Xylotar Unhinged

The 1980s pulsed with energy and endless variety in music. It ushered in synthesizers that brought shimmering textures, pounding bass, and new dance grooves. Keytar-wielding players rocked the stage. Even metal bands like Judas Priest embraced the trend for two records. Xylotar channels that electric 80s vibe, expanding 2024’s hit trick-taking game into a retro music charged tabletop experience.

Christopher Wray designed the Xylotar Unhinged expansion, with art by Davi Comodo. Bézier Games publishes it for 2–5 players, ages 12+.

Xylotar Base Game Overview

If you’ve never played the Xylotar (base game) before here’s a little info on gameplay. First, the Xylotar itself is a make-believe instrument—a cross between a keytar and a xylophone. In the game, a row of face-down cards in front of you represents your Xylotar, and players face off in a colorful, music-inspired trick-taking contest using them. At the start, you secretly arrange your cards from highest to lowest in your hand, and pass them to your left. You never see your own hand again but you know what you passed. Then, you’ll take the cards you received and spread them out from right-to-left for your Xylotar.

Each suit has its own number range, from small values in suits like Pink 0-3 to higher values in suits such as Red, which tops out at 10.

A round starts off with a player revealing a card to kick off the trick. Then, in turn others must follow suit and reveal a card if possible. Red (4p) or Yellow (3p) cards are trump and can help you steal the win. Mid-round, you’ll peek at two adjacent cards to make a bid on how many tricks you’ll take. At the end of the round, players will score one point per trick they won and an extra five if they hit their bid. After three rounds the highest total score wins. That player struck the perfect chord between 80’s synth-rock flair and xylophone precision.

Xylotar Unhinged

Xylotar Unhinged includes two expansions: Bonus Beats and Off-Key. Add them individually or together to the base game.

Bonus Beats Setup & Gameplay

To set up Bonus Beats, remove cards from the Bonus Beats deck based on player count. Shuffle and deal the Xylotar cards like normal. Once players arrange their received cards face down to form a Xylotar, deal each player two Bonus Beats cards face-down. Players keep these hidden until they play them, though they may look at their own at any time. The game then continues as usual, with players revealing cards to play tricks.

Players may use one Bonus Beat per round. To activate it, flip it over, read it aloud, and apply its effect. Abilities often have timing requirements such as: “before you play your first card,” “immediately after your bid,” or “immediately after you play any card.”

If you reveal a Bonus Beat but don’t use it, leave it face up and you cannot play the other card. At the end of the round, discard all revealed Bonus Beats. You may play any unused card in later rounds. If a player finishes round three without using either Bonus Beat, they score one bonus point.

Off-Key Setup & Gameplay

Shuffle the Off-Key cards into the base Xylotar deck, removing any cards specified for the current player count. Then, place one random card of each color face down off to the side to use in the next round when shuffling. Finally deal cards and play as normal.

Each Off-Key card has a value half a point lower than the highest card of its color. For example, green ranges 0–7, so its Off-Key is 6½, while red ranges 0–10 so its Off-Key is 9½. Off-Key cards are a dual-edged item; they can win or lose you a trick. For example, a 9½ beats a nine but loses to a ten.

When bidding, halves round down, so a bid of 4½ counts as a bid of four.

At the end of the round, each ½ card you’ve taken in tricks reduces your score by one point, so avoid capturing them if you can! 

Impressions

We popped in Xylotar like a mixtape, and it’s been on repeat ever since. Its fun theme and the thrill of flipping cards to reveal their value keep us hooked—I love that dopamine rush every time. After just one round, the gameplay clicks, making it easy to teach new players. With no complex iconography to learn and a color-blind friendly design (each suit uses a different musical note) it’s accessible to everyone.

If you remember what you passed to the left, you can plan your plays more carefully. And when two Xylotar cards of the same color sit side-by-side, the rightmost is always lower, giving you a bit of open knowledge to use.

The age for Xylotar is about right at 10+, unless your kiddos have been playing trick-taking games since they could hold cards. With the Unhinged expansion, I’d say it would skew a little higher due to some of the complexities of Bonus Beats.

There’s Not Only One Way To Rock!

If you already own Xylotar, do you need the Unhinged expansion? The answer is it depends. If you have a million trick-taking games, maybe not. If you already have Xylotar and love it, I say heck yeah. After playing several games with the expansions, I’d say both parts are always worth including.

Bonus Beats add situational player powers. There were some games that the Beat didn’t fire off. In this case, you still get an extra point if it goes unused. This mini-expansion is for serious gamers who want a little extra complexity—it’s simply another element to watch for and use at the right moment. A few require extra planning, for example, “when you lead, point to a different player instead” or “score 8 points for a successful 0 bid.”  I loved the extra chance to pull off something cool with Bonus Beats, and the surprise factor against opponents always feels great!

Off-Key adds a playful twist: avoid winning tricks with those pesky ½ cards! One strategy might be to dodge them by burning your trump cards early to reduce your risk of winning them. The fun in Off-Key comes from sticking your opponents with the negative points. And if you’re lucky enough to flip one as a bid, they don’t count against you.

Ready to rock? Grab Xylotar and the Unhinged Expansion from Bézier Games, your local game store, or on Amazon.

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The Family Gamers received a review copy of Xylotar Unhinged from Bezier Games for this review.

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