Card game
The Game of Life Goals
The Game of Life as a small card game of life choices
- Set-up
- About 2 min
- Reading
- Some
The quick verdict
Full verdict ↓Great for Fans of The Game of Life who want it in a small box that fits in a bag
Think twice if You want the board, spinner and little cars of the original game
How we rate it
Learning curve. Each turn is a simple choice, but salaries, degrees, house costs, events, insurance and secret scoring add up to more rules than UNO. That puts it at 2 on our scale.
Luck & skill. What you draw matters, but choosing which cards suit your Lifestyle, when to raise your salary and which goal to chase is real decision-making.
Interaction. Most of the game is building your own Life Story, but Event cards hit other players, Insurance blocks them, and everyone races for the same Life Goals.
Set-up. Deal a Lifestyle card and three Choice cards to each player and lay out one Life Goal card per player on a random side.
Reading. Card names are short, but Event cards and some others carry a line of English instructions.
Learning curve: 1 = UNO or Connect 4; 3 = Catan; 5 = a heavy strategy game. These describe the experience, not an overall score.
Is The Game of Life Goals right for you?
Great if
- Fans of The Game of Life who want it in a small box that fits in a bag
- Two to four players, including couples, since it works at every count
- Holidays and train journeys, as long as there is a little table space for your Life Story
- Children of 8 and up who enjoy choosing careers, houses and adventures
Skip it if
- You want the board, spinner and little cars of the original game
- You need a game for more than four players
- Your players can't yet read short English card names and instructions
How The Game of Life Goals plays
The Game of Life Goals keeps the theme of The Game of Life, with careers, degrees, families, houses and adventures, but there is no board, spinner, cars, pegs or money. Each player gets a secret Lifestyle card and three Choice cards, and one Life Goal card per player is laid out on the table, each on a random side. The youngest player starts.
- Time to teach: about 10 minutes.
- Reading and language: Every Choice card has a short English name, and Event cards add a line of instructions that players need to read. Children of 8 may need help at first. We found no Hindi or regional-language edition.
How to Play The Game of Life Goals in 3 minutes (Game of Life Card Game) · Tabletop Duo
Choose a video · Watch right here
If this creator doesn’t allow embedded playback, watch on YouTube ↗.
A turn, step by step
- 1Choose
Either play one Choice card into your Life Story, or draw as many cards as your salary.
- 2Claim
If your Life Story now shows every symbol on a Life Goal card, claim it. You may claim one per turn.
- 3Score
When the deck runs out or the last goal is claimed, score your cards by your secret Lifestyle card, add your Life Goals, and the highest total wins.
The full explanation: how a game of The Game of Life Goals goes
On your turn you do one thing: either play a Choice card into the Life Story in front of you, or draw cards. You draw as many cards as your salary, which starts at one; playing a Career card raises it to two or three, and some careers need a Degree card first. Houses are paid for by discarding cards from your hand, and Event cards are played straight away, often against another player, who can block them with an Insurance card. At the end of your turn you can hold at most seven cards.
Each Life Goal card shows a set of symbols. When the cards in your Life Story show all of them, you claim that goal, one per turn. You keep the cards you used, and a claimed goal can't be taken from you.
The game ends when the draw pile runs out or the last Life Goal is claimed. Your Lifestyle card says how many points each colour of card is worth to you, so a Thrillseeker scores adventures highest and a Lover of Luxury scores houses highest. Add the points on your Life Goals, and the highest total wins.
Because your Lifestyle card is secret, a good tip is to watch what the others play: someone collecting lots of family cards is probably Family Friendly. Compared with the board game, you choose which cards to play instead of spinning, there is no race to retirement, and a game takes about half as long.
What's in the box
- 4Lifestyle cards
Thrillseeker, Workaholic, Family Friendly and Lover of Luxury; each sets how your cards score - 80Choice cards
adventures, careers, degrees, family, houses, home improvements, events and insurance - 4Life Goal cards
double-sided; each shows the symbols you need to claim it - 1Instructions
English rules sheet
Box: 0.12 kg. Handy to know for gifting and travel.
Contents from Hasbro's product page for item F7608 (88 cards and instructions). The Lifestyle names and the kinds of Choice card come from a published rules write-up; Hasbro doesn't give a count for each kind. There is only one version of this deck.
Where to buy
How to make sure you get a genuine copyEditions and the details worth checking.
What reviewers and players say
The Game of Life Goals has had little coverage so far. An Indian gaming site that played it with two, three and four players recommended it as easy to learn, varied from game to game and easy to carry, with games of roughly 15 to 35 minutes. Rules write-ups describe it as a light set-collection game with a moderate amount of luck. The main sticking points are rules questions, such as whether you discard cards after claiming a Life Goal, and the table space needed as each player's Life Story grows.
What people love
- Easy to learn, with the familiar theme of The Game of Life
- Cards rarely repeat, so each game feels different
- A small box that is easy to carry
- Works with two, three or four players
Common complaints
- Needs more table space than most card games as Life Stories grow
- Some rules leave players unsure, such as what happens to cards after claiming a Life Goal
Based on 4 reviews and discussions
- Review The Game of Life Goals review: Life Changing Decisions (Uphar Dutta, August 2023) · Gameffine
- Reference The Game of Life Goals: Rules for How to Play (Eric Mortensen, January 2023) · Geeky Hobbies
- Players Question about The Game of Life Goals card game (thread, February 2024) · Reddit r/boardgames
- Reference The Game of Life Goals Game (Hasbro, item F7608) · Hasbro
Summarised in our own words from the sources above. We don't use Amazon reviews or ratings.
More like The Game of Life Goals
Which game is the best fit?
Our picks if The Game of Life Goals isn't quite right.
Swipe to compare every game
| Compare the games.The details that make a difference. |
YOU’RE VIEWING
The Game of Life Goals
|
ANOTHER WAY TO PLAY
The Game of Life
|
ANOTHER WAY TO PLAY
Sushi Go!
|
ANOTHER WAY TO PLAY
Monopoly Deal
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Why consider it | This game The Game of Life as a small card game of life choices | A different fit The full board game, with the spinner, cars and money | A different fit Another quick set-collection card game in a small box | A different fit Another short Hasbro card game based on a family board game |
| Players | 2–4 | 2–4 | 2–5 | 2–5 |
| Best with | 3-4 | 3-4 | 3-5 | 3-5 |
| Play time | 15–30 min | 45–60 min | 15–20 min | 15–30 min |
| Age | 8+ | 8+ | 8+ | 8+ |
| Rules | Easy | Easy | Easy | Easy |
| Indian edition | Imported | Available | Imported | Available |
| On this page | Explore The Game of Life | Explore Sushi Go! | Explore Monopoly Deal |
More from Hasbro
Another way into their collection.
Monopoly
Roll, buy property, collect rent, and bankrupt everyone else
Scrabble
Build crossword words from letter tiles and chase the bonus squares
Jenga
Pull a block, stack it on top, don't topple the tower
Taboo
Get your team to guess the word without saying the obvious ones
Monopoly Deal
Monopoly as a 15-minute card game of rent, raids and sets
More set-collecting games
Different games. A familiar kind of fun.
Monopoly Deal
Monopoly as a 15-minute card game of rent, raids and sets
Sleeping Queens
Wake the queens with kings, then guard them from knights
Monopoly Bid
Monopoly as a quick card game of secret bids and stolen sets
Risk Strike
Risk's world-conquest battles squeezed into a 20-minute card and dice game
Monopoly Deal (Hindi edition)
Monopoly Deal's quick property card game, with cards printed in Hindi
Also playable with two
For game nights with two players.
Splendor
A quick gem-trading race where every card makes the next easier.
Jaipur
Two rival merchants trade goods and camels in old Jaipur
Ticket to Ride: First Journey
A shorter, simpler Ticket to Ride made for children six and up
Battleship Card Game
Battleship's hunt-and-sink duel as a quick, pocket-sized two-player card game
Wingspan
Calm card game about birds where every new bird boosts your turns.
Questions people ask about The Game of Life Goals
Is The Game of Life Goals the same as The Game of Life board game?
No. It keeps the theme of careers, family, houses and adventures, but there is no board, spinner, cars, pegs or money. You play cards into your own Life Story, score them by a secret Lifestyle card and collect Life Goal cards, and it all fits in a small box.
How long does The Game of Life Goals take?
Hasbro doesn't print a time on its product page. Reviewers report games of roughly 15 to 35 minutes, with about 30 minutes a common figure.
Can two people play The Game of Life Goals?
Yes, it is for 2 to 4 players. An Indian reviewer who tried it with two, three and four players enjoyed it at every count. With fewer than four, you put the unused Life Goal cards back in the box.
Do you discard cards when you claim a Life Goal?
No. The cards stay in your Life Story and still score at the end. The seven-card limit applies only to the cards in your hand, not to the cards laid out in front of you.
Is The Game of Life Goals good for kids?
Hasbro says ages 8 and up. Children need to read short English card names and follow how their Lifestyle card scores, so younger players may want an adult's help for the first game.
Game facts
- Publisher
- Hasbro (Hasbro Gaming)
- In India
- Hasbro India Toys Pvt. Ltd. (Mumbai)
- First published
- 2023
- Players
- 2–4
- Barcode
- 195166208800
- Language
- Some English – Every Choice card has a short English name, and Event cards add a line of instructions that players need to read. Children of 8 may need help at first. We found no Hindi or regional-language edition.
- Box size and weight
- 0.12 kg
Sources & photo creditsThe references behind this guide.
Facts on this page come from the publisher, the Indian maker or distributor, and the sources below. Photos are credited under each one.
- Hasbro Consumer Care - The Game of Life Goals Game (F7608)
- Geeky Hobbies - The Game of Life Goals: Rules for How to Play
- Gameffine - The Game of Life Goals review
- Toycra - Hasbro The Game of Life Goals Game
- Hamleys India - The Game of Life Goals Game
- FirstCry - Hasbro The Game of Life Goals Game Cards
- Reddit r/boardgames - Question about The Game of Life Goals card game