Singapore Showdown Board Game Review

Jim Gamer
53 minutes ago
4 min read

Singapore Showdown

WBG Score: 7.5

Player Count: 2-5

You’ll like this if you like: Drafting with set collection

This is a review copy. See our review policy here

We recently reviewed Peranakan on WBG. It's a delightful tile laying game with some great scoring options. The designer of that game also made this drafting set collection game. Both will be officially released at the UKGE in 2026. Much like Peranakan, the game celebrates Singaporean culture. But where Peranakan focuses on the food, Singapore Showdown highlights and places and the animals. Let's get it to the table and see how it plays.

How To Set Up Singapore Showdown

First, place the main board in the centre of the playing area. Next, choose one of the four sets of scoring tiles: A, B, C, or D. Collect a tile in each colour from your chosen set and place them face up in the corresponding area on the main board. Then, give each player a 50-point token and a character piece in their selected colour, and have each player place their character on the starting zero space on the points track. After that, deal each player their cards: 10 cards for a two or three-player game, eight cards for a four-player game, and seven cards for a five-player game. You are now ready to begin.

How To Play Singapore Showdown

Players will now draft one card from their hand. Simply take one card and place it face down in front of you. Once everyone has chosen, flip over your selected card. Then, pass the remaining cards to the right and take the card handed to you from the player on your left. Repeat this process by choosing one card from your new hand of nine cards, and then pass the remaining cards (now eight) to your right again. Continue this until you choose one card from two, at which point everyone will discard the final unselected card.

Players will now score the seven scoring tiles set on the main board during setup. This scoring could depend on having the most icons on the cards compared to others, or the player who gathered the most cards related to a specific area on the board, among other classic set collection scoring methods. Some scoring options are "first to" scenarios, meaning they will score during the round if a player meets the specific requirements of those scoring tiles.

Players will then secretly pick one of their nine cards to keep for the next round, new cards will be dealt out, and the drafting and scoring phase will happen for a second time, now with one extra card. After the second round, the player with the most points wins.

Is It Fun? Singapore Showdown Board Game Review

Singapore Showdown feels like the kind of game you can teach in about five minutes, then spend the next half hour quietly enjoying how much it gives you for something so straightforward. It’s a drafting and set collection game that leans into that lovely “pick one, pass the rest” rhythm, with just enough tension to keep every decision interesting.

You are not buried in rules, you are simply making small, punchy decisions over and over: what do I want, what do I deny, what might come back around, and what am I trying to build toward? It’s accessible in the best way. Lighter family gamers will be able to jump in fast, because the core loop is familiar and satisfying, and the game does a nice job of making scoring the “meat” without making the play feel complex. You draft, reveal, pass, repeat, and then you cash it all out against the scoring tiles. Two rounds, a clear finish line, and enough interaction to keep everyone watching what the others are up to without turning it into a mean game.

What gives Singapore Showdown real legs is the flexibility baked into the setup. Four different sets of scoring tiles means the game can tilt in different directions depending on which set you choose, and that’s exactly the kind of simple modularity that keeps a light drafting game from going stale. Add the 72 cards in the deck, and you have a lot of variety in what shows up, what scoring tiles become possible, and which strategies feel viable from game to game. Some scoring being “first to” is also a smart touch, because it injects moments of urgency into an otherwise calm drafting flow. Suddenly you are not just collecting, you are racing, and that changes what you pick, when you pick it, and how much you care about denying someone else a key card.

Pros

Drafting plus set collection is quick, punchy, and consistently fun.
Very easy to learn, teach, and play, with a friendly family-weight feel.
Four scoring tile sets and 72 cards give it strong replayability for its size.

Cons

If you want deep engine building or long-term strategy, it may feel too light.
The scoring tile effects chosen will matter a lot, so a group that dislikes “compare and score” might not engage as much.
Two rounds can end right as some players feel they are getting into a groove.

Overall, Singapore Showdown sounds like a cheerful, approachable drafting game with enough variability and tactical choice to make it more than a one-and-done filler. The cultural celebration angle gives it character, the scoring tiles give it flexibility, and the drafting does what good drafting should: it makes you care about one card at a time. If you’ve got family gamers, newer players, or anyone who likes clean decisions and tidy scoring, this one looks like a winner. It’s simple, snappy, and full of little moments where your perfect pick turns into someone else’s problem.