PANDA SPIN: Right round like a record...
Posted: 24 March 2025, 14:11
In Panda Spin, your goal is simple: be the first to empty your hand while gathering bamboo to keep your pandas fed and happy!
It is a fast-paced climbing game with a twist- a special deck of double-headed cards that flip during play, changing their values and effects.
Each player starts with 12 cards. The rest form a draw deck. Cards feature orange animals on top, but they can flip to show blue animals, altering their powers.
Players take turns playing single cards, pairs, triples, runs, or special formations (like two consecutive pairs or triples).
Trick Rules: If you are leading, play any set- except for bombs (4+ cards of the same value).
Following: On your turn, you must either play a higher combo of the same type (e.g. a stronger pair) or pass.
Bombs cannot lead a trick, but they can beat any set.
Flipping Cards & Special Effects
If you pass and all your played cards show orange animals, flip them- the blue side has new powers based on their suit:
Water 4 → Pair of Queens
Wood 6 → Ace + Bamboo (Take a bamboo token!)
Earth 8 → Queen + Panda (Steal bamboo for each panda!)
Fire 3 → 10 + Fire (Fire’s value is your choice)
Cards showing blue animals are discarded when you pass. The winner of each trick discards their played cards and leads the next one.
Element cards have powerful effects- for example, Water beats any play with 3+ cards. If you win a trick with an element card, you immediately win the trick and draw two cards.
When a player runs out of cards, they score bamboo equal to the number of cards in the largest remaining hand. Once all but one player have “shown out,” the round ends.
Shuffle and deal a new hand, then keep playing until someone hits 15 bamboo points. The player with the most bamboo wins!
Try it by clicking the link below, but first you might take a look at the short tutorial to not be bamboozled!
https://boardgamearena.com/gamepanel?game=pandaspin
Thanks to the team behind this title, Carl Chudyk for the game design and Moon Gate Design for the publishing, you can play it live on BGA. And because it has been so well made for you all to enjoy, we can celebrate the work done by Moof for developing it.
Ready to flip, climb, and feast?
Right round round round...
See you on Wednesday, and until then... Take care and play fair!
