Vivaldi

About this board game

Vivaldi is a five-player trick-taking game that lasts about 20 minutes, restoring the traditional Italian game Briscola Chiamata, also known as five-men briscola.

The game begins with an auction. This opening contest decides the strong set for the match, creating an important foundation for the tricks that follow and giving players an early strategic challenge.

The auction winner does not face the table alone. Instead, the winner plays alongside a hidden friend against the other three players, creating an unusual team structure in which one alliance is not fully known from the start.

Vivaldi preserves the character of the old ruleset while presenting it through a good-looking new set of cards. The result connects a traditional Italian card game with a refreshed presentation.

The game also introduces a more intuitive points system. Alongside making scoring easier to understand, this system deepens the mathematical and strategic decisions throughout the match.

For players interested in the core experience, Vivaldi combines:

• A traditional Italian trick-taking ruleset
• An auction that determines the strong set
• A winner paired with a hidden friend
• An intuitive points system with added mathematical depth

Released in 2019, Vivaldi offers a compact five-player experience built around bidding, changing information, alliances, and calculated play. Its blend of familiar tradition and updated presentation makes it a focused interpretation of five-men briscola.