In a nutshell:
It's a pleasant free-association game, though minor language differences can cause arguments.
How it's played:
Players are divided into two teams. The teams alternate between asking the questions and trying to answer them.
To begin their turn, a team is offered a category (such as "things at a gas-station," or "T.V. sitcoms from the 1980's" or "Famous Bears"). The team can either pass' or play'. Each team is given the option to pass' three times during the course of the game. If the team chooses to pass, they MUST play the next category. Also, a team cannot pass on a category that was passed' to them.
Once a category has been determined, the card is placed into a plastic holder with a magic window'. Through the window, 10 target answers are revealed to the questioner. Team members have 60 seconds to shout out any answers they can think of which might be correct for their given category.
If they shout out one of the ten target answers, the questioner alerts them and awards them a point.
Scores are recorded at the end of each round. The first team to reach 60 points wins the game.
How to win:
The key strategy lies in both team mate and category selection. If at all possible, try to select team members who have a broad range of knowledge. Since answers are shouted out, shy, quiet types can be at a disadvantage. It is important during game play to keep talking, even if one seems to have an appropriate answer- you may still stumble over a point or two by accident.
As for category selection, you should avoid passing if at all possible. Maybe you can only think of one or two ancient civilizations, but maybe your teammates can also think of one or two. Worse yet, there may be a massive history buff on the opposing team. And there is no way of knowing if you're replacement category will be any better. Ancient Civilizations may be replaced with Betty White Movies'. Yikes. You're better off sitting there saying Incas. Aztecs. Umm Incas Aztecs uhhhhlet's see ancient. Hmmmm. Think old. Really old.
What's in the box?
The pieces of this game are of fairly high quality- specifically, the card reader, which manages to survive the rapid score keeping with small thumb tabs next to each answer as well as the occasional toss against a wall. The category cards are thick, high quality card stock.
On the down side, the card reader reveals the answers through a red plastic lens, making it difficult for some people to read, particularly if they are color blind. And the cards are printed on both sides, which is more economical, but makes it confusing sometimes when trying to determine which category is next' in the sequence.
My Honest Opinion:
Outburst is a loud and boisterous game. It works particularly well with en extroverted group. The rules and the scoring are simple and it requires very little strategy or skill. Anyone who is familiar with American culture should be able to play reasonably well. It is fun for both trivia enthusiasts and free-associational thinkers.
However, sometimes the topics are so vague; players have thousands of answers that are valid, but not on the card. As per the rules, if the exact word isn't on the card, it doesn't count.
For example, suppose you have the category Things found at a gas station. One of the target answers is gasoline. If a player says, Fuel,' does that count? What if the team members are from the UK and they all shout, Petrol!' have they gained a point? What about simply saying gas'?
Since it's only a game and the point is to have fun, arguments over a point or two are rare. It helps to discuss it ahead of time to establish the guidelines. Most people would accept gas for gasoline, for example.
Another potential problem is the limited number of players this game works with. Anything less than four would take a lot of the fun out of the game. Anything greater than 8 and it becomes difficult for the scorekeeper to sort out all of the answers, leading to cries of I *did too* say that!'
This is an excellent party game. It's a great mixer and ice-breaker. If you have large group over for an evening, this is a great selection. If you are a quiet loner this game is not for you.