Overview
At a glance
Is this game right for my group?
ABG editorial scores on a 1–5 scale.
Harder to teach
High replayability
Highly interactive
Scales well
Deep strategy
How it plays
How does it play?
Valence is a fun card game that uses simple math, colors, and cartoon ninjas to teach kids (8+) chemistry! Players use more than 25 different molecules to interact with each other and win the game!
Read the full game description
Valence is a fun card game that uses simple math, colors, and cartoon ninjas to teach kids (8+) chemistry! Players use more than 25 different molecules to interact with each other and win the game! Players draw Element cards from the deck in order to form Molecules. Each Element has a different Valence number that describes how many electrons it has to give (positive) or how many electrons it needs (negative) to have a full valence shell. If the Valence numbers add up to zero, they form a Molecule! Each Molecule is worth a certain point value. If your molecules add up to 10 points then you win the game! But beware… several molecules are vulnerable to attack from your opponents! Acids attack Bases (4 points) and turn them into Salt and Water (1 point each). Deadly Carbonyls (which have the special power of removing oxygen from the board) are vulnerable to attack by Water. Players interact with each other using real chemical reactions!