祓魂 (Haratama)

About

Players are spirit mediums who have been possessed by terrifying evil spirits and fallen into darkness. As new exorcists arrive to rescue them, the possessed mediums fight back, trying to repel their would-be saviors while avoiding the dangerous power of three sacred treasures. Yet a small remnant of reason remains: with enough sacrifice, the power of those treasures may trigger a soul-cleansing exorcism and allow a player to regain themselves. Haratama is a trick-taking game for 3–4 players, played in about 20–30 minutes. It is described as a simple must-follow trick-taking game with no trump suit, where players try to push penalty cards onto opponents. However, collecting many penalty cards may also create the possibility of a sudden comeback, giving the game a twist beyond standard avoidance-style trick-taking.