A new card game, released on 2nd October, 2024, is now available to play on Steam. If you enjoy playing tabletop games where lying and bluffing lead you to victory, Curve Animation’s Liar’s Bar is exactly what you need. The game is already set to have a 15% discount until October 9, priced at $5.94.
Story
Liar’s Bar is an absolutely fun game, teaching you when to bluff, when to catch someone’s lie, and how to apply strategy to win. You join a table of four, preferably with your friends, where you can choose between two popular game types, Liar’s Deck and Liar’s Dice:
Liar’s Deck
In the Liar’s Deck game, your mission is to get rid of the cards you have. There are 6 Kings, 6 Queens, 6 Aces, and 2 Jokers, all randomly distributed among the players, and each round, the game chooses one particular type of card. The Jokers are the Wild Cards, meaning they can be played on any card type.
You will have 5 cards in your hand. When it’s your turn, it’s your choice to play the real card or bluff. You can only play up to 3 cards. The next person has a chance to either continue playing with the current card type or call you out as a liar. If they call you out and are correct, meaning you bluffed, there are consequences.
In front of each player, there is a revolver with only one bullet in its six chambers. This could remind you of the Russian Roulette scenario, where your luck decides your fate. Whenever you bluff and someone calls you out, or you catch someone’s lie, the loser points the gun at themselves and pulls the trigger, hoping they won’t die. The game moves on until only one player is left alive.
Liar’s Dice
The Liar’s Dice game is more complicated and arduous than Liar’s Deck. Each player has a cup containing five dice. They shake the cup and place it upside down on the table to see what numbers there are on each dice. Make sure to not let the player sitting next to you see your dice, as they hilariously can. In Liar’s Deck, you can’t see anyone’s card unless you die.
The rule here is to set a bid based on your dice and a guess about the others’. Once you set a bid, like ”2 Fours”, the next player can either increase the number to 3 or above while staying at Four, or set a higher value of the dice itself, such as ”2 Sixes”, meaning you believe there are at least 2 Sixes on the table, or alternatively call you a liar.
This time, in front of each player, there are two bottles of Arsenic poison. The loser must drink the bottle, meaning that, unlike Liar’s Deck, your destiny solely relies on your tactics, as you only have two lives. The last player standing wins the game.
Gameplay Mechanics
Liar’s Bar offers a super-friendly gameplay system for players. In the main menu, you can easily select from four different characters, Bristle pig, Toar bull, Scubby dog, and Foxy fox, alongside choosing your desired game mode.
The challenge begins when the game takes you to a bar. While other customers are having their time, you and your squad are playing Russian Roulette. The bartender is serving drinks, a monkey is playing the guitar, and no one seems to care about what’s happening at your table.
While you are playing the game, for instance Liar’s Deck, the game gives you hints in the bottom-right corner of your screen to remind you of the rules. On the top-right, when it’s your turn, you can readily see the options you have, specifically how many bullets you have survived. Simply, you can pick an option to proceed with the round.
The smooth camera movement makes the game even more realistic, allowing you to look around and see other players. But, catching someone’s bluff based on their poker face doesn’t work here. The visuals are even more natural when you have to shoot yourself, as others are watching you committing suicide.
The character animations when throwing the cards, shaking the dice cups, punching the table and shouting ”Liar”, drinking the poison, and shooting themselves with the revolver have all been designed perfectly. Also, the dialogues randomly characters deliver add even more fun. For example, when committing suicide, Foxy says: ”Beauty and luck. Let’s hope I have both”, or when you throw three cards of the same type, Scubby says: ”Three cards? Someone’s got a death wish”.
Despite a few minor flaws the game has, such as slightly less proper animation when pointing the gun, which will surely be enhanced in upcoming updates, alongside bringing new characters and game modes, Liar’s Bar is a perfect example of a funny tabletop game where dishonesty could lead to your death.
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