Sound Box Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• COMPONENTS
• THE GAME IN A NUTSHELL
• SETUP
• SOUND BOX WEB APP!
• HOW TO PLAY
  • Soundmaking
  • Guessing
  • Cleanup
• DOUBLE SOUND
  • Gaining Double Sound Markers
  • Effect of Double Sound Markers
  • Losing Double Sound Markers
• END OF THE GAME
• SILLY GAME MODE
  • Who's Talking?
  • Intermittent Sounds
• CREDITS

COMPONENTS

• Game board
• 110 Sound cards
• 20 Number tokens
• 2 Double Sound markers
• Audio Bag
• Heart marker
• Progress marker
• Guesser glasses
• Recorder glasses
• 1 Sand timer

THE GAME IN A NUTSHELL

Sound Box is a cooperative game played in rounds. Your goal (as a team) is to reach the end of the Soundtrack. Each round, one player is blindfolded and becomes the Guesser, while the others are the Soundmakers. Each Soundmaker is randomly assigned a Sound card. When the timer starts, they all make the sound on their card at the same time! And when they stop, the Guesser has to… well, guess which cards match the sounds they were making. The more sounds you guess, the further along the Soundtrack you go. If you can reach the crown, you win!

SETUP

1. Place the Game board in the middle of the table, with the side showing the right number of players up (Side A for a game with 4 or 6 players, Side B for a game with 5 or 7 players).

2. Shuffle the Sound cards and create a draw deck. Draw 10 random cards and place them next to the game board in the spots numbered 1-10.

3. Take the Number tokens 11-20 and place them on the matching spaces of the Soundtrack with the number showing. Place the rest of the Number tokens (1-10) in the Audio Bag and mix them up.

4. Place the Double Sound markers on the matching spaces of the Soundtrack.

5. Put the Progress marker on the starting space of the Soundtrack.

6. Place the Heart marker on the starting space of the Heartbreak track.

7. Set the Sand timer on the table where everybody can see it easily (or for even more fun, use our custom-made sand timer on Sound Box Web App—see the next page!).

8. Give the Guesser glasses to the last player who listened to a song on the radio. They will be the first Guesser. All the other players will be Soundmakers (for 6-7 player games, see the next page).

Now you are ready to play with sounds!

6/7 PLAYERS: Give the Recorder glasses to the third player to the left of the Guesser (i.e., the one who is the furthest away at the table). They will be the first Recorder.

PLAYING WITH KIDS? For the "complete" Sound Box experience, play with all the Sound cards. Or, if you are playing with kids, use only the "kid friendly" cards, marked with a symbol. These cards avoid "adult" themes (like Honeymoon or Smoking) or ideas that are hard-to-know or more abstract (like Being Fired or Heaven). Please note: Only the side of the card with the symbol is kid-friendly.

YOU CAN PLAY BOTH SIDES Remember: The cards are double-sided, with different words on each side. So, make sure you flip some cards over when shuffling at the beginning of the game!

SOUND BOX WEB APP!

Think the Sand timer is too old-school? Scan the QR code to use the Official Sound Box Web App! The web app also includes more options for playing Sound Box—discover them!

horribleguild.com/sound-box-app

HOW TO PLAY

A game of Sound Box is played over a series of rounds. Each round is divided into three steps: Soundmaking, Guessing, and Cleanup.

Soundmaking

• First, the Guesser gets to take a look at all of the Sound cards next to the game board. When they're ready, they put the Guesser glasses on to blindfold themselves.

6/7 PLAYERS: The Recorder also takes this time to look at the Sound cards before putting on the Recorder glasses to blindfold themselves.

• Then, each Soundmaker randomly draws a Number token from the Audio Bag and secretly looks at it before placing it, number side down, in front of them. The number on the token will match one of the card positions on the game board. The card in that position is the card assigned to you for this round.

• The Soundmakers spend a few seconds to think of which sound best represents their cards.

• When everyone is ready, flip the Sand timer over (or start the timer on the Sound Box Web App) and get ready to play with sounds!

• The Soundmakers start to simultaneously make the sound that they think best represents their Sound card. Be prepared for a few chaotic moments!

• The Guesser just has to listen to the sounds made by the Soundmakers during this phase: You'll have to identify them during the Guessing step (see next page).

6/7 PLAYERS: During the Soundmaking step, the job of the Recorder is to try to memorize all of the sounds made by the Soundmakers. Your goal is to reproduce them for the Guesser during the Guessing step to help them identify as many Sound cards as possible.

• When the Sand timer runs out (it lasts for about 13 seconds), the Soundmakers must immediately stop making any sounds and the Soundmaking step ends.

ALL YOU NEED IS SOUND At first, it may seem hard to figure out the sound of an Evil Mastermind or a Comedy Show, but don't worry! There is no "right" answer. It's up to you to decide which sound is the best solution to help your blindfolded friend guess your card!

THE DOS AND DON'TS OF SOUNDMAKING There are only a few things you cannot do when you are making sounds: You cannot speak any real words, you cannot hum or sing recognizable songs or jingles, and you cannot touch the Guesser and/or the Recorder. On the other hand, during the Soundmaking you can move around the room and even use nearby items.

Guessing

• After the Sand timer has run out, the Guessing step begins. The Guesser can take off the Guesser glasses and look at all the Sound cards next to the game board. You will have to guess which cards the Soundmakers were trying to imitate with their sounds, one at a time.

6/7 PLAYERS: The Recorder, on the other hand, must keep the Recorder glasses on. They cannot talk during the Guessing step: They can only try to reproduce the sounds they heard during the Soundmaking step to help the Guesser identify them.

• When the Guesser thinks they have identified a correct card, they simply point at it. If one of the Soundmakers has the Number token that matches that card, they reveal it now, proving that the Guesser has guessed right!

• If the Guesser is right, that card is removed from the board and placed in front of the Guesser. Then, they can try to guess another Sound card. Keep guessing as long as you are right, until all of the Soundmakers' tokens have been revealed.

• But: If at any point the Guesser points at a Sound card that was not assigned to any Soundmaker, no Number tokens are revealed and the Guessing step ends immediately.

WARNING: If you guess the wrong Sound card, that card—as well as all the cards that have not been guessed yet—must stay on the board.

Example: Sabine is the Guesser, so she puts on the Guesser glasses. Ania, Domenico, and Liam each draw a Number token from the Audio Bag and check which Sound card it matches: Ania has token "2," which corresponds to the Car Race; Domenico has "7," which matches the Jungle; Liam has "10," which goes with Genie in a Bottle. After thinking for a few seconds about how to imitate their Sound cards, Ania, Domenico, and Liam start the timer and begin making sounds at the same time!

Ania imitates the sound of a Car Race: Bruuuum... Bruuum! Ahhhhhh! Yeaaah, olèèè olèèè! Domenico reproduces the sounds of the Jungle: Croak Croak! Groaarr! Sssttssss... Cipcip! Liam tries to reproduce the sounds of a Genie in a Bottle: Wrumwrum... Puuuff... tadam!

When the timer runs out, Sabine takes off the Guesser glasses. She says she heard the sounds of a Jungle, and she is right! Then, Sabine says she heard the sounds of a Saloon. Unfortunately, she's wrong: No one was reproducing that sound. The Guessing step ends here without her trying to guess the other sounds.

Cleanup

After the Guessing step, follow these steps to get ready for the next round:

• Reveal all of the Number tokens that were not guessed correctly. Each token will show 1-3 symbols.

  • Move the Heart marker down 1 space on the Heartbreak track for each on the tokens that were not guessed. This is the "damage" your team suffers for not guessing all of the Sound cards.

• Count the number of Sound cards in front of the Guesser (the correct guesses). Move the Progress marker forward that many spaces on the Soundtrack.

• If the Progress marker reaches or passes a space on the Soundtrack that has a Number token, that number is "unlocked" and the token must be added to the Audio Bag. This also opens up a new space next to the game board, increasing the number of Sound cards that will be available in the following rounds.

• Then, put all of the Number tokens that were assigned to the Soundmakers (guessed correctly or not) back into the Audio Bag.

• Return all the Sound cards that were guessed correctly to the box.

• Draw new Sound cards from the deck to fill all the empty Sound card spaces, including any spaces with numbers 11 or higher that have been unlocked.

• Give the Guesser glasses to the player to the left of the current Guesser: They will be the Guesser for the next round.

6/7 PLAYERS: Also, give the Recorder glasses to the player to the left of the current Recorder. They will be the new Recorder for the next round.

You are now ready to start a new round!

Example: During the Guessing step, Sabine recognized the sounds made by Domenico, but not the ones made by Ania or Liam. Ania and Liam reveal their Number tokens: Ania's shows 1 heart symbol, Liam's shows 2 heart symbols. The team moves the Heart marker down 3 spaces. Since Sabine recognized 1 Sound card, the team moves the Progress marker forward 1 space, onto the number 11. They take the "11" token from the game board and put it in the Audio Bag. They also remove the Jungle Sound card (since it was guessed correctly). Finally, they draw 2 new Sound cards to fill the empty spaces (the 7 and 11). The Car Race and the Genie in a Bottle cards were not guessed, so they remain where they are.

DOUBLE SOUND

Double Sound markers are a type of "penalty" that may be assigned to players during the game. But hey, if you get one, that means your team is getting closer to victory!

Playing Hint: We recommend that you ignore these for your first few games. When you're ready, add them to the matching spaces on the Soundtrack at the start of the game.

Gaining Double Sound Markers

Double Sound markers are unlocked just like the Number tokens on the Soundtrack, when the Progress marker reaches or passes a space marked with the Double Sound symbol on the Soundtrack.

Once unlocked, the Double Sound marker must always be assigned to a player who is not the Guesser, not the Recorder, and who does not already have a Double Sound marker.

At the end of each round, you can reassign the unlocked Double Sound markers to any player who meets those requirements.

Example: The team just advanced 3 spaces on the Soundtrack, landing on #14, so they have to take the Double Sound marker. By common agreement, they give it to Sabine. During the next round, Sabine must draw 2 Number tokens and make the sounds of 2 Sound cards!

Effect of Double Sound Markers

During the Soundmaking step, a player with a Double Sound marker must draw 2 Number tokens from the Audio Bag instead of the normal 1.

This also means that they will have 2 Sound cards assigned to them, and they will have to make sounds for both cards during the single run of the Sand timer (remember: just 13 seconds)!

The good news is, if the Guesser can guess both sounds, the team will advance 2 spaces on the Soundtrack!

TWO SOUNDS AT THE SAME TIME When you have a Double Sound marker, you can use your time as you wish: You could start with one sound for the first half of your time then make the other; or alternate between them every few seconds; or whatever you like best.

Losing Double Sound Markers

The only way to get rid of a Double Sound marker is when the Heart marker moves down the Heartbreak track. If it reaches or passes the space marked with the Double Sound symbol, remove the light blue Double Sound marker from the game—it doesn't matter whether it is assigned to a player or is still on the board. Likewise, if it reaches or passes the space marked with the symbol, remove the Double Sound marker from the game.

You can return discarded Double Sound markers to the box: You won't need them again for the rest of the game.

Example: Later on, the team loses 2 spaces on the Heartbreak track, passing over the symbol. This means that the Double Sound marker is removed from the game: Sabine returns it to the box. The other Double Sound marker remains on the Soundtrack until the team reaches it.

END OF THE GAME

The game ends immediately when one of the following happens:

• The Heart marker reaches the space on the Heartbreak track: You have become lost in the Sound Box chaos! You'll have to try again! NOTE: In this case you will not move the progress marker for the correct answers of the round.
• The Progress marker reaches the crown space on the Soundtrack: Congratulations! You've won the game! You can record your score based on your position on the Heartbreak track!

SILLY GAME MODE

Are you skilled Guessers/Soundmakers? Try out these silly game modes, to make Sound Box even more funny!

Who's Talking?

During the soundmaking, all Soundmakers must stop twice—at times of their choosing, as long as they are not consecutive—to say their own name out loud.

Intermittent Sounds

During the soundmaking, the Guesser must cover and uncover their ears with their hands, with a fast and rhythmic movement.

NOTE: During 6-7 player games, the Recorder does not have to cover their ears!

CREDITS

Game Design: Hjalmar Hach, Lorenzo Silva Development: Hjalmar Hach, Lorenzo Silva, Federico Corbetta Caci Project Manager: Andrea Lugli Production Manager: Flavio Mortarino Art Director: Lorenzo Silva Graphic Design: Noa Vassalli, Antonio Delbono, Rita Ottolini Rulebook: Andrea Lugli, Federico Corbetta Caci Editing: William Niebling, Alessandro Pra', Maria-Angela Silleni Special thanks to the Guild of the Horribles.