31
Jul
For Less Than a Tank of Gas: Plan a Family Game Night
By Parents' Choice
Just like movies, family games are an ideal way to gather family members of all ages together for a few hours of pure family fun that’s also economical. Look for games that appeal to each family member’s age and interests. Our selections offer games of memory, matching, strategy, scavenging — and old fashioned giggling.
Ages: 3 & Up
Price: $14.99
On each turn, players roll three dice to determine whether they may collect a pig card, and if so, how many (determined by the number of curlicues on the tail) and which of three colors. But if the Big Bad Wolf turns up on a die, instead of collecting pig cards, the player must give up from his or her collection the color and numbers of pigs shown in that roll. An advanced version allows players to roll the dice a second or third time in hopes of getting better cards.
Ages: 4 & Up
Price: $49.95
If your kids are like ours, and change moods and interests in a matter of seconds, The Original Ultimate Spinner is just what the doctor ordered. By simply swapping one of the five colorful and inviting cardboard game face spinner discs for another, they can change games just as quickly. The 12 games and activities ranges from Al-Fe-Bet to Pin Spin Bowling and includes games for the mind as well as the body. The 100% USA handcrafted white pine toy components are Maine-grown and certified under the Sustainable Forestry Initiative.
Ages: 3 & Up
Price: $14.99
This memory game includes lots of hands-on activities that appeal to children: colored dice to roll, three plastic turtles with colored shells to mix and match, and 27 memory cards with pictures of the turtles. The object of the game is to collect the most memory cards. Start with all the memory cards face down. Beginners take turns placing one card face up. If the card matches one of the three plastic turtles, the player keeps the card and switches at least two of the turtle shells; then it’s the next player’s turn. If the picture on the card does not match any of the plastic turtles, the player returns the card, face down exactly where it had been.
Can You See What I See? Bingo Link
Ages: 6 & Up
Price: $15.99
It takes sharp eyes, good memory, a little planning, plus a bit of luck to make a continuous path of objects that connects the same colored border on opposite sides of the hexagonal game board. Each player’s game board contains 61 images. Although each picture is on every board, they appear in different locations. On each player’s turn s/he calls out the name of any object on the board, then covers the picture with a game piece, and waits until all the other players have located and covered the same object on their boards. Play continues until one player wins by creating a continuous path that connects one colored border to the matching color border on the opposite side of the board.
PAIRSinPEARS
Ages: 6 & Up
Price: $16.95
Pairs in Pears is a word-making game (for 2 to 4 players) consisting of 104 tiles of four differently-patterned alphabets (solid, outline, lines and dots) packaged in a pear-shaped and colored bag.In this quick, fun word game players work swiftly to create overlapping pairs of words while paying attention to which alphabet pattern the letters belong. Individual players form pairs of words sharing a single letter, competing to be the first to finish the required number of pairs of words made of matching letters, or to create the set of highest-scoring pairs of words. Observing and distinguishing the patterns is what adds to the fun and challenge.
Appletters
Ages: 6 & Up
Price: $16.95
Within the apple-shaped pouch are 110 letter tiles ready to be played on a bare surface – free of the confines of a gameboard. Rules for three games are offered. “Make a Snake” requires each successive player to add to the preceding layout in such a way that the first or last letter of the word being laid down must attach to the first or last letter of the snake. “Apple Turnover” allows a player to replace a previous player’s word with one that is longer. While the winner of the first two games is the one who uses all his or her tiles, the third game, AppleScore” uses a bonus point scoring system to determine the winner.
Zingo! 1-2-3 Number Bingo
Ages: 4 & Up
Price: $19.99
Zingo! is a number-matching game that helps youngsters learn to count, add, and recognize numerals — all within the fun of a Bingo-like game. The game components and the packaging are functionally designed. Unused tiles are reloaded into the top of the Zinger, where they will eventually work their way down the stack. The Parent’s Guide includes variations of game play and other tips.
Minotaurus
Ages: 8 & Up
Price: $24.99
The aim of this two-to-four-player game is to be first to move one’s own “heroes” into a secret temple hidden inside a labyrinth, being careful to avoid the mythical Minotaur who guards the temple. The basic game is played on an 11-inch square game board that fits neatly into the box it came in (the better to keep the tiny playing pieces from falling out of range). A template simplifies the placement of the obstacles both avoidable (hedges) and impassable (walls). Testers were enthralled to be able to use their beloved Legos to create and play a boardgame; eager onlookers jostled over the players’ shoulders to watch the action.
Rory’s Story Cubes
Ages: 8 & Up
Price: $7.99
Manufacturer: Gamewright
Rory’s Story Cubes is a set of nine six-sided picture dice (a total of 54 unique pictures) that are rolled and used to inspire impromptu storytelling. The pictures are very basic (e.g., a key, a hand, a house) and therefore very flexible. Players roll the cubes, then tell a story using all nine images that are displayed. Recommended for ages 8 and up, it can really be used by any individual or group trying to wake up creative language skills, from preschoolers still working on vocabulary and learning to tell simple, one-sentence stories to adults struggling with writer’s block.
7 Ate 9
Ages: 8 & Up
Price: $9.99
This quick-action game is a race to play all of one’s cards. There are no turns; a card may be played as soon as a player determines it meets requirements. The game begins with one card placed face up in the center of the table to create the “center pile” upon which all cards will be played. The remaining cards are dealt face down to all players so each has the same number of cards, which become their personal draw pile. Each card shows a yellow number from 1 to 10, and a plus or minus number, 1, 2 or 3. If the card on the center pile has a yellow number 5 and a + number of 1, any card with a yellow number 4 (5-1=4) or 6 (5+1=6) may be played. The first player to play all of his or her cards wins. Testers were pleasantly surprised to see how the options for play kept changing.
Word on the Street Junior
Ages: 8 & Up
Price: $19.99
This might be the only word game in which you never see a word completely spelled out. The game board, which has five “lanes,” is placed between two teams on opposite sides of the table. Each “road sign” letter tile is placed on the corresponding letter printed on the middle lane of the game board. The other two lanes on either side of the middle lane are resting places for the letters that are in the process of being captured. Category cards determine the word that each team chooses to form. Players from the team on the street (in play) brainstorm words that fit the category printed on the Category Card, and must decide before the 30-second timer runs out. One player from the team on the street now moves the letter tiles that spell the word they selected away from the middle lane and towards their side of the game board. Players capture letter tiles by selecting words that contain the desired letters and pulling the letters off the street before the opposing team can pull them back. When a letter has moved off the game board, it has been captured. Teams alternate taking turns on the street until one team has captured eight Letter Tiles.
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Next Friday, stay tuned for: “Get in the Olympic Spirit.”
