Introducing Reiner Knizia's Pumafiosi...

2-5 Players

10-30 Minutes

The Pumafiosi (Puma Mafiosi) operate in a strict hierarchy, from the family’s boss down to the lowest Picciotti. Everyone wants to reach the top, no-one wants to end up at the bottom or even beneath the soil.  Amongst these aspiring Pumafiosi, it is wise to keep your head out of the firing line.  Stand out too much and you’ll soon find yourself in prison, if not murdered by the rival families.

This clever card game is a refreshingly unique blend of trick-taking and push-your-luck.  Each trick, the person who plays the second-highest card winds the round, and they decide where to place that winning card into the hierarchy.  You can even choose to place your measly card at the top of the hierarchy to stake your claim on the big Boss points.  The catch is that these cards can be knocked down one or more steps on the hierarchy by higher value cards, and the owner of the dropping card takes penalty points!  

While he has explored this shifting hierarchy concept in the past, Dr. Knizia has refreshed and polished it here in Pumafiosi via:

  • Increasing the strategy by narrowing the deck to a range of 1-55
  • Crafting a satisfying 2-player experience
  • Raising the stakes by tweaking the hierarchy values and penalties
  • Selecting a theme that gives context to the rules
  • Enhancing the drama by including physical penalty points
  • Adding further depth and tension to the decisions with one-time-use items (stretch goal tokens)

The deceptively simple Pumafiosi from the prolific Reiner Knizia will have you second-guessing your every decision.