Into the Dragon's Cave

A series of six different games, all with the same gameplay:

Into the Dragon's Cave (fantasy); Into the Deserted Chapel (horror); Into the Domain of Capella (science fiction); Into the Dark Continent (Victorian adventure); Into the Dear Caress (romance); Into the Dream Centre (surrealism).

Each of them come in a ziplock bag with A4 sheets of cardstock. You have to cut out the 200 cards to create the game. The rules take up half a single sheet of the cardstock.

Before beginning, shuffle the cards and then choose the size of the deck used in the game. All 200 cards would make for a very long game and is not recommended except for masochists. The shortest variant is simply to use the initial six cards dealt you and no more. They also give estimated playing times for 50 and 100 cards.

Game play is reminiscent of Once Upon a Time. There are no "Happy Ever After" cards, however: you choose a card from your initial hand to be your ending card. The cards have phrases or single words on them, largely relevant to the individual genre. On your turn, you play a single card, weave it into the story, and then draw a card from the draw pile. Play then passes to the next player, who does the same. Players may boo and heckle your input, in which case you have to do it over. This game is definitely concerned more with the quality of story than competition.

In fact, victory conditions are very understated. Once the draw deck is finished and you've played your last card, on your turn you may then play your ending card, provided you can work it into the story sufficiently well (without getting disdain from your fellow players). You then win the game, but the game (story) doesn't end until everyone has finished with their cards, also!

Clearly not for competitive players, these games are more a pastime than a game.

The designers also list options for mixing the decks: romance in space or fantasy horror, for example.