Swiss publishers Helvetiq specialise in publishing small box games, similar in compact size to those of Oink. The games are distributed in the UK by Coiledspring. In common with others in the series, Florian Fay's Misty is a game that simple to play but which offers an engrossing puzzle that can be enjoyed by children and adults alike.
The Misty of the title has nothing to do with either Johnny Mathis or Clint Eastwood. The theme of this game is windows misted up with condensation and the charmingly illustrated narrow-format cards (art by Felix Kindelan) represent shapes doodled with your finger on the misted up glass. That's pretty much all you need to know or think about the theme, however. This is first and foremost a card drafting game. The 2–4 players each start with a hand of six cards. They take one and pass the others to the left. The cards taken are placed out in a player's individual 3 x 4 or 4 x 3 tableau. When each player has drafted six cards, a second hand is dealt for drafting but this time the cards are passed in the other direction (of course, there's no distinction at all if you're playing the game with two).
Some of the cards have symbols on them in addition to the misted glass drawings. Players activate the cards in their tableau, moving cards according to the arrows. As cards placed on top of other cards are considered 'blurred', following the arrows will probably eliminate some of the cards, leaving you eventually with a more fragmented tableau of cards that will score points.
Misty can be played as a very light family game but hardened card drafting enthusiasts will find a way to play Misty with more of a vengeance: seeing the spaces left in a neighbour's tableau and ensuring you only pass them cards that will be unhelpful. Canny players will always try to ensure that potentially negative cards are positioned so that they destroy each other or simply move out of the tableau grid to be eliminated, but as your tableau nears completion you may find yourself vulnerable to being lumbered with a card that will destroy a scoring card.
The puzzle element is fun, tho' not overly challenging, but it means you could probably play Misty too as a solitaire puzzle game, dealing yourself 12 cards and determining the placement that optimises your score. Certainly, the compact box makes this a very suitable game to take with you on holiday for those rainy days where you're left staring out of a misted up window...