MATCH STICK COUNT BATTLE is a matchbox game from Japan. Designed during the lockdowns for Coronovirus, the designer was considering how to play games when people cannot meet.
Match Stick Count Battle is based on an old game where two players take turns removing matchsticks from a line, until the player who takes the final stick loses. The designer knew this game is solved (meaning a player can always force a win), and so thought how to redesign the game by using card play as well to create an uncertain outcome.
The game is intended for solitaire play, but also for up to three players, and can easily be played on a video link.
This was the 7th Payaso game and was successful crowdfunded in Japan.
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