{"id":2611,"date":"2003-12-03T13:52:15","date_gmt":"2003-12-03T20:52:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/defectiveyeti.com\/?p=2611"},"modified":"2003-12-03T13:52:15","modified_gmt":"2003-12-03T20:52:15","slug":"good-gift-games-2003","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/defectiveyeti.com\/wordpress\/2003\/12\/03\/good-gift-games-2003\/","title":{"rendered":"Good Gift Games 2003"},"content":{"rendered":"

Note<\/b>: If you heard me on The Beat<\/a> and are are looking for more information on the games described, head on over to SeattleSpiel<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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It’s everybody’s favorite holiday tradition:  Matthew Baldwin’s Annual Good Gift Games Guide!<\/p>\n

Every year I assemble a list of those games that, in my opinion, make swell presents for the holiday season.  In compiling these guides, I start with the assuption that the gift recipients are not<\/i> habitual game players, so the games selected (with a few exceptions) are those with few rules and a focus on fun.  I also try and emphasize inexpensive games but, this year, I largely failed in that regard.  Oh well —  the economy’s pickin’ up, right?<\/p>\n

A quick word on “complexity”. I’ve included five  levels, here:  “No-brainer,” “Simple,” “Average,” “Moderate” and “Advanced.”  This indicates how easy the game is to learn or teach, but not necessarily how easy it is to play well.    Also, I’m grading on a curve here — “average” does not mean “halfway between Hi-Ho Cherry-O and Dungeons and Dragons,” it means “Average” in terms of a G3<\/sup>. All of the games listed would be suitable gifts for non-gamers (with the possible exception of Amun-Re, the one advanced game).<\/p>\n

This is not intended to be an exhaustive list, just those that came to mind as I was writing this.  If there’s another game you want an opinion on, drop me a line at matthew@defectiveyeti.com<\/a> — my knowledge in these matters is frighteningly encyclopedic.  And don’t confine yourself to this year’s games alone: be sure to check out the G3<\/sup>s 2000<\/a>, the G3<\/sup>s 2001<\/a>,  and last year’s guide<\/a>, which also includes the Canonical List of G3<\/sup>games.<\/p>\n

Enough jibba-jabba!<\/p>\n

<\/a>Coloretto<\/a><\/b> (Complexity: No-brainer; Number of Players: 3-5; Playing Time: 20 minutes; Cost: $10):  You want to hear all the rules for Coloretto?  Here you go:  On your turn you can either (a) draw a card and add it to a row, or (b) take all the cards in a row.  That’s it. Well, okay, maybe there’s one or two other rules, but, honestly, I’ve hit the highlights.  And yet, it somehow manages to be terrific fun.  Go figure.<\/p>\n

Clans<\/a><\/b> (Complexity: Simple; Number of Players: 2-4; Playing Time: 30 minutes; Cost: $20):  I typically don’t like abstract games, but there are two game designers who have a knack for creating abstract games that are simple, clever, brief, and contain just enough theme to win me over.  Leo Colovini is the first, and I find his Clans<\/i> —   a souped-up version of Nim<\/a> ostensibly about the formation of prehistoric villages — to be unaccountably addicting.<\/p>\n

Paris Paris<\/a><\/b> (Complexity: Average; Number of Players: 2-4; Playing Time: 45 minutes; Cost: $20):  Michael Schacht is the other designer who manages to create abstract games I like– in fact, his Web of Power<\/a> is one of my all-time favorites.  Web of Power<\/i> is now out of print, alas, but Paris Paris<\/i> fills much the same niche:  it is easy to learn, it plays in under an hour, and it will leave you saying “let’s try that  again.”<\/p>\n

Pirate’s Cove<\/a><\/b> (Complexity: Moderate;  Number of Players: 3-5; Playing Time: 90 minutes; Cost: $40):  Enough with the abstracts; on to the themes!  I recently bought Pirates Cove<\/i> as my annual “Holiday Game,” and it has been filling the role admirably.   Captain a pirate ship, send it to the four corners of the globe in search of booty, 
\nand greet rival corsairs with blast of cannonfire. Puts the “Arr!” into “replayable.”<\/p>\n

Mystery Rummy: Al Capone and the Chicago Underworld<\/a><\/b> (Complexity: Average; Number of Players: 2-4; Playing Time: 30 minutes; Cost: $10):  This is the fourth<\/a> in the “Mystery Rummy” series, and many folks think it’s the best.  I harbor a slight preference for Wyatt Earp<\/a>, but I like that Capone<\/i> (unlike Earp<\/i>) can be played as a four-person partnership game.<\/p>\n

Queens’s Necklace<\/a><\/b> (Complexity: Average; Number of Players: 3-4; Playing Time: 40 minutes; Cost: $20):  Queen’s Necklace is one of those rare games that’s superb with three.  Set on the eve of the French Revolution, players become Royal Jewelers, vying to purchase valuable gems and trying to curry favor with the court.  And check out the well-done online tutorial<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Smarty Party<\/a><\/b> (Complexity: No-brainer; Number of Players: 3-8; Playing Time: 30 minutes; Cost: $20):  Remember Outburst<\/a><\/i>, that game where someone reads a category (“Parts of the body that come in pairs”) and then everyone shouts out answers for 60 seconds or so?  Okay, Smarty Party<\/i> = Outburst<\/i> – the time limit + clever scoring system + rubber pants.  The cards contain some errors (which drives me nuts), but overall this is a very fun party game.  And I’m not kidding about the pants.<\/p>\n

<\/a>New England<\/a><\/b> (Complexity: Moderate; Number of Players: 3-4; Playing Time: 90 minutes; Cost: $35):  The sleeper hit of the year.  When New England<\/i> was released in German it received little acclaim, but the new English version has been garnering raves and just bagged the GAMES Magazine “Game Of The Year” award.  The heart of the game is an innovate auction system in which the amount you agree to pay for items also dictates whether you’ll have the pick of the litter or have to pick through the dregs.  It’s also quite nice to look at.<\/p>\n

I’m The Boss<\/a><\/b> (Complexity: Moderate; Number of Players: 4-6; Playing Time: 60 minutes; Cost: $30): I’ve owned the German version of this game for years, but it’s been so long out of print that my friends who enjoy it (and many do) have been unable to get their own copy.  Thankfully, the game has been reissued, this time in English.  I’m The Boss<\/i> is pure negotiation, as you  wheedle, beg, and coerce your opponents into collaboration on a series of business deals.<\/p>\n

Amun-Re<\/a><\/b> (Complexity: Advanced; Number of Players: 3-5; Playing Time: 90 minutes; Cost: $30):  Amun-Re has a pretty steep learning curve, but it’s a game worth the effort.  Players strive to build pyramids, farm the Nile, and placate a fickle Sun God.  How Amun-Re rewards players (as a group) depends on how much they sacrifice (as a group), and it’s this delicate balance between cooperation and competition that makes the game hum.<\/p>\n

Balloon Cup<\/a><\/b> & Odin’s Ravens<\/a><\/b> (Complexity: Average; Number of Players: 2; Playing Time: 30 minutes; Cost: $15):  Two different games with lots of similarities:  both are card games, both are for two players, both are short ‘n’ simple (Balloon Cup<\/i> a little more so), and both are quite fun.  Most prefer Balloon Cup<\/i> slightly (me, I like Odin’s Ravens<\/i> a smidgen more), but both are perfect for a game-playing twosome.<\/p>\n

The Bucket King<\/a><\/b> (Complexity: Simple; Number of Players: 3-6; Playing Time: 30 minutes; Cost: $20):  Why wasn’t this on last year’s list?  I have no idea, but it certainly should have been.   Protect your pyramid of buckets while sending farm animals out to knock over the pyramids of others.  So, yeah, the theme is stupid. But that won’t prevent you from totally stressin’ out when a sheep is maurading towards your bucket cache.<\/p>\n

Other Great Games<\/u><\/p>\n

A couple of games I’d hesitate to give as gifts but are worthy of mention.<\/p>\n