Knockouts and Tapouts: The Mixed Martial Arts Card Game allows players to each customize a fighter in mere moments and then use strategies and tactics of their own design to engage in a fast-paced, easy-to-play, mixed martial arts contest.

Each player gets to quickly and easily choose and customize the kind of fighter that they want to be. You can make a striker, grappler or a balance of both, then choose your special styles and abilities and you're ready to go. You play through 3 quick phases. Each player rolls a die and adds any bonus they have to determine which of them is the most mobile on the current turn, then the player that wins mobility moves a marker to show the posture and range between the fighters. (Short Range, Long Range, Full Guard, Half Guard etc...) He then plays a card vs his opponent. The card could be a punch, a kick, an elbow, a neck hold, or any number of various special moves. You roll dice and use your fighter's strengths combined with his position to instantly determine the success level of the attack. Your opponent then does the same to you. You each then refill your hand and attempt to recover from any damage you may currently have. You keep repeating the process until the round ends (the draw deck is empty).

The really exciting thing is that the game can end at any moment, just like in a real mixed martial arts match. If you catch your opponent with a devastating strike or lock in a powerful hold, the match ends instantly in a knockout or a tapout. Both players are on the edge of their seats throughout the whole game knowing that it could be all over at any second. You can also wear down your foe until the ref stops the fight because one fighter is unable to intelligently defend himself (He's taken too much damage). Another way to win is that successful attack cards set aside during each round count as points from the "judges" to determine a winner if the fight "Goes the distance."

You can play the game over and over again because you can design a unique fighter every time you play. There are so many different cards that no two matches are ever the same. Most matches between experienced players are finished within about 10 or 15 minutes, so you get to play multiple matches per game session. Alot of attention was put into writing the instructions. Only one person really needs to read them. The game comes with a Quick Reference Card that you can use to teach somebody how to play quickly. The game is designed to fit into a pocket. You can fit the whole game into a little plastic sandwich bag or one of those little plastic boxes that you buy to hold sports trading cards.

Each match is decided between 2 players, but the game is ideal for multi-player tournaments. Having multiple copies of the game (One for each pair of players) is recommended but not absolutely necessary because of the short playing time and the game's rare quality of being so exciting to watch even if your not in the current match being played.

What you get...
The game is simply a 90 card deck. 2 cards are not used for playing. 8 of the cards create a full color easy-to-use play chart. 1 card contains cutout counters (but you can use anything for counters). 8 of the cards (along with the counters) are used to create your fighter. 8 cards contain the instructions (English only). 2 cards provide a quick reference of the instructions for each player during play. 61 cards make up a playing deck packed with exciting B&W photos of all your favourite MMA techniques. You need 6 regular six-sided dice (not normally included).

Games