![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Boardgame primer - The short list
Nov. 12th, 2007 04:11 pmI keep meaning to start a series of posts on boardgames that everyone should own because I know you're all jealous of the boardgaming that Paul, Nancy, Q and I do, and want to be a part of the cool crowd. So far, however, I haven't made the time to write such a post with the attention it deserves.
So, for those of you who personally know or have heard tale of my awesomeness and just want to take my word for it, below is a list of five games to consider. I will try to make time to write more in-depth descriptions of these in the near future.
The short list:
Ticket To Ride (2-5 players, ages 8+, 45-75 minutes) - The family game that should be in everyone's home instead of Monopoly. Easy to learn, fun to play, can be either cut-throat or friendly.
Settlers of Catan (3-4 players, ages 10+, 60-90 minutes) - The game that is often credited with reinvigorating the board game hobby market. It's a lot of fun, and more for the adult crowd. [And Gray's Anatomy star Sandra Oh likes the game (staring around 4:50), though an expansion spoiled it for her.]
YINSH (2-4 players, ages 9+, 30 minutes) - This is your chess/checkers replacement. It's an abstract strategy game with no luck whatsoever. It's easier and less scripted than chess, and a little harder than checkers. VERY easy to learn (much easier than chess), and a really good game for two.
Bohnanza (2-7 players, ages 8+, 45 minutes) - This is the fun, light, silly game for your collection. In the game, the players are bean farmers. Players have different cards representing types of beans and they have to sow them and harvest them to earn money. The key is that you can't change the order of the cards in your hand, so you have to get rid of bad cards by negotiating with the other players. It's really a ton of fun. It is not hard to learn how to play.
Time's Up (4-18 players (6-12 ideal), ages 12+, time variable) - First, Susan would surely like me to point out that this game is similar to the public domain game "celebrities", but I prefer this retail version. The idea is that teams have to guess the names of people (real or imaginary) on the cards. In the first round you can say almost anything to get your partner to guess the name. In the second round (which uses the same names), you only get to say one word. In the third and final round (again, same names), you can only act out the clue. The game length can be made as short as 30 minutes or as long as seventeen days (a guess) just by adjusting the number of cards in the game. This game has led to a lot of lasting memories playing with my family and friends, and I suspect it will for you, too.
Where can I get these games? Well, if you have a local hobby game store, you can check there. Most have a knowledgeable staff that can point you to the right game for your needs. You can also but them online at a variety of stores, of which I will recommend fairplaygames.com, thoughthammer.com, and boardsandbits.com.
WHAT? I have to make an effort? Can't I get these games at Target when I'm picking up tampons, jumper cables, and the new Kanye West CD? Well, big box stores typically only carry the mass-market games, but in the case of Target, you're in luck. They've recently started carrying a very fun party game called Wits and Wagers (3-21 players, ages 10+, 25 minutes). This is a trivia game for people who don't know trivia. And, for the macho types, there's a betting element, too. In this game, a question is read that has a single numerical answer. For instance, "What is the average length of a hippopotamus' tail?" Everyone would jot down their answer, which would be arranged in order on the betting board. Then everyone gets to bet on the answer they think was right. So if you think I know more about hippo tails than most, you might bet on my answer. It's a very fun game and when Target did some focus groups on it, it received the highest marks of any game they've ever tested. And it's now sitting on the shelf at your local Target just WAITING FOR YOU.
So, for those of you who personally know or have heard tale of my awesomeness and just want to take my word for it, below is a list of five games to consider. I will try to make time to write more in-depth descriptions of these in the near future.
The short list:
Ticket To Ride (2-5 players, ages 8+, 45-75 minutes) - The family game that should be in everyone's home instead of Monopoly. Easy to learn, fun to play, can be either cut-throat or friendly.
Settlers of Catan (3-4 players, ages 10+, 60-90 minutes) - The game that is often credited with reinvigorating the board game hobby market. It's a lot of fun, and more for the adult crowd. [And Gray's Anatomy star Sandra Oh likes the game (staring around 4:50), though an expansion spoiled it for her.]
YINSH (2-4 players, ages 9+, 30 minutes) - This is your chess/checkers replacement. It's an abstract strategy game with no luck whatsoever. It's easier and less scripted than chess, and a little harder than checkers. VERY easy to learn (much easier than chess), and a really good game for two.
Bohnanza (2-7 players, ages 8+, 45 minutes) - This is the fun, light, silly game for your collection. In the game, the players are bean farmers. Players have different cards representing types of beans and they have to sow them and harvest them to earn money. The key is that you can't change the order of the cards in your hand, so you have to get rid of bad cards by negotiating with the other players. It's really a ton of fun. It is not hard to learn how to play.
Time's Up (4-18 players (6-12 ideal), ages 12+, time variable) - First, Susan would surely like me to point out that this game is similar to the public domain game "celebrities", but I prefer this retail version. The idea is that teams have to guess the names of people (real or imaginary) on the cards. In the first round you can say almost anything to get your partner to guess the name. In the second round (which uses the same names), you only get to say one word. In the third and final round (again, same names), you can only act out the clue. The game length can be made as short as 30 minutes or as long as seventeen days (a guess) just by adjusting the number of cards in the game. This game has led to a lot of lasting memories playing with my family and friends, and I suspect it will for you, too.
Where can I get these games? Well, if you have a local hobby game store, you can check there. Most have a knowledgeable staff that can point you to the right game for your needs. You can also but them online at a variety of stores, of which I will recommend fairplaygames.com, thoughthammer.com, and boardsandbits.com.
WHAT? I have to make an effort? Can't I get these games at Target when I'm picking up tampons, jumper cables, and the new Kanye West CD? Well, big box stores typically only carry the mass-market games, but in the case of Target, you're in luck. They've recently started carrying a very fun party game called Wits and Wagers (3-21 players, ages 10+, 25 minutes). This is a trivia game for people who don't know trivia. And, for the macho types, there's a betting element, too. In this game, a question is read that has a single numerical answer. For instance, "What is the average length of a hippopotamus' tail?" Everyone would jot down their answer, which would be arranged in order on the betting board. Then everyone gets to bet on the answer they think was right. So if you think I know more about hippo tails than most, you might bet on my answer. It's a very fun game and when Target did some focus groups on it, it received the highest marks of any game they've ever tested. And it's now sitting on the shelf at your local Target just WAITING FOR YOU.
