Author: ctrlalttabby@comcast.net

Wait… What? Are You Phrazy?

Are You Phrazy is a fast-paced conversation game. In it, you are racing to get rid of all of your cards by interrupting people. You can interrupt if you have the same card as the last one played or if you are the person clockwise of the previous player.Are You Phrazy?

It is hilarious because everyone reads their card off as they play it, and the conversation is so random it makes no sense. “Hello, how are you?” “I’ve fallen and I can’t get up!” “Hubba, hubba!” “I know you are, but what am I?” “Can the chatter!”

If you do not like fast-paced games, do not play this. It is very fast moving, as well as strategic. Finding the cards in your hand can be a challenge, choosing when to play a “stop” card is strategy that has to be carefully done, and you have to do it all before someone else.

On the other hand, fast-paced makes it good for points when you may need to leave anytime, like when you are waiting for a ride to pick you up.

 

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Garden Gnomis

Gnomi is a cute game about compost, gnomes and mushrooms. As we all know mushrooms have a high magical content when dealing with fairies and gnomes. Or, if you didn’t know, now you do (“What can I say except you’re welcome…”). Gnomi is kind of like Spy in the fact that the cards always remain in your hand.Gnomi

You have two types of cards: gnomes and mushrooms. You start with four mushrooms and three gnomes. Mushrooms can be used as follows: use one mushroom to ask for one mushroom of that color or use two mushrooms to get any mushroom regardless of color. “Using” a mushroom means you flip it upside down, which is called “composting”.

The gnomes have special abilities that allow them to steal mushrooms, grow mushrooms from the compost (flip the mushroom back to usable), and wake other gnomes. “Waking” a gnome happens because when you use the gnome, it gets flipped over to say that it is “asleep” and not usable.

The game ends when only one person has good mushrooms or awake gnomes left.

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Time to go Gold Digging!

Gold Digger is an Out of the Box game in which you are prospectors (sort of). There are 6 mines, up to three of which you may own later in the game. You put gold (and fool’s gold) in the mines and place people there to mine it.Gold Digger

This game is pretty simple to get the hang of, making it ideal for time constraints. This also adds to making it so fun.

Unfortunately, the company is closed. This makes it a little harder to buy. I’m sure you can still find it around, if you look, though.

The puns are awful! I love this. For instance, one of the Explorers is “Sackapotatoes”. This is a play on Sacajawea. It’s quite amusing.

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Rock Me, Archimedes!

Rock Me Archimedes is, needless to say, a mathematical game. In it, you have marbles that you are trying to get to one side of the rocking board without letting either end touch the floor or table. You have to get four marbles to your goal zone before your opponent gets four into theirs. Rock Me Archimedes

I like the chance, strategy and math that go into getting the marbles across. You have to be careful to get across first, but not too far ahead so your side dips. You also can’t be too far behind, or you drop their side when you move and lose.

Make sure the place you are playing is level and still. Do not play in an airplane (for obvious reasons). It isn’t portable enough for airplanes anyway.

I also like the board itself. The rocking mechanics are clean and simple, since it’s just rounded wood on flat wood. I like the way the pieces go into each other to minimize the amount of box space the game takes up.

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Time to Spy

Spy is another Pack O’ Games game. Like the others, it is very small. Big difference though: this one doesn’t require a table. Everything is done in your hand. In it you are spying on other players and trying to go through all four of their safes before a) they go through yours or b) you set off their bombs. You set off a bomb by spying on it twice. The first time, the other player flips it upside down. The second time, it goes off leaving a nice crater.Spy

I like the lack of table necessity. Very useful for car rides. It’s also very simple, there are only like three types of cards (bomb, safe, top secret safe). And the spies. Is it just me or does the red spy seem very Soviet?

You definitely have to know how to mirror things to play this. The hands mirror each other for parts of the game. This is how you “spy” on people. They tell you the card type that mirrors the place your spy in your hand is.

I will always go back to the brilliant portability of these games. It makes it really simple to take places and its another reason that this can be played in the car.

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Adepticon-Home of the Minifigs!

Alright, alright. That isn’t the name of the con. It’s just Adepticon – though I think the Home of the Minifigs part would be a great addition. I was surprised when my godmother (she comes up a lot on this site, doesn’t she…) asked me day of whether I wanted to come with her. Not knowing what it was, but having been told that it was mini-figures, I went Aw heck, why not? and came along with her. I was very impressed and excited with what I saw.Adepticon 2017

There were a lot of games going on, tournament games I couldn’t play since I didn’t have a badge. I didn’t mind, since that meant I just free-ranged the room and took photos of cool figurines.

There was a demo running at a table, which turned out to be Blood and Plunder. We went over because a) it had ships with cannons (ships are a less common sight in figurines; I have a thing for cannons) and b) the table was freaking awesome! You could see little islands kind of under the surface, and the table was filled in with resin. It wasn’t smooth resin either-it had current ripples pressed into the surface.

I played the demo (the simple version without wind factors) and enjoyed it immensely. I played the Spaniards, and when my opponent named the sailor his ship lost, I decided to name mine (Ferdinand, if you must know). My strategy was pretty much “Bold and Stupid wins the fight.” (Thanks a lot, Dirk and Guido!) There were Fortune Coins for each team, which when spent allowed a re-roll. I spent most of the game fingering a particularly shiny gold colored one, and when the game was over, when I reached to set it down they said I could keep it. I guess that Spanish ship had stopped at El Dorado on the way to the fight?

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It’s Time to Sow!

Alright, I figured since it was the beginning of spring I would celebrate with a game about flowers! Sow is a Mancala-like game where you are trying to collect a certain color of flowers. Failing that, you are trying to collect flowers.Sow

I love the flowers. They are actually kind of comical, since some are red and blue, or yellow and blue, both of which look really odd. There was one with a red center and white petals that I called the “Japan flower”, since it looked like the Japanese flag.

It takes a while to understand, as the rules are very wordy. That, however, can be overlooked – I just had Mom read them. It also complicates Mancala a little with color-coded point values and the Windmill, Watering Can and Groundhog. I would know, since we have played Mancala occasionally in Social Studies.

It is a great strategy game since you are trying to figure out the “favorite color” of the other player. The “favorite color” is the color that determines the point value for each flower to that given player. If the color is in the center, three points, if it is the petals, two points, and if it isn’t present, the flower is still worth one point.

Happy Spring!!!

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Come make a country!

NationStates is an online game where you make and govern your own country. You can join regions, role-play and form your country through Issues. Your answers will alter the statistics on your nation.NationStates

I think this game is  creative and fun, as it makes a way to role-play while creating a nation that can represent what you believe, what a friend believes, or just something that comes into your mind!

It is not a fast-paced game. Role-plays and other social interactions can only take place when people are online, so it spans over quite a while. Issues have a timer for how often a new one comes in, so if you aren’t in any role-plays and you’ve just finished all your issues there isn’t much left to do.

I do like the statistics, though. You can see percentages for government expenditure, how most people die and the ownership of the industry. You can click on other peoples’ home pages and hit “Challenge”, where it compares random statistics with theirs to see who has a higher number on it. This is where having low numbers isn’t always good. For instance, I have a rubbish low crime rate, which is actually quite good, but it means I almost always lose if the selected statistic is crime.

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Homemade Pinball!!!

I made a pinball machine! Out of cardboard, yes, but I made a pinball machine! Out of a pattern and pre-cut package, but I made a pinball machine! Alright, alright, you get the idea.PinBox 3000

I thought it was so cool when my mom handed me a box labeled “PinBox 3000” and told me to go set it up. It took a while to finish, but I have made the first board for it (I can swap this for another one to change up the obstacles), as well as the box. It comes with a couple marbles to play with. I had a lot of fun rolling the marble around, though the obstacles should probably be a little thicker so the marble doesn’t occasionally roll right over them.

Mom found it on Kickstarter (go figure!). It is quite amusing to play with and provides much fun while constructing. Make sure to read the instructions before constructing, I didn’t do this and ran into some complications.

Enjoy!

[Mom’s note: So I conned my kid into building my pinball machine.. and the cat thinks it’s a box.]

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Do you have what it takes for Wizard School?

Come find out! Wizard School is a cooperative school-style game where you fight monsters, take tests, skip classes and generally attempt to survive high school. It is quite the challenge and not the game for the faint of heart or easily deterred.Wizard School

I like the level of school and the level of geekiness. I think it connects to the magic, the fandom, and the actual challenges of school. For instance, one of the Tests was “Finding All Your Classes”. Another was “Flying License”. Some of the monsters were “PsyRen” and “Parakeet of Paralysis’, “Its piercing call can shatter your ear drums. It may also wake a beast you didn’t know was right under your feet.” (There is a thought bubble coming from the Parakeet: “Also, I can kill you with my brain.” Go Firefly!)

It does not include counters or markers, which would be useful for showing what you have achieved and what you have yet to complete. It also does not provide a coin, despite the many “Flip-a-coin” cards. It also says “Pass the Wand” for symbolizing the end of your turn and the beginning of another. It had no wand.  (Luckily, we have several wands.)

On the other hand, if you are willing to take the time to play, it is remarkably amusing and great for practicing communication and group strategy.

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