Control-Alt-Hack: White Hat Hacking for Fun and Profit (A Card Game)

I bought this game on a whim because I work in the security industry and thought it would be fun to play in the office with my team, a bunch of security researchers spanning a wide range of ages and experience levels. We initially expected it to be a little corny (OK, some of it was), but once we got started it turned out to be quite fun. The rules are straightforward but complex enough to keep it interesting. The "missions" are inspired mostly by real hacking scenarios and techniques -- simplified to dice rolls of course -- giving those not familiar with the field a peek into the things a clever hacker might be able to accomplish. We found the "lightning strike" cards especially amusing.Suggestions for the authors: More variation in the rewards/penalties (but mostly rewards) associated with each mission. Most missions only earn you +1 Hacker Cred points. There seems to be little correlation between the complexity of the mission and the reward for succeeding. Also, being able to purchase blanks -- especially of the entropy cards -- would be a lot of fun. Our next step is to devise alternate rules that incorporate drinking, because no true hacker endeavor would be complete without that.Overall, I'd call it a success! I'm very happy with the purchase.

I have the old hacker game, so I am quite biased. Whereas the old game has some tedious bookkeeping and lots of smaller counters, this game is just a bunch of big cards and a few counters for scoring. This version has nice components and I was excited to give it a try. Unfortunately, the few games we have played were pretty forgettable.I'd much prefer a re-release of the old game. I love the new OGRE Pocketbook edition that recently came out--as it's still... OGRE.

To set the stage, I've played the game on five occasions now. My overall strategy is still evolving since I've usually ended up playing different "characters", which in turn impacts how you want to play a particular game. Game play is a mix of strategy and luck, with a little bit of evaluation of your opponents. There are different ways of winning, which in turn impacts what you have to watch out for from your "friends."The randomness with which you select your character is a nice twist vs. most games where you develop your own type of strategy that works better/worse against particular players. The game mechanics seem to work well. I haven't noticed that one character is any stronger than another, though it's possible for one character to mesh with a player's incoming strategies better than another.You don't need to be a computer geek to enjoy the game, though familiarity with computers, the Internet, and geek stereotypes do make some of the jokes more amusing. I've played with die-hard geeks to people moderately computer literate and we've all enjoyed it. I haven't played with anyone firmly in the anti-tech camp - I suspect they wouldn't enjoy it, even though they could understand the game mechanics.

I and my friends got a kick out of reading the cards, and laughing at some of the inside jokes. However from a game play perspective there is too much randomness and limited replay value.

So I was watching and waiting for this game to come out since I attended a conference where they presented it. The basic rules and things can be a bit overwhelming but once you start playing it's really exciting! I'm in the security industry for work and my wife was able to pick up on the game and enjoyed reading some of the actual 'missions' so she could understand more of my job and what I actually do.It's really fun once you get the hang of it. Definitely a 'party' game. I recommend getting a crew of people together to play. If you've every played the game 'BANG' then you'll love this game as well. The concepts are similar.

I bought this game with the intention of playing with fellow techies and also some non-techies. I didn't expect the non-techies to really get all the concepts here but after a while they started to do well. However I don't think they enjoyed it as much as myself or my techie friends.

Fun game. My whole family enjoys it. It might be a bit too complex for younger children though.

Perfect for those interested in Information Technology, hacking, and / or just about anyone that wants to play a cool boardgame.