Some Good Clean Fun...

Wade and I have rediscovered the joy of a good board game. Wade would say, bottom line, it makes good business sense. Going to a movie is $20 for the two of us ($30 if we want popcorn). Best case scenario, we are entertained for two hours and have to rush home to get Gwen and let the babysitter go home. Boardgames are averaging from $25 to $45. Unlimited play once you own them. Don't have to find a babysitter. And it encourages socializing and talking. It really is a great way to spend the Date Night budget.

When I was little, my favorite part of going to my grandparents house was their wall of games. I'm not kidding- a WALL, floor to ceiling of boardgames. I loved it. and I want one of my own. So, combining Wade's good business sense and my fond memories, I have been trying to make a tradition of getting one new game a month. We head down to Uncles Games and just pick one out. It's always such a hard decision because there are a million to choose from! From here on out, I will give a review of our newest acquisitions. Drum roll please.... Here are the latest and greatest!

Redneck Life


This game is funny. Not appropriate for young kids, though (smoking, alcohol, sleeping with lawyers for a discount divorce rate, etc are all represented throughout). A good litmus test to see if you will enjoy the game would be if you are a fan of My Name is Earl. Each player starts out by rolling for their redneck names. You then figure out what grade of school your character completed and that will determine what job you have (i.e. gas station attendant, taxidermist, monster truck rally announcer). Then you basically just follow the board as it leads you through life. You will marry, divorce, re-marry and raise an passel of young'uns. You try to stay out of debt as much as you can, but end up relying on loans to survive. The player at the end of the game that has the most teeth left wins. It is a very funny game. There is no strategy to it all- it's just the luck of the dice, really. But if you want a game that you can just turn your brain off for an hour and have some good laughs, you'll enjoy this.
Recommended with some Reservations- ****


Pandemic


This is a really unique and very fun game. It is cooperative, meaning you are all working together to beat the board. So, for those of you who don't like the competitive nature of most games and hate witnessing grown adults burst into tears and run from the room as a result of a little trash talking getting out of hand, this game is for you (and it's even fun for those of us who do enjoy a bit of competition, don't worry). You play as a team of CDC agents that is trying to keep a series of epidemics across the globe from spreading and becoming a pandemic. Each member of the team has a different special ability (i.e. Scientist, Medic, Dispatcher, etc...) so you HAVE to really work together to win. It offers a lot of opportunity for strategizing and every time you play it is different. It takes a bit to figure out how to play it, but it has a way to customize the difficulty levels so you can play on easy until you've got the game play down.
Highly Recommended- *****

Our friends, Jacob and Lorien, (who are a ton of fun to hang out with and that I consider to be like hanging out with Bono and a female equivalent and I would be soo misguided as to ever think I don't have much of a social life if I had nothing else but was able to hangout with them on any type of a regular basis!... and did I mention they are the coolest... and bring Dr. Pepper over... and I have a ROCKING social life hanging out with them!!! Because I do. Just wanted to clear that one up. ;-D )have been our partners in crime with the new games. Well, they brought one over this week that just knocked my socks off!

MWAHAHAHA!!!


This game is just plain awesome. You play a mad-scientist that is vying for world domination. You are each working on a dooms day device in your secret lair and want to be the first player to whip the worlds populations into submission. It has a deep level of play- it is really layered (the instruction manual was, no kidding, 40 pages long). You can play it as competitively as you want to. A lot of opportunity to strategize. Very funny- mad scientist sci-fi jokes abound. Gives you a chance to be as goofy and creative as you'd like, as you are encouraged to make maniacal speeches to the cities and countries you have your doomsday devices targeted on. I love this game. Once again, takes a little dedication to figure it out, but after you get it, it all makes sense. Bottom line: fun fun fun.
Highly Recommended- *****