Family board games are a funny thing. You can have the best of intentions with the games that you pick and then it all flies out the window. So I thought that I would revisit last month’s Christmas Games and see what I actually got played.
From the previous post I am surprised to say that all but two of the games got played. Bang: The Dice Game and Skull were the games that did not get played with the rest getting a great run through by a range of people.
“The bird game” – Wingspan became a pretty big hit with the other gamers in the family and was a great source of entertainment for the rest. Heaps of comments on artwork and components kept the interest of the non-players.
Deception: Murder in Hong Kong – not as many plays on this one, but lots of fun when it did happen. The only reason that it didn’t get played more was the constant presence of younger kids and conversation around bludgeoning and blood loss seemed to bother them a little…weird.
Just One – I sent some games a week early to where we are celebrating Christmas and Just One had already be played numerous times. This is a great family board game, players can come and go as they please, you can make rounds indefinite and it is so easy to explain to anyone who wants in.
Five Tribes – I don’t think that this one was on my radar originally for family games, but it really went down well, especially for those who are more into strategy games. The Mancala type movement is easy enough to explain, while the rest of the rules tend to fall into place. One of the only issues is that this game tends to favour those who have played it before, although it isn’t necessarily bad to crush the nephews and family every once in a while (did I mention I rarely win anything…)
Istanbul – Another Mancala-esque game that involves grid movement. I have previously played and reviewed and wasn’t the greatest fan, but now things have changed. I feel a change in the force and a swing towards the middle weight Euro. I played this at 2 player 3 times over the holidays and it has become a fast favourite, easy setup and quick play for experienced players, watch out for the player who takes all the Mosque tiles early though…
What did you get played over the holiday period, anything that you find particularly easy/hard to get to the table with family gamers?
