# Codenames: Pictures ## General Info - **Year Published**: 2016 - **BGG Rating**: 7.2 - **BGG Rank**: #506 - **Players**: 2-8 (Best with: 6) - **Duration**: 15 min - **Weight**: 1.24 / 5 - **Designers**: Vlaada Chvátil - **Artists**: David Cochard, Dávid Jablonovský, Jana Kilianová, Martin "Skam" Krejčí, Štěpán Drašťák, Tomáš Kučerovský - **Publishers**: Czech Games Edition (CGE), Boardgame Space, Brain Games, Cranio Creations, Devir, DiceTree Games - **Categories**: Card Game, Deduction, Party Game, Spies / Secret Agents - **Mechanics**: Communication Limits, Memory, Team-Based Game ## Verdict If you're looking for a quick, engaging party game that tests your lateral thinking, Codenames: Pictures is a fantastic choice that brings a fresh visual twist to the beloved word association formula. Visually stimulating clue-giving and deduction Excellent for diverse player counts Quick to learn, easy to teach Engaging, tense team competition Can be frustrating with poor clues Less strategic depth than heavier games RECOMMENDED ## Description Codenames: Pictures throws you into the heart of a secret war where communication is key... and your biggest challenge! Imagine a map filled with enigmatic symbols. Each one hides a secret agent your team needs to contact before the rival team does. Two spymasters, one from each side, are the only ones who know the identity and location of every agent. Their mission? To give single-word clues to their field operatives, who must decipher these visual hints to find their allied agents. But beware! A decoding mistake could lead your operatives to an unpleasant encounter with an enemy agent, or worse, with the dreaded assassin, which ends the game immediately. It's a race against time and against your opponent's intelligence. Who will be cleverer at cracking the codes and contacting all their agents first? The big twist in Codenames: Pictures, which sets it apart from the original Codenames, is that agents are no longer represented by words, but by images. And these images are packed with details, elements, and possible interpretations, making the challenge of giving and receiving clues even more intriguing and fun. Get ready to exercise your creativity and visual association skills, because here, a picture is worth a thousand words... and can mean victory or defeat! ## How to Play How to Play Codenames: Pictures Welcome, secret agents, to the thrilling world of Codenames: Pictures! Get ready to put your deductive skills and creative thinking to the test in this exciting game of hidden identities and clever clues. As an editor at BoardGameBot, I'm here to guide you through the ins and outs of becoming a master spymaster or a sharp-witted operative. Let's dive in! Objective of the Game In Codenames: Pictures, two rival spy organizations are trying to make contact with their secret agents. Your goal is to be the first team to identify all of your team's agents among a grid of seemingly random pictures. Only your spymaster knows who is hiding where, and they'll be giving one-word clues to guide you. But be careful! Guessing an innocent bystander will end your turn, guessing an opposing agent helps the other team, and guessing the dreaded assassin means immediate defeat! Work together, think creatively, and outsmart your opponents to claim victory! Preparation (Setup) Getting ready for a game of Codenames: Pictures is quick and easy. Follow these steps to set up your mission: Split into 2 Teams: Organize players into two teams of roughly the same size, with at least two players on each team. Choose Spymasters and Operatives: Each team selects one player to be their spymaster. The remaining players are operatives. The orange and purple spymasters should sit on the same side of the table, opposite their own operatives. Lay Out 20 Random Pictures: Mix up the picture cards, choose 20 at random, and lay them out in a 5x4 grid. Ensure all cards are oriented the same way. Choose the orientation that best fits your group. Spymasters Draw a Random Key Card: Spymasters secretly choose one key card randomly from the deck. This card reveals the secret identities of the 20 pictures. Slide it into the stand between the spymasters, oriented the same as the 5x4 grid of pictures. Only the spymasters see the key card! Spymasters Take the Tiles: The orange spymaster takes the 7 orange agent tiles, and the purple spymaster takes the 7 purple agent tiles. Place the 4 bystander tiles and 1 assassin tile in between the spymasters. Give the Double Agent to the Starting Team: The triangles on the top and bottom of the key card indicate which team starts. The starting team has one additional picture to guess. Flip the double agent tile to their color and add it to their agent tiles. The Turn of Play Teams take turns, starting with the team indicated by the key card. Turns continue until one team wins. Here's how a turn unfolds: The Spymaster Gives One Clue: If you are the spymaster, your turn begins by trying to find a clue for one or more pictures in your team’s color. More is better! Your clue must be 1 word and 1 number. For example, "evolution: 2" could be a good clue for two related pictures. The word must be related to the pictures you want to give a clue for. The number tells your operatives how many pictures your clue relates to. Spymaster Etiquette: Spymasters must keep a straight face and give away no more information than the one word and one number. Do not preface your clue with additional comments or react to your operatives' discussions. The Operatives May Make Multiple Guesses: The operatives should take a moment to discuss the clue. Then, one of the operatives must make a guess by touching one of the cards. The spymaster covers the picture with a tile matching the color shown on the key card. If you guess a picture in your own color: You may guess again. (You get another guess, not another clue.) The "Plus One" Rule: As long as operatives keep guessing pictures of their own color, they are allowed to guess one more card than the number specified by the clue. So for "glass: 3", operatives can make up to 4 guesses. This extra guess can be used to guess a picture missed from a previous turn's clue. Operative Etiquette: Operatives should focus on the table when making guesses and avoid eye contact with the spymaster to prevent nonverbal cues. When Your Turn Ends: Your turn can end in one of three ways: You Choose to End Your Turn: If your turn does not end with a wrong guess, you can end it voluntarily. For example, if you were given "glass: 3" and found 2 good pictures, but guessing a third seems too risky, you can end your turn after 2 (or even 1) correct guesses. You are required to make at least 1 guess. A Wrong Guess Ends Your Turn: If you guess an innocent bystander, your turn ends. If you guess the other team’s picture, your turn ends, and you have helped the other team! If you guess the assassin, you immediately lose the game! You Use the "Plus One" Rule: If you've made all your allowed guesses (including the "plus one" if applicable) and correctly identified all intended pictures, your turn ends. Other Team's Turn: When your turn ends, it is the other team's turn. Expert Rules (Optional) Unlimited Clue: Instead of a number, you can say your clue is "unlimited" (e.g., "tiny: unlimited"). This allows your operatives to make as many guesses as they want, as long as they keep guessing right. Zero Clue: A clue like "reptiles: 0" also allows unlimited guesses (ignoring the "plus one" rule). This means "Don't guess the picture (or pictures) related to reptiles." This can be a clever way to guide your team towards other cards by eliminating certain options. End of Game and Scoring The game continues with teams taking turns until one team wins. Here's how to achieve victory: Win by Guessing All Your Agents: When your team has no pictures left to guess (meaning you've covered all your agents with your team's color tiles), your team wins! This often happens by guessing your last picture on your turn. Win by Opponent's Mistake: You can also win if the other team accidentally guesses your last picture on their turn. Win by Assassin: You immediately win if the other team guesses the assassin. Tips for Winning To become a top-tier spymaster or an elite operative, keep these tips in mind: Spymasters: Balance Risk and Reward with Clues: While giving a clue for one picture can be simple, try to find creative clues that link multiple pictures of your color. However, don't overdo it! A clue that is too abstract or ambiguous can lead your operatives astray and potentially cost you the game by hitting an innocent bystander, an opponent's agent, or worse, the assassin. Aim for 2-3 pictures per clue for a good balance. Operatives: Discuss and Analyze Thoroughly: Don't rush your guesses! Take your time to discuss the spymaster's clue with your teammates. Consider all possible interpretations of the word and how it might relate to the pictures on the grid. Remember, you can guess pictures from previous clues, so keep those in mind as well. Spymasters: Embrace Wordplay (Carefully): In Codenames: Pictures, all wordplay is allowed! You can use "knight" to lead your teammates to a picture with a moon and a picture with a person in armor. This can be a powerful tool for connecting disparate images, but ensure your operatives are on the same wavelength. If there's any doubt about a clue being a single word, ask the opposing spymaster for clarification. You now know the rules! Go forth and play Codenames: Pictures! ## FAQ ### How many players can play Codenames: Pictures? The game is super flexible and works well with 2 to 8 players, being ideal for larger groups where team dynamics truly shine. ### What is the average game length? A game is quick! It usually takes between 15 and 30 minutes, making it perfect for multiple rounds or to fill a short time slot. ### Is it a complex game to learn? Not at all! The complexity is quite low (BGG weight of 1.2388). The rules are easy to understand and teach, allowing everyone to jump into the fun quickly. ### What comes in the game box? The box typically contains image cards, key cards, a key card stand, agent cards in two colors, double agent cards, an assassin card, and a rulebook. Everything you need to start your espionage! ### Is Codenames: Pictures good for those who already know the original Codenames? Absolutely! If you already love the original Codenames, the Pictures version offers a refreshing experience and a new challenge, as clues are based on images, not words. It's a great addition to your collection. ### What is the main difference between Codenames: Pictures and the original Codenames? The key difference lies in the agent cards: in the original Codenames, they are words. In Codenames: Pictures, they are images. 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