Thoughts about theme

In my last post I talked about some principles that were important in picking out a good game for couples to play together (either you with your significant other, or you and your significant other with other couples). Last night I was talking with my wife and her friend about games that we like to play together as couples and our friend mentioned that her favorite game was Wasabi! (Z-Man Games) because it was fun, but also because it had a cute theme that was done right.

If you are not familiar with Wasabi! it is a tile-laying game in which players attempt to complete recipes with sushi ingredients (As I write, I remember that this is now the second time I have written about Wasabi! Click here for a link to the earlier post--now over a year old!). It is a fairly simple game to learn and play, and its pretty fun as well. What I really like about it though, is that it is one of my favorite games to show off. Not only are the components well-crafted and fun (think little wasabi bowls), but also the theme stands-out. Its unique. There are hundreds of war and history (and history of war) games, but, to my knowledge, there is only one game about making sushi rolls.

I have often wondered why people play the games they play, and what it is about a game that makes it desirable to pick-up and try or to try again and again. Most importantly I ask, why are people so hesitant to try new games? While I still think that we are intimidated by the thought of learning a bunch of new rules (especially if we are just trying to relax), I think theme is a just-as relevant factor. A game with a strikingly fun and unique theme, such as Wasabi, will warrant a try even if it looks slightly complicated. A game about the fall of Thrace in the 8th century BC will warrant a glossy stare, at best, from the majority of people you attempt to introduce to it (pardon my complete disregard for actual historical events or places in this sentence).

Are you someone who likes to try new games, or who wants to introduce a new game to your couple's night? Think about theme. People will pardon the need to learn a few new rules if the game looks fresh, contemporary, and fun.

What makes a good couples game?

Since my previous post, I have thought a lot about couples games. Not only have I thought about games that would be good to play with your significant other, or even just about games that would be good to play with other couples, but also about what makes a good couples game. That is, which qualities ought a game possess in order for you to know, before you go out and buy it, that you will be a good couples game.

Some of the things I thought of are these:
1. If at all possible, the game should avoid negative conflict and confrontation. I'm not talking about challenging the opposing team to sculpt a rhinoceros in Cranium, but more along the lines of war games or financial domination games, where in order for you to win, you've got to rob your spouse of every last dollar or territory.

2. The game shouldn't last more than 60-90 minutes. Since the point of couples games shouldn't just be friendly competition, but social interaction and relationship building, the game should not dominate all the allotted time. Plenty of time should be left-over to talk, eat, and hang-out after the competition subsides. If a game takes to long, you could ruin all chances of ever getting your couple friends to come over to play games again. Its always better to wish the game ended too soon, than took too long. Besides, if everyone is having a really great time playing, you could always play again. (Note: if the box says the game takes 60-90 minutes, it is not accounting for the time it takes to read the rules, teach it, or play your first time. You can expect any game to take about 25% longer if the majority of the players are first-timers. Pick a game that says it is 30-60 minutes unless everyone is already comfortable with the rules.)

3. The game should be optimized for the correct number of players. This one should be obvious, but in my opinion it is not a good idea to pick a game designed for less players and then combine couples onto teams so that everyone can play. In this case, I've found, that typically one partner ends up dominating the majority of the play, while the other sits by and watches. While the odd-partner-out might claim this is exactly what they want and that they don't really care to play anyways, the other partner (the one who is playing) could feel strained or uncomfortable that their significant other isn't playing, and at the very least, the type of interaction will be less united if any people have an unequal role in the experience. Unless the game is designed for teams (think pictionary), be careful to select a game whose box indicates the correct number of players.

In a later post perhaps I will add a few criterion for selecting a game, but hopefully this will help if you are ever searching for one and can't decide.

Board Games for Couples

While this post has nothing to do with applying board game mechanics, it does have a lot to do with real life, and real life is often a lot more interesting than theory.

I googled "Board games for couples" just to see what I could find, but I was very disappointed by the results. Of the top ten results five were geared toward "adult" board games, ie, games to spice up your love life. Sex games seem a bit silly to me. Instead of trying to make things happen with cheap ploy's and other's opinions of what makes good romance, why not improve your relationship?

My wife and I enjoy playing board games together as a fun way to spend quality time together. We are both very competitive game players, so sometimes we get upset when we don't win, but overall, playing games together has been a very positive experience, and something that we can have in common. Here then, is a list of top five games that we prefer to play together:

1. Carcassone (Rio Grande Games): Tile laying game. The hardest thing to learn is the scoring. We love it because every game is different, its simple to set-up, and the strategy is not too heavy.
2. Small World (Days of Wonder): Beautiful game with a fanciful theme. Easy to learn and play. Hardest thing is the set-up.
3. St. Petersburg (Hans Im Gluck): Germany's version of Monopoly, only six-times shorter and a whole lot friendlier. Great to play over a mug of hot cocoa and a TV movie.
4. Thurn and Taxis (Rio Grande Games): Non-aggressive game about the first international postal service. A bit counterintuitive to learn, but very easy and fun once you get going.
5. Ticket to Ride (Days of Wonder): Simple game with light strategy. Not a lot of down-time between turns. We like it because you have to plan ahead!

Thats our list for now. Hope you look one of these up and give them a try someday with your significant other, and may your relationships be blessed.