My (GeZe's) Homework About Boardgaming

I’d say that Snakes/Chutes and ladders tops my list. It’s soooo bloody complicated with all that dice rolling and climbing and falling all over the show.
Sorry would be my number 2. Similarly mind numbingly tedious. Basically any game that relies on mere dice rolling pisses me off.

Good games - Settlers of Catan, Scrabble, Trivial Persuit, Cranium.

nice to see you again Gezzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzze

A general problem with really bad games is too little decision making. A lot of games are simply “Roll Dice, Move Character up, Get action depending upon where character lands, do action, next turn, roll dice and move up”.

risk

I would say there are games for different ages:
The “game of life” wwas fun when i was say 10…. now i would feel bored.
It’s roll the dice and do exactly one decision :)…

And another reason why we don’t know that many “bad” games… is that they are bad and therefore not played and known :)…

If you go on borad-gaming, you could go into “gaming theory” a bit as well, depending on the age of the audience… then suddenly chess becomes “trivial” and pretty boring :) (as there is always a “best move”, alweays a “best strategy”, and the moves of your opponent are not hidden, it is “full of information”).

I’ve heard that Fortress America is a very one sided game. Apparently it is almost impossible for America to loose. This may be a part of the reason why the game out of print. That and the politically incorrect artwork on the front of the box. Like a picture of Sadam Hussein and the two towers on fire. Ouch.

Even with that having been said just you try to buy that game on eBay for less than $75 for a set in good condition.

heaven forbid^_^ it was made by the americans :wink:

I’ll throw in my 2 cents about good/bad board games I’ve played.

Good

Win, Place, Show Horse Racing (great atmosphere and some good strategy needed)
Cranium (all out fun across many genres)

(these aren’t really board games, but close enough!)
Boggle (time tester, vocabulary builder, and makes people analyze data quick)
Wordthief (a fun game combining Scrabble and Rummy)

Bad

Trivial Pursuit (more boring than watching paint dry)
Stock Ticker (zero skill needed. A 2 year old can beat anyone)

Borderline Call

Scrabble (too much luck in getting the right letters and learning cheesey Scrabble Dictionary words ruins all the fun. WOW! The words “xi”, “xu” and “ka” are words. You don’t have a scrabble dictionary? Too bad! I do! Those words count!

Bad?

MOUSETRAP
yes we do have an old mousetrap game kickin’ around somewhere.
SORRY is a little bit worse than borderline

Good

Settlers of Catan
–-Cities and Knights of Catan (expansion)
—Seafarers of Catan (expansion)
Sequence is okay

All these are in addition to those already mentioned

bad? hmmm…my vote would go to the little cardboard games u get on cereal boxes that u have to cut out :x

This is intriguing, GeZe – will you be repeating such a session with a class in the future?

I find it fascinating how different people are attuned to different types of game play. For example, mat picks “Sorry” as a lousy game. And when I read his post, I flashed on some amazing interplay with Sorry as a young kid – tons of reversals of fortune, quick pace, etc., almost as much fast action as shooting craps. A group adrenaline rush disguised as a board game.

Now, I realize by the reaction of mat – this is not everyone’s cup of tea. So, how do you determine what goes into a “good” boardgame, besides its success at lasting over time and generations of players – and perhaps its ability to morph into a family of games?

Well, there are two different schools of boardgaming:

1. Luck based. Roll a die, move a piece, pick up a card, rinse repeat. No decisions to be made really.

2. Decision based. Strategy games. Much more complex, more fun. Takes some thinking to play.

Axis and Allies is a decision based game which relies quite a bit on luck. A hybrid so to speak, most good board games are hybrids.

Surprised monopoly’s only been mentioned once (at the top). I love monopoly! 'cept last game I played against my brother, we attacked each other like 15 times over hotel payments and stuff. Long story short, I forget who won.

@ctm:

Surprised monopoly’s only been mentioned once (at the top). I love monopoly! 'cept last game I played against my brother, we attacked each other like 15 times over hotel payments and stuff. Long story short, I forget who won.

Wow I thought I was the only one that thought monopoly should have a millitary element added.

“you landed on park place, I have a hotel that will be $xxx!”

“I call my millitia to storm your hotel and take it over!”

Hmm. Monopoly as military game.

Howabout: Baghdad or Broke.
The value of Water Works & Electric Company would have to be increased tenfold – and Park Place and Boardwalk remain the most expensive properties, but are renamed Halliburton Place and Fort Bechtel.

The element of luck is emphasized through the cards you pick up at Community Chest & Chance, which are rebranded Cheney’s Bunker & France. And the role of Uncle Moneybucks will be lovingly portrayed by Uncle Rummyguns.

House rule fanatics can argue over whether you get extra moolah for landing on Free Parking, or if it’s simply a place to rest – and get your American butt shot at by martyrs on motorbikes.

And one true-to-life option is replicating square #4 (Income Tax) so that it is placed in every other square around all four sides of the board!

yahtzee!!!
Parcheesi!!!

I’d rather eat a whole ant colony then play those two!!!

they just don’t make sense and that is why I have against them
they leave the players feeling like they’ve done nothing