Description
The Grand Prix is about to start, engines are roaring, the first corner lies ahead. In Heat: Pedal to the Metal you are a racing driver who controls the speed of the car with cards. On the straight you floor it, but before a corner you have to decide: brake, or take the risk and push the engine beyond its limits.
How to play Heat: Pedal to the Metal
Each round, everyone first chooses a gear at the same time. It determines how many cards you must play: one in first gear, four in fourth. Then, in order from the leader back, you reveal your cards, add up their values and move that many spaces. If you end up right behind another car, you catch its slipstream and gain two more spaces.
Every corner has a speed limit. If you exceed it, you pay the difference with Heat cards from your engine. These later come back to your hand, where they only take up space until you cool them down in a low gear. If you run out of Heat, you spin out. Whoever crosses the finish line first wins.
Why you'll love it
- Gears are the heart of the game: a high gear means speed, a low gear means cooling the engine. You are always deciding which matters more right now.
- Heat is the fuel for daring. You use it to boost or to take a corner too fast, but every card you spend comes back to your hand later.
- Slipstream rewards those who drive right behind a rival, and the driver in last place gets Adrenaline, so the race stays tight all the way to the finish.
- Four tracks and advanced rules with car upgrades, weather and a championship keep the game fresh for a long time.
Who is Heat: Pedal to the Metal for
The game is for 1 to 6 players aged 10 and up, and a race lasts 30 to 60 minutes. It is medium-light, and players on BoardGameGeek like it best with five or six. The basic rules come in a separate booklet and you will have them down within one race. If there are fewer of you, the advanced rules let you add automated opponents, and you can also play against them solo. The game has no text. Anyone who dislikes risk and the occasional bad luck with cards will prefer a calmer game.
What's in the box
- 2 double-sided game boards with 4 tracks (USA, France, Great Britain, Italy)
- 6 race cars, 6 gear pawns and 6 player mats
- 72 Speed cards, 48 Heat cards and 37 Stress cards
- 114 Upgrade cards, 35 Sponsorship cards, 10 Legends cards and 10 Event cards
- Legends and Championship boards, weather and road conditions tokens
- a score pad and 2 rulebooks
