Video Instructions

Ready to dive in and learn how to play? 

Watch the video below for a step-by-step guide on the rules, strategies, and all the exciting features of the game.

 Whether you're a beginner or a seasoned pro in the world of SEO, this video will help you understand the rules.  

Written Instructions

Objective

Your goal is to amass the most valuable website portfolio by collecting & upgrading websites using strategy & SEO techniques. Be the first to complete your website portfolio.

Setting Up

1. Place the board in the center of the play area.
2. Each player chooses a Webmaster figure & places it on the starting space (SEO Vibes).
3. Shuffle & prepare the SEO & Commission Cards near the board. These should be 2 different card decks.
4. Shuffle & prepare the Website Cards. Place the deck on the spot in the middle of the board.
5. Shuffle & prepare the Portfolio Cards. Each player draws 1 Portfolio Card & the rest of the Portfolio Cards can be returned to the box. You can place the portfolio card face down in front of you on the table, keeping it hidden from others.
6. Each player draws 2 Website Cards & 3 SEO Cards.
7. Place the Website Cards in front of you facing up, so all players can see your websites.
8. Hold SEO Cards & Commission Cards in your hand or upside down in front of you, so other players don't see them.
9. Flip the top Website Card of the deck & place it facing up on the deck.

How to Play

Choosing White Hat or Black Hat:

Before each turn, you always have the choice between playing White Hat or Black Hat.

Playing White Hat means you play it safe, & your progress is usually a bit slower.

Playing Black Hat is riskier but offers the chance for faster progress.

Before each turn, you have to declare if you are playing White Hat or Black Hat.

Rolling the Die:

Begin each turn by rolling the Action Die.

White hat:

Move & collect cards based on the white side of the die facing up. The number shows how many spaces you can move forward & how many SEO Cards you can pick up. E.g. With a 3 you pick up 3 cards & move 3 spaces on the board.

Black hat:

Move & collect cards based on the black side of the die. The number shows how many spaces you can move forward & how many SEO Cards you can pick up.

IMPORTANT: Since you picked the Black Hat route, you also have to take one Black Hat Token & place it next to your Website Cards.

Board spaces:

Move around the board, landing on various spaces to perform actions based on the space you land on in a clockwise direction.

Niche spaces:

The Niche Space serves 2 functions:

1. Collecting Commission:

When a player lands on a Niche Space, if they own one or more websites in that niche, they collect commission for each of their sites in the form of Commission Cards. The number of Commission Cards the player collects depends on the tier of each website:

• Bronze tier = 1 Commission Card
• Silver tier = 2 Commission Cards 
• Gold tier = 3 Commission Cards

2. Buying a Website:

If the flipped-over Website Card matches the niche of the space where the player lands, the player can buy the Website Card for the number rolled. You can start gaining commission on a Website Card that you bought on the next turn.

If a player buys the Website Card, the next player rolling the die can turn over a new Website Card.

SEO Vibes Space (Start Position):

Pay 3K Gold to remove a Black Hat Token from your site. Or you may discard and redraw any SEO Cards. This space is also the starting point for all players. 

Linkhouse Space:

You may draw Commission Cards instead of SEO Cards on this turn.

Empire Flippers Space:

Pick up the top 3 facedown Website Cards. You may choose to buy one for the Gold equal to the number rolled this turn. Return any unpurchased cards to the bottom of the deck.

Ahrefs Space:

Choose and play the action on any other space on the board.

SEO Cards:

You will collect these cards each turn. The die value tells you how many you can pick up. You can use these cards in 2 ways:

1. Play the SEO technique on the card. 

There are On-page, Off-page and Technical Cards in the game that are used to upgrade your websites.

2. Use the Gold to pay.

E.g. for websites.

Hint: You will need the Gold to bid on websites in auctions, & to take advantage of opportunities that cross your path. Don't spend all your Gold at once.

There are also special action cards in the SEO Card deck. You can play these cards on the turn when you draw them or in a later round. Like regular SEO Technique Cards they have a Gold value, so you can use them to buy Website Cards.

After you've played an SEO Card, the card is put in the discard pile next to the SEO Cards deck.

You can also buy SEO Cards. The rate is 3k Gold for 1 SEO Card.

Commission Cards:

If you land on a Niche Space that matches one or more websites in your portfolio, draw Commission Cards based on each website's tier as follows:

Bronze = 1 Commission Card

Silver = 2 Commission Cards

Gold = 3 Commission Cards

All sites start at the Bronze tier. After you've played a Commission Card, the card is put in the discard pile next to the Commission Cards deck.

Portfolio Cards:

The Portfolio Card shows a collection of 5 sites needed to finish the game. Your goal is to collect sites that fit the requirements of the Portfolio Card. You can also collect other sites, but you can only finish the game by collecting all the sites on your Portfolio Card.

Niche token:

When you upgrade a site, you earn a Niche Token & place it on the new tier of the Website Card.

Website Cards:

These are the websites that you want to buy and upgrade. Each site has 3 tiers (Bronze, Silver, Gold).

All sites start on the Bronze tier. As you upgrade your site it increases in value.

Upgrade your website:

When it's your turn, you can upgrade your website from Bronze to Silver and from Silver to Gold by using

SEO Cards. Below each tier you see what SEO techniques are needed to upgrade the site. 

This can be either On-page, Off-page, Technical.

There is also a Wild option which can be played for with any technique. Play the SEO cards with the needed techniques on them.

When you successfully upgraded your site to the next tier you will get a Niche Token. This token is placed on the field for the Niche Token in that tier of the Website Card.

With each upgrade the value of your website improves. You can see the new value on the specific tier of the Website Card.

Special actions:  

After 1 round (each player has had 1 turn) special actions are triggered.

Black hat:

• Players that have a Black Hat Token need to roll the Algorithm Die & act based on what is rolled. Website Card for, they must place the Black Hat Token on that Website Card. It needs to go on the highest tier available. If the site is in the Bronze tier, it goes on the Silver tier. If the Website Card is already Silver, the Black Hat Token goes on the Gold tier. If the Website Card is in the Gold tier a Niche Token is removed, & the Black Hat Token goes onto the Niche spot.
• If a player has multiple websites in that niche, they can choose what website to use.
• If a player rolls a niche he doesn’t own a Website Card for, they get lucky & the Black Hat Token can be returned to the stack with no consequences.
• Wild Field: The penalty can go on any niche & the player can pick the website to add the Black Hat Token.
• Lottery Ticket: You got lucky & none of your websites are affected by the algorithm update. You can return the Black Hat Token to the stack with no consequences.

Note: There are also SEO Cards and Spaces on the board that give a player the chance to remove a Black Hat token from their website.

Website Auction Phase:

After each round, all players bid on 1 new website using their Gold.

Bidding process:

Placing bids: 

Players make a bid by deciding on how much Gold they want to bid. A player can use the Gold on their SEO and Commission Cards. To bid, each player puts the SEO and Commission Cards they are using to bid face down in front of them to keep their bid secret.

Revealing Bids:

Once all players have placed their bids, the cards are turned face up simultaneously so everyone sees the bids.

Winning the auction:

Highest bidder wins:

The player with the highest total bid wins the website & must discard all cards used in their bid to the Commission or SEO Card deck. Losing players keep their cards & return them to their hand.

Ties:

If two or more players have the highest equal bid, they leave their initial bids in, & additional rounds of bidding take place in the same way until there is a clear winner. If the bid is still tied, players return their cards to their hands, & the website is returned to the bottom of the Website Card deck.

No Bids:

If a website receives no bids, the website is returned to the bottom of the Website Card deck.

Website Trading:

After each auction, players also have the chance to trade websites between each other. Allowed trades can be either one Website Card for another or compensation with Gold is also allowed.

Any Tokens on the site being traded sta go to the new owner.

Ending the game

A player that has all 5 Websites from their Portfolio Card can end the game. It's his choice when he does it. He can end the game immediately or keep on playing to improve the websites. You can only end the game when it's your turn. The player needs to say that he is ending the game & then the game is over for all players.

No further action can be done.

The player that finishes the game has to roll the Algorithm Die to see what website get the 2x value.

Niche → Pick a site from that niche

Free Ticket → No site gets the 2x value.

Wild → Pick the site you want to have the 2x value.

All players add up their Website portfolio value based on what tier their Websites are on. The player with the most valuable portfolio wins.