Uno Variation: Time Bomb

Rules

For this variation, all Draw 2 and Draw 4 cards are time bombs and don't take effect immediately after played.

For a 2 player game, the fuse is set at 3 and counts down for every turn after the card is played. For example: P1 plays a Draw 2 card (fuse: 3) → P2 takes turn (fuse: 2) → P1 takes turn (fuse: 1) → time bomb explodes on P2 who then draws 2 cards. If you play with a Stacking rule, the fuse is not set until the a player actually draws cards.

For a 3+ player game, the fuse is set at 2. For example: P1 plays a Draw 4 (fuse: 2) → P2 takes turn (fuse: 1) → time bomb explodes on P3 who draws 4 cards.

The key to this variation is that Skip and Reverse cards affect who will end up drawing cards. For example, in a 3 player game: P1 plays a Draw 2 (fuse: 2) → P2 plays a Reverse card (fuse: 1) → time bomb explodes on P1 who draws 2 cards.

Advantages

This variation balances out the action cards in the game, taking some power away from the Draw 2 and Draw 4 cards and adding some power to Skip and Reverse cards. The game is also more unpredictable and dangerous knowing that the time bombs can also hurt the person who plays the Draw 2 or Draw 4 card.

Disadvantages

In its current form, this variation may be more trouble than it is worth. It can be very difficult to keep track of the time on the bomb(s) and takes enough effort that it can become the controlling feature of the game at the expense of game play.

Review

This variation has the potential to shake up traditional Uno. Feel free to try it out and if you think of ways to make this variation better, please leave them in the comments.

Additional Notes

• For changing fuse lengths, you can roll a die at the beginning of the game to set the fuse length.
• Fuse lengths can also be applied to Wild, Skip, and Reverse cards, but doing so takes away the power of the Skip and Reverse cards to alter the course of the bomb.