Pillbox Games Side Effects: Unleash The Fun & Chaos Using Therapy & Medication in This Hit Card Game for 2 to 8 Players

Do yourself a favor and buy the expansion pack too, trust me. Great game to play with teens, it's slightly edgy but also destigmatizes mental illnesses by opening the door to discussion. The information is mostly accurate (pretty sure Madness isn't in the DSM). It is easy to learn, you'll just want to keep the instructions handy to refer back to so you can strategize. Shuffling with the expansion pack is no small feat, but well worth the time and effort. My kid love giving each other mental breakdowns and plotting revenge.We added a couple of our own house rules: (1) you can force a treatment on someone (and then give them one of the side effects after). (2) Made it so the Restock card also lets you discard your whole hand. We're still thinking of changing the punishment for Dry Mouth as it is pretty weak.We can't wait for the new Vice cards to be released!

We play a lot of games - basic ones and more high strategy ones. This game was actually pretty easy once you got the hang of it. It does take some slight strategy and you definitely have to pay attention to what cards you have and the disorders your opponents have. You cane cure yours, give others more disorders, or make them have an episode, but any action can backfire on you too.My adult son and I played and really enjoyed it! We laughed and had a good time. One game can be very quick or take a but if time - it just depends on the luck of the draw. This is definitely a game we can play over and over again.Pros:Easy to learnCan play with 2-10 people, so more options for group size. We have only played with two and it was fun.The artwork on the cards.It is fun.Cons:The cards are larger than regular cards and harder to shuffle.You have to separate out the disorders, shuffle and deal them out, and then shuffle them back in the deck each game. That is time consuming.Some complained about the fact that it calls out or makes fun of mental health. It is actually accurate on the treatments and side effects of them, so it isn't making fun and is realistic. Yes, players can give each other disorders and such and make it fun, but it is a game folks! I have a psychology degree and have family members with mental illness and I do not take offense to this game. If you do, don't play it.I highly recommend this game if you don't mind the content of it.

Side Effects initially caught my eye because of its cool art style. Its skeleton-mental health theme gives it a morbid (and often funny) aesthetic and the box art is gorgeous! The long, skinny "tarot" sized cards are lovely to hold and sturdy, with beautiful artwork on both sides and vertically mirrored effect text that makes it easy to read cards sitting across the table. This small format detail is incredibly important to gameplay.Mechanically speaking, Side Effects is a fabulous, fast-paced little card game with a kind of rock-paper-scissors dynamic! Because you need to sort out conditions to deal out each player's "psyche" and then reshuffle them into the deck, you are going to have to shuffle these cards A LOT, and I could see that wearing them out in the long term.Side Effects gives each player a psyche full of illnesses that they must treat. But treating them with medication leaves you vulnerable to other conditions, and while you're attempting to treat yourself you also need to prevent other players from outpacing you or penalizing you. There is a fair amount of strategy to be had here, but it is light enough to be quite beginner-friendly. The game dynamic causes quite a bit of laughter and playful "punishing" moments.For more seasoned board gamers, this game is a wonderful palate-cleanser between games or for the end of a gaming session!

My husband and I love this game. It is very fun and was easy to understand.

This game is so much fun!! We laughed, we yelled at each other, we sympathized with each other . . . but mostly we laughed and had fun! The rounds can be 10 minutes or 45 minutes. It just depends on how the cards fall. Highly recommend!!

We were pleased to find the positive messages and mental health resource links in the instructions. For a game that could be accused of making light of serious subjects, this was tastefully done and comes off as a positive not a negative.The cards look and feel a little like Tarot Cards in their size, card stock, and presentation.Game rules are not too difficult.Replayability, maybe middle of the road. This is a really clever game with a novel subject matter, and vary fun to show off to the right audience. Gameplay is a little like Mille Bornes but not as engaging.They use generic names of all the medications, to avoid copyright issues presumably. Sort of wish they could have used the more common names.Buy this one for the subject matter. The design and artwork is delightful. No regrets, go for it.

My husband and I are both psych professionals and we absolutely love this game. The card art work is beautiful, the gameplay is so much fun, the cards themselves are durable, and the base game box has enough room for the expansion pack!