Communicator (communicator) wrote,
Communicator
communicator

Board Games

My personality type is more attracted to toys than games, whether metaphorical or actual. I generally like the activity of a game, but I can't be bothered with moving the pieces around the board and collecting cheeses etc. I played some fun games over Christmas, in particular Settlers of Catan, and here are some reviews.

In the 1980s we used to play a no-props game called Botticelli; it was quite the thing at parties. You had to guess a famous person from metaphorical clues ('if this person was a currency, which would he be?' etc.). I see from wikipedia that the men from UNCLE played it in one episode back in the 1960s. The Young Ones also had a variation called 'Jelly Botty' but that's another story.

There's a board game variant of Botticelli called 'Imaginiff' which I played over Christmas. It's a slightly less creative and more organised variant. It's OK. One question was about me (hurrah) and everyone had to say 'If communicator was a season which would she be?'. Every single person in the room said 'autumn'. Humph, is this a reflection of my age, or my mellow fruitfulness?

Another fun game I played was 'Bamboleo'. This is about blocks balanced on a board balanced on a cork ball balanced on a stick. You take off the blocks one at a time, without tipping the board. It tests both dexterity and judgement. I liked it a lot, for a simple concept it generates a surprising amount of challenge and fun. Recommended.

And finally, I have discovered the game 'Settlers of Catan', which I am sure anyone who plays board games knows already. I hadn't played it before and I thought it was excellent fun. I see there is a version IN SPACE. Recommended.

Both Bamboleo and Catan are German-made. My son says the Germans have the most interesting games industry of any country because legal restrictions on war-simulation has forced them to be more creative.
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  • 23 comments

  • Phew what a scorcher

    I see Gove has backed down on climate change and it's back in the curriculum again.

  • GCSE Computer Science

    My book is now for sale

  • LJ Settings

    At the moment I have set up this journal so that only friends can comment. I hate doing this, but I was just getting too much Russian spam.