John Cabral
United States
Bristol
Rhode Island
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Set
Set is a pattern recognition game for any number of people.
Any number of people?!
Yes. Want to try it alone? Play the solo rules. Have a couple of people around? Try it out. At a family reunion? Whip Set out and let the family gather round and play.
Brief Overview
Set is played by shuffling all the cards and placing 12 down on the table. All players then try to find a set of three cards out of the 12. The player who finds the set, calls out "set" and points out the three cards. If the player is correct, he/she picks up the cards and gets 1 point. Then 3 cards are added to the table so it's back to 12. If the player is wrong, he/she loses a point and the cards stay on the table. If all players agree there is no set on the table, then 3 more cards are added to the 12 cards on the table. Cards can always be added if players all agree there is no set on the table. Whenever a player finds a set, 3 cards can only be added when there are 9 cards left, bringing it back up to 12.
What's a set?
A set is three cards where each attribute is all the same or all different. There are 4 attributes to each card.
Color- Red, green and purple.
Symbol- Oval, squiggle and diamond.
Number- Each card contains 1, 2 or 3 symbols.
Shading- Solid, open or striped.
Each attribute has to be all the same or all different. Let's look at an example:
Looking at all 3 cards, let's go in order of attributes.
Color- Each card is a different color. That counts. 
Symbol- Each card is a different symbol. That counts.
Number- Each card has a different number of symbols. That counts.
Shading- Each card is shaded differently. That counts.
So this would be a set of cards.
Let's take a look at the cover of the Ravensburger edition of Set and see if it shows a set:
Again, let's go through the attributes.
Color- All 3 colors are different. That counts.
Symbol- All 3 symbols are different. That counts.
Number- All 3 cards have the same number of symbols. That counts.
Shading- All 3 cards are shaded the same. That counts.
So this would be a set.
What's not a set?
If any attribute has 2 in common and 1 not in common, then it is not a set.
What's to like?
 It is a great family game.
 Once people are familiar with what a set is, the game is really simple.
 The game can be pretty tense when playing with competitive people. Everyone is trying as fast as they can to find a set first.
 The game accommodates any number of players. The solo play isn't as fun, but it can be a nice way to get the brain working. Works great with a big group of people as well.
 It is a great exercise in visual perception and pattern recognition.
  It's an unbelievable filler for any situation. The length of time(30 minutes tops!) it takes combined with the amount of people that can play, makes this a nice starting or ending game for a game night.
 There is a nice introduction game that helps ease players into Set. It uses 3 attributes instead of 4. Shading is taken out.
 The rules can be changed to fit what players like. If people don't want to play with the negative point rule... don't use it. If a player is really good, handicap that player and only he/she will abide by the negative point rule. Play in teams, play everyone against 1 or play multiple rounds and add all scores.
 It's a cheap game. It won't break the bank!
What's not to like?
This game can make people dizzy. After looking at so many shapes and colors and trying to figure out sets, it can be overwhelming at points. I know I've become dizzy a couple of times.
Set may not be serious or heavy enough for many people.
Hmm...
This is a great filler! It is enjoyable for the family and good enough to bring to a game night to fill in while waiting for players. It is a great exercise in visual perception and fun. It's relatively cheap price makes this a good buy. Although it doesn't come out as often as it should, it is a great time when it does come out.
What to do now...
Play it!
All images are from the Set gallery.
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Adam Barney
United States
Raytown
Missouri
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Absurd man, i agree with you 100% with all of the above (even getting dizzy). I haven't tried the introduction variant, though.
And yes -- it being competitive and too difficult for some makes it just not the right game at times. But with those with a good grasp going head to head, it's always right! 
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Maaike
Netherlands
Nijmegen
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And it's an addictive solo game
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