Review – Everything Ever

Everything Ever is a party card game that’s about, you guessed it, everything ever. It’s in the same game family as Concentration, which you may remember from the pre-game song: “This is a game of concentration, no repeats or hesitation…” Is it everything it sets out to be, or is it nothing like it promises? 

Review

In Everything Ever, each card has a category on it, such as “Every Coffee Brand” or “Every River.” There will usually be 2 categories out, and players will go around in a circle and try to name something from each category that hasn’t already been named (Onyx and Arkansas River are respective example answers). There’s a bit more to it than that, but that’s the basics. The winner is the one with the most points using the formula: hand cards minus penalty cards. 

To begin, deal each player 3 cards. You’ll also create a deck of cards that the categories will come from (3 cards for each person go into the deck). Choose a start player, and that player has to name something from the 2 categories. Play proceeds around in a circle until someone can’t name something from both categories within the 10-second time limit. In this case, you can either play one of your hand cards onto 1 of the 2 category cards on the table, or you can take the category card as a penalty card. There’s some strategy here because sometimes category cards can stack up, so instead of just taking 1 card, you could end up taking the entire stack. 

There’s a few more nuances to know: if you can think of an answer that fits both of the categories (“Chrysanthemum” for “Every Chris” and “Every Flower”), you can either discard a penalty card from your stack or draw a new hand card from the deck and add a 3rd category card. This is fairly rare, so it’s super exciting when someone manages to get it, and then it’s super chaotic as everyone scrambles to name things from all 3 categories. 

The components are good, with fun illustrations for each category, and there are plenty of cards to keep things fresh. I do think it’s odd that more players make for a longer game (2-player games could be as short as 5 minutes), but you can easily adjust that through the card-dealing. The game also includes judge cards used for warnings if players give iffy answers. If someone receives 2 warnings, they’ll take a penalty card as usual!

Everything Ever is a simple party game that works as an excellent icebreaker or as a good ol’ time. The flexible player count allows it to be playable in most circumstances. Highly recommended for family gatherings or parties, but be warned: some won’t find the chaotic, fast-paced nature appealing. 

Floodgate Games kindly provided a review copy.