Bang! takes its players to the days of the Wild West, where a gun did the talking and the Sheriff maintained law and order. Each player is secretly given a role to play in the Wild West and these consist of the Sheriff, Deputy, Outlaws and a Renegade. The numbers of each role will vary with the number of players and this helps to maintain the gaming balance. Only the Sheriff reveals themself, whilst all other players keep their identities hidden. To win the game the Sheriff and his Deputies must kill all the Outlaws and the Renegade. For the Outlaws to win they must kill the Sheriff. For the Renegade to win they must kill everyone else and be the last person standing. Therefore, players can begin to identify each other based on who opens fire on whom - highly enjoyable. Before play begins each player is also given a character at random. Each character has a name like Willy the Kid and they bestow a special ability on the player that break the standard game rules in some way. Each character has a number of life points (3 or 4) and when these reach zero the player is dead and out of the game.
Each player begins their turn by drawing 2 cards from the deck and adds them to their starting hand (a number of cards equal to the character's life). They can then play any number of cards to protect themselves or weaken the players around them. A 'Bang!' card allows a player to shoot another player, but only if they are in range. Players sitting adjacent to each other are at range 1 For each extra space a player is away from you, their range increases by 1. All players start the game with a basic gun that can shoot at 1 range, but other guns can be acquired during the game to allow long distance attacks. If a Bang! card is used then the target player can play a Missed! card from their hand to avoid the bullet. If they can't then they take a point of damage, which may result in death. Play continues in such fashion until 1 player can meet their win conditions for themselves or their team.

Don't be alarmed if Bang! seems complicated based on the above explanation - nothing could be further from the truth. Bang! is simply one of those games that is easier to learn through play than it is through explanation. In fact Bang! only seems complex because it offers players so many options on each turn - and this is one hallmark of any great game. Once you become familiar with the basic game design, all those options will start to really grow on you. The deck of cards offers a stack of other cards and features but I will allow you to discover these. The play is fun from start to finish and death is usually laughed at, as a new game never takes long to get underway. The expansion Bang! Dodge City is also highly recommended, although first time players will find it easier to play the base game first and add Dodge City when they are ready. Fancy a Duel!…Partner?