Double Smitten: Enjoying Both Games and Connected Art
Create a pair of beautiful panoramic views with a selection of cards and abilities by carefully timing each choice in Smitten.
Although I ended my cozy game marathon, I was feeling under the weather and had little brain power to play anything… And yet, there were a few new arrivals! Smitten and Smitten 2 seemed like the right choice for an evening when I wasn’t up to doing much, but still wanted to explore this simple set of rules. Plus, look at the excellent art! Onto arranging cards.
Game Overview
Game Names: Smitten & Smitten 2
Publication Years: 2022 & 2025
Designers: Ryan S. Davis & Jamey Stegmaier
Artists: Vincent Dutrait & Mihajlo Dimitrievski
Publisher: Stonemaier Games
Solo Mode: Included in the Base Games
It all comes down to placing cards in a pair of grids, but there are clever choices when it comes to the abilities! Only a few cards are available at once, and the solo mode splits the cards between two partners. They are technically different games, but they use the same simple system.
First Play
September 26, 2025
Complexity
2
Latest Play
September 26, 2025
Expansions
0
Setup Time
Almost None
Lifetime Plays
18
Play Time
5 Minutes
High Score
N/A
Game Area
22" x 16"
Low Score
N/A
Face-Up and Face-Down
The art is so lovely in the original! Placing cards into grids slowly fills up a full scene, which is awesome to see when it’s completed… Although that’s the real challenge!
A pair of separate hands are managed in the solo mode. Each begins with 2 face-up and 1 face-down card to add to either grid. Ah, but when to take that risk? It’s rather clever.
Cards must be placed adjacent to each other, and a bit of deductive reasoning helps narrow down the other cards.
Face-down cards are flipped over regularly, yet it’s difficult to manage both grids and hands. Still, it’s a quick game!
The Victory Finale
My goodness… Finally! I thought I was on the right track many times, but risked too much or ended up with cards that couldn’t be added to either grid. Easy to reset it all.
Actually, that’s quite true: This only involves cards, and my longer plays ended after about 5 minutes. Which might explain why I kept trying and trying for my first win!
It’s not that the game is unnecessarily hard, but there are nuances to placing the cards and timing the abilities.
More practice gave me a chance to understand all of the cards, and it was an awesome moment when I won at last!
A Second Game
After I felt happy with my first win in a sea of losses, I decided to move onto the second game. This is exactly the same at its core, aside from the art and card abilities.
I liked the differences, yet this color scheme felt dark and drab compared to the other art. Maybe that was my fault for playing them both at once: They both shine differently!
Actually, I found this one much easier to win. It could have been extra good luck… I accept it when it shows up. Ha ha!
There were a few minor issues I had with this one, though, and I vastly preferred the original after a very short time.
Comparing the Games
A little side-by-side comparison made me appreciate the bright colors even more. Not that the numbers in the grids are used that much, but they have a few small rules notes.
I still can’t see the “7” in the second game, pictured near the upper right. The first game isn’t perfectly clear, but I found myself struggling a lot more with the darker artwork.
The new abilities function entirely differently, yet I was a little sad that the cards can’t be mixed and matched.
Still, I had a nice time and can see myself playing in the future when I need something quick with easy gameplay!
Finding the Right Time to Play Some Solo Games
Many times, getting the most enjoyment out of a game comes down to playing it at the right time. That’s not always obvious, but that’s something I’ve gotten better about identifying over the years. When I found myself under the weather but wanting to play a new game, this showed up at the right time! Definitely worked out nicely and rather perfectly.
The final rating might seem a little low, yet it accurately reflects my overall thoughts about the game. As I always say, a number can only go so far. I know this one is going to be easy to think through. It’s on the repetitive side after winning, but I still had a lot of fun trying to earn back-to-back victories. It’s a pleasant choice for those days when illness takes over.
To go a step further, I probably spent around an hour learning and playing with a few breaks. Could I have played a different game in that time frame? Definitely, but I didn’t have the energy to learn a new set of rules or put a lot of effort into formulating great strategies. Sometimes, my favorite games with the highest ratings aren’t the ones I can play.
Session Overview
Play Number: 1-18
Solo Mode: Included in the Base Game
Outcome: 3 Wins & 15 Losses
Talk about a losing streak! It wasn’t bad, though, and I found myself wanting to keep on playing until I managed to piece together all of the cards. The abilities made it fun to try to formulate a strategy, and I loved when flipping over a face-down card resulted in the perfect ability! Other times… I ended up with an incomplete grid like this one. Ha! There isn’t anything too interesting to explore here, but the game system works well and is fun for a fair number of plays.
%
10 Plays
Affordability
Price & Value
7
Functionality
Challenges & Mechanics
9
Originality
Design & Theme
3
Quality
Components & Rules
9
Reusability
Achievement & Enjoyment
6
Variability
Distinctness & Randomness
4
+ Pros (Positives)
- Creating the card grids with connected artwork is very satisfying, and the final panoramas look beautiful.
- There aren’t a lot of decisions, but there are enough to keep gameplay engaging with weighing the various risks.
- Different abilities are sometimes beneficial during a play, or might be the ones to try to avoid triggering.
- Gameplay is extremely quick with just a deck of cards, and an entire play usually takes around 5 minutes.
- Deciding the order to play cards from either hand is intriguing, especially with the uncertainty of face-down cards.
- Winning is relatively uncommon or rare, and there are optional ways to adjust the difficulty level as desired.
– Cons (Negatives)
- A lot of gameplay comes down to the luck of the draw and the order of the cards, with no way to mitigate bad luck.
- The tuckboxes are designed for retail, and are rather disappointing for placing in a collection for display or travel.
- Not being able to mix and match or combine the cards from both games feels like a little bit of a lost opportunity.
- Winning is hard to do and doesn’t have a set order to follow, but there isn’t much reason to play again and again.
Victory Conditions
Complete Both Grids
- Overall Goal Progress 100%
Goals and Milestones
Win at least 1 game.
Continue the Conversation
Do you prefer Smitten or Smitten 2? What is your favorite part of gameplay? I had a great time with the simple rules and joy of completing the grids. There might not be a lot to bring me back to play again and again in the future, but this is certainly interesting! Glad I took a chance and had a chance to play at the perfect time when I needed something light!
Thanks for playing. You actually can combine one set of Smitten cards with one set of Smitten 2 cards to play a mixed game. The art won’t match…but the rules work fine! If the mismatched art doesn’t bother you, give it a try!
Someone else suggested shuffling both decks fully together and playing 4 grids, where you must keep the cards in a grid with matching art, but I haven’t tested that, so I have no opinion on that variant 🙂
Oh, very neat! I’ll have to try out both of these ways to play as I start to feel a little better. Thanks for mentioning them, and for designing this second set!