Hollywood Card Game First Impressions

Hollywood: Draft Day, Backdraft, Undrafted, Rough Draft, Final Draft, Caught in the Draft…

Draft a film!

In the movie-making game Hollywood, each player is a studio boss who tries to produce the most successful blockbuster. Players construct movies from game cards that they draft or purchase. Players compete to get the most popular stars to perform in their movies because this brings them more money and more Hollywood Awards (which are pictured on some cards).

This is a drafting game, but the more interesting part is it’s one of those games where you have to use the money to bid for things, but money is your score…

You each start with $12 million (or 12 points). The game starts with a distribution of ‘Star’ cards. These are cards just like the normal cards you’ll draft but they are clearly better.

In the first round, a random player draws 1 per player and hands them out. While this may sound like an advantage, it really isn’t. There are very few BETTER cards, just good ones.

After this happens you draft cards. Each player gets 7 and you take one, pass on etc etc

There are a few types of cards, each helping with scoring…

Film Requirements

Script – These determine the type of film for scoring. Each script has a symbol which tells you the type of script. Comedy, Action, Thriller or Romance.

While a script can give you a lot of points, you may not have one. If you don’t you can pick up a ‘Worthless Script’ which doesn’t have a symbol on it.

Director – You NEED to have one of these to make a film. He will also have one or two symbols which you can combo with the script.

Actor/Actress – You NEED one of these too. Either will do or any combination of two, but no more than two. Again, symbols for scoring but they can have all 4 of them.

Crew Cards – You can have any number of these and they combo with other cards.

After drafting, you bid on Star cards. There are X face up, one per player and a blind draw. Each player secretly picks one using a token and bets a number using a money card. Everyone reveals simultaneously and everyone loses the amount of money they bid, even if you lose.

If you tie or don’t get a card you bid again… and again until everyone has a card. This can cost you A LOT of points!

Scoring

Then you lay out your film/s and scoring occurs.

In a film you get…

1 point per card used
X points for each symbol that matches the script symbol times itself
4 points if you have a leading duo (Actor and Actress)
X points for any money printed in the top right of the card
X points for bonuses from crew cards

Then the person who has the most award statues on the cards in a film gets a little wooden award! This is used at the end of the game which occurs after 3 rounds.

You get a point for each award statue on cards you used throughout the game times by the number of award statues you have, most points win.

Hollywood Summary

While not as in-depth as a 7 Wonders, Hollywood outdoes those lighter drafting games by having fun with simple gameplay. There is more to it than a game like Sushi Go or Medieval Academy and it’s much more straightforward than Fairy Tale.

We only played with 3 players so I’m looking forward to playing this with 5 or the full 6.

Jesta ThaRogue