Saturday, August 24, 2013

PEZ Card Game

Today I finally got the PEZ Card Game!  It came out in 2000 and is no longer made, so I picked it up from eBay.  I got the "Starter Deck", which consists of 129 cards (100 flavor cards and 29 dispenser cards), play mat, and instructions.  The seller also included some extra dispenser cards.  There are 200 possible dispenser cards and I have 32 of them.  Each dispenser card has a number from 1 to 200 in the lower left.

"Booster packs" consist of 9 dispenser cards.  Back when the game was being sold in stores, the Starter Deck was $10 and Booster Packs were $2 each.


The game is designed for 2 to 4 players, but it's possible to play with more than 4 players by following the special steps in the instructions.

Below are scans of the unique number dispenser cards I own plus scans of the flavor cards.  There are four flavors (strawberry, lemon, orange, and grape) with 25 cards of each.  I like how the dispensers are drawn in a fun way, many times doing some kind of activity.  Kind of makes you smile looking at them, which is the same feeling I get with PEZ dispensers.

On the back of the instructions is a list of the 200 dispensers.  The list gives the dispenser number, name, rarity, points, and action/text.
  • Rarity.  There are 4 kinds: Common (64), Uncommon (66), Rare (66), and Ultra Rare (4).  Scroll down to the very bottom for pictures from eBay of 3 of the 4 Ultra Rare cards.  I don't own any Ultra Rare cards, but these 3 sold on eBay recently for between $20 and $40 each!
  • Points.  Points per dispenser range from -1 (Witch, Policeman, and Sheriff) to 20 (Pig Whistle and Ringmaster).  Points are not based on rarity, but the flavors on the card and the difficulty of getting them in order (the secret point formula is detailed in Part 1 of the YouTube videos below).  The points on a dispenser card with an Action is reduced by how powerful the action is.  For instance, the Witch card has a very powerful Action ("You can steal a Dispenser card that is being worked on by an opponent by playing the next required Flavor card on it.  Keep Witch with stolen card.") so the points are -1.
  • Action and Text.  Some (about 60) dispenser cards have text on the bottom.  These cards are always an advantage for the player and allow them to perform a special action or give them powers other players don't have.  As examples, see the Witch, Long Face Clown, and Zombie cards in the photos.
The object of the game is to be the first player to get 25 points.  Points are gained by completing a dispenser card.  To complete a dispenser card you need to play each flavor listed on the dispenser card from the top to bottom using your flavor cards.

Here are some interesting links related to the game:

A listing of all the 200 dispenser cards:  
http://www.momopez.com/dispenser.asp?KID=3&SID=133
  • Looking at the list, you'll notice that while there are 200 dispenser numbers there are only 100 unique dispensers.  Most of the dispensers are included twice (94 of these).  See the two Raven dispensers in the scans below for an example.  My guess is the the maker of the game wanted two of each so two players each have a chance of getting the same dispenser.  However, there are four dispensers that are included only once: Bubbleman, Coach Whistle, Donkey Whistle, Easter Bunny.  Then there are two dispensers that are included four times: He-Saur and Psychedelic Eye.
How to play the game:
http://www.pezopedia.com/games_cards.html

Video interviews with Mike Fitzgerald, the designer of the game:
Part 1:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1vVexnI8wwI
Part 2:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=odmzc_6eRAA



























Saturday, August 17, 2013

Safari (Kooky Zoo) Lion Variations (Update #2)

Last month I posted an update to my original post about Safari (Kooky Zoo) Lion Variations.  In that update I said "I'm now fairly certain there really are only 33 total variations.".  Well, I'm here now to happily say that I've been proven wrong.  

Another PEZhead, Bobby Acker, was kind enough to e-mail me photos of his amazing collection of 51 Safari (Kooky Zoo) Lion variations.  So with his permission I want to share these photos with you.  Enjoy!

Btw, you'll notice that the very last photo is missing the leftmost lion with a lavender left ear and red right ear.  Bobby said he does have that one, but it's just not pictured.  So that makes 52 Safari (Kooky Zoo) Lion head variations, impressive!

One last note, for those that use PezBase...  I added 18 missing photos there using Bobby's lions photos below.  One lingering variation in the list there, however, is the Clear Crystal Face, Brown Mane with both ears Clear Crystal.  As far as I can tell that variation doesn't exist, but I've been proven wrong before. :-)  If you have a photo of it please e-mail me.  Thanks.  The odd ball Clear Crystal Face, Purple Mane with both ears Clear Crystal does exist (shown below), so who knows...