PASS

About this board game

PASS is a ladder-climbing card game for 2–5 players that plays in about 15 minutes. In each round, players compete to play increasingly valuable sets while deciding when to pass and save a useful PASS token for later.

The game includes 65 dual-indexed cards. Each card has a value on both halves, with possible values ranging from A to K, and may have an upgraded side with another value. During setup, the cards are shuffled and dealt into decks of exactly 13 cards, then players randomly choose a deck as their hand. The player holding the “START 2” card begins.

On a turn, the active player chooses one of two actions:

• Play: Choose cards that form a defined set and play them to the table. The set must be higher-ranking than the current set, unless it matches the value and the player exhausts a PASS token.
• Pass: Take a PASS token for use during a future turn to augment a played set or turn one card in a played set to its upgraded side.

Players may continue to challenge the current play with the same type of set at the same value, but each successive challenge requires one more exhausted PASS token. This makes every pass a potential future advantage—and a resource that can determine who can stay in the ladder.

When a player gets rid of their entire hand, they gain a victory token. All cards are then reshuffled and dealt again for the next round. The first player to collect three victory tokens wins. Released in 2023, PASS combines evolving card values, set comparison, and carefully timed passes in a compact race to victory.