one minor usability complaint that I have.

What Works

The chaos is also something that works in the game. I don’t think that it doesn’t work, it’s more that it’s an awareness for it. And you can’t take the game seriously. Angler, the fish, runs off the board, you can’t get upset about that because that’s just how the chaos of the game works.

The game is also the right weight and length for this sort of chaotic game. You don’t have much control in what is happening, so the races and between races need to go by quickly, and they do. They even make it so that if someone doesn’t move much they can be eliminated as the track rolls back up, so to speak. So a race that could take a little bit does a good job of eliminating it’s competitors to keep that game length tight.

The abilities on the cards are easy to understand as well. This probably ties into that weight and length of game, but I want to be able to teach the game in a few minutes. And that is something that I can do with Hot Streak. And then you play and that is what matters. For a silly light game that overhead needs to be very short, and it is.

Finally the sculpts are amazing in the game. I like the eyes on everyone and it makes sense. You see the mascot eyes as they race because they don’t line-up with the suit. And they are colored and nice and big. It makes the game have massive toy presence but also works for the game.

Who Is Hot Streak For?

I already talked about it some. Hot Streak is not a game for people who want control. But if you want a game that is a party game but isn’t a traditional party game, Hot Streak is great for that. It’s a beer and pretzels game without the dice rolling. It is the game that you play with the cousins you see every other year around the holidays. That is the sort of time that you want to pull out this game, or when you want to kick off a game night with something that gets everyone energized.

Final Thoughts on Hot Streak

I really like Hot Streak. I think that combination of ease of play and speed of play is great for the game. And the chaos elements of the game don’t bother me at all. It isn’t a game that I plan on playing every game night, but it is a good ice breaker game. I mention in who it is for that it gets everyone energized and it does. It is like Ready Set Bet in that way.

And I want to talk about it with Ready Set Bet as well. Both of these games are racing games but really betting games. And I think there is a good reason for someone to own both. Hot Streak is the light version of what Ready Set Bet does. And it is easier to teach and get to the table. But, I think that Ready Set Bet is a game that has more stand-up moments as you play it and that is awesome for a game. People laugh with Hot Streak, but stand-up as Ready Set Bet finishes.

My Grade: A-
Casual Grade: A
Gamer Grade: C+
Strategy: 1 out of 5
Luck: 4 out of 5

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