House Rules : A Cheaters Delight
Family Game Night. Bringing us together and tearing us apart one UNO at a time
We hadn’t planned much for my son’s 15th birthday. So, when my brother called to say he was headed over with surprise cupcakes, I welcomed the fanfare.
I had to think fast though.
My son had a friend over and they wanted to go for a snowmachine ride. But, if I let them go, it would be hard to get them back. Especially in time for the arrival of freshly purchased cupcakes.
I had to figure out how to keep them occupied, and stationary, until my brother arrived….without blowing the surprise.
Thinking fast, I put on my most pathetic, lonely mom act and busted out the UNO cards.
“Just one game?” I pleaded “It’s been so long since we played a game together.”
The teens were put out but, miraculously, obliged. The first couple rounds were subdued. By the tenth round (my brother took his sweet time) we were in full on, “screw your neighbor” mode. The draw fours, skips and reverses were hitting the discard pile as fast as we could pick them up.
We also had a rousing argument over whether or not it was acceptable to place “draw two” cards one on top of the other until an unlucky player had to take ten cards from the draw pile.
House rules said it was not only fine, but encouraged.
Good old UNO. Providing quality time and sparking feuds for generations.
Eventually, my brother showed up, my son was surprised and we all got fluorescent lips from the radioactive cupcake frosting.
I was lucky that time, but I don’t know how many more UNO games I’ll be able to squeeze out of my son.
The same old games can get boring. That’s why I like to add a few new ones to our roster each year. Some are winners and some are duds. Chances are your family’s game cabinet could use a refresher too. Here’s a few to try the next time you need to entertain a teen or two.
Family Favorite : Monopoly
Try : Splendor
2-4 Players, 10+
I’d be willing to bet that Monopoly is responsible for more relationship rifts than any other game in history. Someone always gets pissed off. Honestly, if this is your family’s favorite game, it might be time for some counseling.
Can we all just agree that Monopoly is the Voldemort of board games? People shudder when you bring it up.
If you’re ready for a less inflammatory option, I recommend Splendor.
Splendor taps into the financial aspect of Monopoly in all the right ways. Accumulation of wealth. Planning, plotting and purchasing of coveted assets. It’s all there. Except, instead of flimsy, paper money, you’ll be handling plastic “gems” and cards that represent varying levels of wealth.
There’s also an element of strategy that can be applied in a multitude of ways. I’ve noticed that everyone I play with approaches the game a little differently and that makes it unpredictable. Similar to the game that shall not be named.
Bonus : Absolutely no one has flipped the board/table mid game while playing Splendor. At least not while I was there. The same cannot be said for…..you know what.
Family Favorite : UNO
Play instead : UNO FLIP
In recent years, the makers of UNO have been tossing out new versions of their classic game left and right. A genius marketing strategy assuring the game will never fade into obscurity.
First there was DOS. A complete and utter failure, if you ask me. Dos was discovered at the bottom of my son’s stocking one Christmas and proceeded to stifle an otherwise lovely morning. Thanks for nothing Santa.
DOS is just plain confusing. The rules are too complicated.
Don’t recommend at all.
UNO flip, on the other hand, succeeds where DOS fails miserably. It takes a couple of rounds to learn, but it’s worth it. The best part is a new feature that requires everyone to flip their hand over. When this happens, a whole new set of cards are revealed. This side of the deck is "the dark side” and, with cards like “Draw 5”, it takes the game up a notch.
The added weight of the “bad cards” on the dark side of the deck make for gleefully vindictive play. It’ll have you questioning your own house rules in no time.
Family Favorite : Trivial Pursuit
Play Instead : Smart A**
2-6 players, 12+
Everyone loves an excuse to throw an expletive around. Especially kids. You are off to a good start from the second you put this one on the table.
If the name isn’t enough to raise eyebrows, the “Hard A**” category cards will. They’re played intermittently with other categories like “Who Am I?”, “What am I?” and “Where Am I?”
Scandalized giggles are sure to reach peak excitement as players move around the board and land on spaces marked “Kick A**” and “Dumb A**”.
High energy gameplay is what makes Kick A** special.
It brings every player into the action on every turn. One player delivers the question and all the other players try to guess the answer….at the same time.
Smart Ass is a fun and, sometimes frantic, twist on the trivia game genre. The questions range widely and seem to hit every demographic. If you like Trivial Pursuit, or trivia games in general, this is the game for you.
Family Favorite : Scattegories
Play Instead : Blank Slate
3-8 Players, 8+
My brother and I have been playing Scattegories together since we were kids. We started playing with our own kids as soon as they became proficient readers and writers. It’s a great game for families with mixed ages and remains a favorite for us.
Even the best games get tired though.
Last year, we purchased Blank Slate. It is the perfect stand in for days when we aren’t feeling Scattegories, but still want that style of play.
Blank Slate requires the same timed, fill in the blank approach with a refreshing twist.
In Scattegories, you are trying to come up with unique answers because you don’t get points for answers that match other players. In Blank Slate, the goal is to predict how other players will answer and match it.
You are given one word and one blank space. You have a matter of seconds to accurately guess how other players will fill in the blank. Some examples include “Deep ___”, “Holy___” and “Foot___”.
You get 3 points if you guessed my answer for the first two. You might also get kicked out of family game night.
Most of the “answers” feel so obvious that it’s often surprising to see how differently everyone responds.
Playing this with family is really fun because you either know, or think you know, them so well. It’s hilarious to see what people come up with. Especially when it’s out of left field.
This fast paced game will quickly become a game night favorite.
Mind the Gap : If you decide to try it…..Beware
2+ Players, Ages 10 to Boomer
I bought “Mind the Gap” when everyone was proclaiming it to be the best new game of the year.
It did not live up to the hype.
The instructions are vague. They leave too much up for interpretation. My family argued a lot about it before we even played the first time. Major bummer. A game needs concrete rules.
Mind the Gap is a trivia game requiring teams to make their way through sections divided by generations as they move around a game board. You can start wherever you want because every team has to go through every section/generation eventually.
Most importantly, each team abolsutely needs a representative from every generation on the board: “Gen Z”, “Millenial”, “GenX” and “Boomers”. We tried to play a few different times, but we were always missing a generation or two and it didn’t work.
The specific, and often obscure, questions baffle players outside of the targeted generation. The only people who get the reference are those who came of age in that time. I was able to easily answer questions from both GenX and Millenial because I was born in 1981. Considered a “Xennial”, I’ve got one foot in each. But the Boomer questions? Forget about it. Seriously. I was lost. I managed with the Gen Z alright because I live with a teenager, but even some of those were too difficult.
So, yeah…if you are going to play this game, and you can figure out the rules, play it exactly as directed. Otherwise you will get stuck in the abyss of whatever generation your team is missing.
Of course this feels obvious. It’s hard to judge a game until you’ve played it the way it’s meant to be played. In my defense, it’s surprisingly hard to round up a such a specific group of players. You almost have to design a guest list around the game. Glass Onion anyone??
If that’s your thing, or you have a few boomers, xennials and teenagers hanging around, go for it! I’d like to try the game again with the proper roster of players. I’d also love to hear if any of you have had more luck with it.
Time to Start Planning Your Next Game Night!
I’ll end with a little unsolicited advice : Make tacos for your next game night. Everyone is happier when they’re eating tacos. Even if someone storms out or flips the board, there will be tacos and everything will be okay.
That’s all i’ve got for now. If you try any of the games, or you have some recommendations of your own, let me know in the comments!
See you Thursday!