If you spent any time in hobby shops during the late 1990s, you probably played Guillotine. The darkly comic card game about lining up French nobles during the Revolution has been a game night staple for nearly three decades. Now Avalon Hill is giving it a full visual overhaul, and the new version looks sharp.
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Set up your group for freeThe redesigned Guillotine keeps the same quick-play mechanics that made the original a hit. Players take turns manipulating a queue of noble cards, using action cards to shuffle the line so the most valuable head ends up at the front when the guillotine drops. Three rounds, about twenty minutes, and a surprising amount of schadenfreude.
The biggest change is the card size. The new edition uses tarot-sized cards for the nobles, making the art more prominent and the table presence more striking. The artwork itself has been completely refreshed while keeping the game's signature dark humour. At $19.99 for 2-5 players, it remains priced as an easy impulse buy.
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Find events near youGuillotine was originally designed by Paul Peterson and published by Wizards of the Coast in 1998, winning the Origins Award for Best Traditional Card Game that same year. Avalon Hill, now part of Hasbro alongside Wizards of the Coast, has taken over publishing duties for this edition.
The new Guillotine arrives on 1 August 2026. Good time to start practising your French accent.
Sources: GamesRadar | BoardGameGeek
