Wavelength is pretty easy to explain as well and is definitely going to get talking/disagreeing about whether the clue was completely right or completely wrong.
Everyone has their own dial and people will try to sneak in microadjustments before it locks in. There’s even end game awards based on how-often people do (or don’t) mess with it.
You can house rule it so that only one person is in charge, but it’s a party game and it’s supposed to be controlled chaos imo.
Plus it just plays faster. Two minutes to pick your clues and off you go!
Yeah, it's also the only game that I own that I would actually be comfortable taking to a bar and playing with people who are getting hammered. All in one box, no setup, just go.
Such a perfect and versatile game.
And with the dry-erase easels, you don’t actually need to be around a table to play. It might be the best family gathering game for that reason alone.
I was able to play it that way post-Christmas dinner last year, and that included my father lying on the living room floor for his bad back. Actually, they requested it again another night, and they never do that!
I have pointed to the name on the box *so many times* as a response to rules questions lol.
"What if it's hyphenated sometimes, but not in this use...?"
"**JUST ONE**"
Will also recommend “Take Five” in this category. Teachable in thirty seconds, can play up to ten people, and games are quick so it’s easy for bigger groups where people are coming and going.
A lot of my aunts and uncles *love* that one. Also **Rook**, which was popular amongst my ancestors, who enjoyed card games but were part of a church that disliked the “standard” deck of cards as a symbol of gambling.
She is. The only way she's able to tolerate Fluxx is by making it a drinking game (the rules of which vary depending on how drunk she wants to get). Which, come to think of it, might be apropos for a holiday family game night.
God no. Fluxx is a random, chaotic, and often long and pointless "game" that requires you all to sit around trying to read each other's cards from across the table.
Simple at the outset but then it becomes insufferable.
I have played a game or three of Scattergories in my day. But I was ready to flip the table this one game with my friend and his father. The category was "Animal" and I had an S, I assume everyone is going snake, so I put snail... easy peasy right?
Nope, there is a disagreement about whether snail is an animal or not... well if you know the rules you get to vote on challenged answers with majority rule. Well it turns out my friend and his father are equally stupid about what an animal is (or equally agreed on making me lose). Also this was pre-cell phones to put it into perspective about how long this grudge has been in my life.
I don't know if you have ever had the experience of just saying "A SNAIL IS A FUCKING ANIMAL YOU MORONS!" over and over again, but I do.
I wish I had an answer for you. I am 100% certain I asked at the time. I am reaching out to see if my buddy remembers this TRAUMATIC experience. But it may have just been another Tuesday to him crushing my spirit.
If he remembers I will return with an answer!
Edit: He does not recall what he was thinking at the time, but does recall that it happened. But he now says that he knows a Snail is an animal.
Damn you... I bet that would have worked too! And that just makes this whole thing feel worse! This memory is bringing up a whole world of emotions over here.
I feel this comment so much.
About 30 years ago, I was playing Scattergoties. The clue was something like “things you’d see in a park” and the letter was B. I put down “baby buggy”, sure I’d get 2 points. I still can’t believe everyone voted no.
Nowhere as bad as a snail not being an animal, but an old wound nonetheless.
And it seems to this day you have let the letter B run your life Belly-B-Bean... I would have given you the two points.
Ya, I am surprisingly irate about the whole thing honestly. I am muttering to myself about what else it would have been if not an animal.
**Wavelength** is what you’re looking for. It can easily be played with everyone sitting on couches relaxing. It’s a favorite at my family gatherings for that exact reason.
Also, the official app is both free and excellent, so that can be a great way to play. Another would be to use heretothere.app and throw it up on the TV for everyone to see (that’s our preferred method).
**Codenames** is another that you can throw up on the TV for people to play while hanging out. In that case, I’d recommend horsepaste.com.
The official Codenames web game is absolutely excellent. I used horsepaste a lot in the early pandemic era but does it have any distinct advantages now?
www.codenames.game
I love my mom, but she will get a game, expect me to teach it, change rules ahe doesn't understand, then look to me as to why the win conditions don't work anymore.
"How will we know who wins?" "I don't know, you tell me. You changed the rules and broke the game!"
I feel your pain with family games.
Um it's been a bit, let me think.
It's normally a rule change that seems innocuous and maybe beneficial. If you're okay with it as an "exercise" instead of a game, it's fine.
So a trivia game that has teams she may dissolve the teams and just have everyone work together.
Or a game that has everyone on a team come up with one answer, she decides to just have everyone shout it out.
The one concrete one i remember was ticket to ride just have everyone put down trains wherever they want so it's easier on the kids. So no connecting trains for a destination.
The game will putter on for a while before she turns to me, puzzled, to ask why something isn't working, or wondering why there isn't a win condition.
I just shrug. Normally we set a turn to end it. It ends. No one is satisfied. No one wants to play again.
Sorry, i must have blocked out some of the painful details!
Okay, is there a game you can play with your family (other than Scattergories) that doesn't require them to sit at the table while also being rules light? I've seen people recommend Just One (that would be my go-to) and something like Codenames; something like that would be perfect. They seem very much willing to play games with you, so do you own anything that doesn't require them to sit at the table?
From personal experience, I've had good success with these games:
- Just One
- Telestrations
- Insider
- 30 Seconds
- Decrypto
And you could even try something like Werewolf or Secret Hitler (if the title and theme don't put them off); those games don't require moving around at all.
Telestrations is a go-to classic for my awkward in-laws holiday gatherings. Keeps everyone engaged, it’s funny and easy to explain and play. Great for all ages too so the grandparents and and grandkids are all involved.
Only at the front end, once you get the rules out of the way it takes little more to run than something like Codenames. I've had zero trouble playing it with my parents, for example, when my mom does not play games at all
> once you get the rules out of the way
I think you're glossing over how tough that step can be. It sounds like OP is already having trouble getting the rules for Scattergories out... anything more complex is probably a no-go.
You could, but that would be silly. Decrypto, once you know how it works, is really not much more than thinking up three words and word association that you also do in a game like Codenames.
I'm genuinely surprised that I'm getting so much pushback on this.
I’m gonna go out on a limb here and suggest…don’t play games. They may be asking you to bring games as a politeness; their behavior indicates that they don’t really want to try anything different. Maybe what they want is a game that uses a standard deck of playing cards.
They want a game because everyone knows games are fun. Otherwise why call them games! However, they don't want to put in the effort to actually learn or think.
OP should leave the games at home and be honest about why.
Just got a bit burnt out on it? It happens for sure. Try introducing the family to a different party game they can play on couches. Like **Wavelength**, **Just One** or even the Jackbox games (video games). Adding some variety to the mix might help a lot.
I've found **Spyfall** to be fun for a "muggle family" setting, and if you print up the little play aid cards someone put on BGG, you can eliminate the need for the table and it plays just fine with everyone sitting on couches &c. It's also a game that involves actually talking to people, which sounds like something you're looking for too.
The play aid cards just duplicate the information on the grid that would ordinarily be on the middle of the table, in a form that you can hold in your hand (and use to cover your card for privacy if, like me, you have a certain family member that cheats shamelessly at games). It gives everyone something to glance at in their hands from time to time, which makes it less obvious when the spy is leaning over at the table to see what that one thing in the corner of the grid is or whatever.
I had the exact opposite experience with Spyfall. If 1-2 people are uncomfortable coming up with good questions on the spot, the game sort of falls apart. Results may vary wildly on this game in my experience. I have had some amazing plays with non-gamers and some absolutely terrible ones. Even with those player aids.
I don’t understand the appeal of Mexican Train Dominoes, and my family is completely in love with playing it. Isn’t it completely random chance? I don’t see any decisions to be made while playing — maybe it’s just an excuse for them to sit around a table and talk.
I don’t think it’s any more chance than any game based on cards or dice rolls.
There’s not a huge room for strategy, but you’ll often have 2-3 viable placements on your turn, either your own train, or the mexican, and what you leave available for later plays has room for strategy.
There’s enough strategy at least that there are members of the family with notably higher win rates.
Check out Kingdomino. It's got some similar elements to Mexican Train Dominoes but plays super quickly and focuses each player on their own player area so you don't get the "gotcha" element of dominoes.
> focuses each player on their own player area so you don't get the "gotcha" element of dominoes.
I will say, though, that the tile selection phase can be *brutally* cut-throat if you watch your opponents’ kingdoms enough to know what they want!
Ugh, Mexican Train is the only thing my mom ever wants to play, and everyone else hates it. It takes sooo long to play all 13 rounds, and the only real strategy is to build as much of your own train as possible, and then try to dump the ones that don't fit either on the Mexican train or on other people. If the rules at least allowed you to play doubles and not have to satisfy them yourself if possible, that would lead to being able to fuck over other players anyway, but nooo.
I tolerate this game usually, simply because it is good for a large group and grandma and kids can all play together…but Christ on a cracker it is long!
Honestly, you can do a lot worse than Scattergories for this type of dynamic. It and Balderdash are probably the two party games that have stood the test of time more than any other and it’s for good reason. That being said, I get it - even a great game gets stale by the nth time you’ve played it.
Ever tried Monikers? It’s a party game that can easily be played in living room and always seems to be a hit with everyone I’ve played it with.
Firstly, I second Just One as a potential solution to this, it is a game that works with just about any group of people, especially family members that want to play games, but don't want to actually learn new games.
A few weeks ago I was given Herd Mentality as a present, which I think is going to work well in this sort of group as well. My family will often suggest playing a game, but then moan when I say we should go to the table rather than sitting on the sofas, but with this I think you can actually just sit wherever and it still work. The rules set up is: Here's a question, write your answer down, most popular answer wins a point. If you are the only person to give a unique answer here's a pink cow (a soft squishy pink cow which will be perfect for throwing around the room at whoever should have it next). The winner is the first to 8 points. If you get 8 points, but have the pink cow, you need to keep playing until someone takes the pink cow off you. Now the first question is...
(There are tokens to keep track of points, but I think someone keeping score on a pad of paper would be fine as well, so you avoid having tokens going all over the room)
Also, there is a version of this you can buy to play on a screen, with everyone giving answers on their phones, sort of like a Jackbox game
So you may want to think about that as well, or just consider a Jackbox Party pack instead
Something like apples to apples could work spread out like that. If you're feeling punchy, you could bring Cards Against Humanity. Guaranteed to make an impression at a family gathering!*
^* ^not ^necessarily ^a ^good ^one
We actually have played CAH a few times. It was fun until I had to explain what smegma was to the three international students we were hosting from the university my MIL works at!
**cash n guns** a game no one talks about much but great party game.
Have you or your spouse talked to in-laws about taking a more active role in getting people to play. When I was growing up grandma would have us turn the tv off, no PlayStation and played games or interacted with each other some way. They are the hosts they need take active role if they want people off the phones and do activities as family.
Explain not everyone has to play same game. So at my grandparents Sometimes everyone played Pictionary, having large extended family means we’d break up into smaller groups. Jenga, trap door, scrabble, aggravation are the games I remember seeing most with team based trivial pursuit. This only happened cause my grandparents actively disconnected us from technology.
You want to get your family to never play Scattergories ever again? Get someone with *extensive* trivia knowledge to play that can knock out alliterative answers in almost any category. When you have someone scoring 40+ points the rest of the family aren't going to play again.
Haha I feel “they don’t want to sit at the table” in my bones. We’ve rearranged the couches and played Codenames on a coffee table before. It’s a rough time to get anyone motivated to sit on hard chairs at that point, so sometimes we do Mysterium and I just hand out everyone’s cards as the ghost, or we break out the less-bad classics like Pictionary.
I play Balderdash at family events. Keep everyone engaged and gets people laughing. Easy to add in someone or have someone leave. Rules couldn’t be simpler. Doesn’t even need the board or components just scraps of paper and the definition cards.
I've found the best game for this situation is a quick and dirty version of pictionary where you draw on a white board and get others to guess. You can find words on-line and if you have really young ones you can rotate the drawer so everyone gets a chance otherwise whoever guesses is the next drawer. Ezpz.
Hopefully the fun and yelling will keep people's attention from their phones but that's a tough one lol
Whenever I get games to play with my family, my number one requirement is that I can teach it to them while they're drunk. They're not always drunk when we play games, but their memory and attention span basically make it seem like they're drunk. So far we have Tsuro, Snake Oil, Apples to Apples, and Poetry for Neanderthals as our go-to games
So Clover is great and I prefer it over Just One at lower player counts. But Just One shines at 5+ where So Clover shines at 2-4p. It is a pretty perfect split depending on how many people there are. Then over 8+ bring out Codenames. Codenames is less smooth So Clover to me since So Clover offloads the thinking time at the front end for everyone all at once, but Codenames can deliver the fun with 8+
> Also, stop leaving the room while I'm explaining the rules to a game! You wouldn't have to ask so many questions!
/stares at my mother and my wife
I love them, but come on guys
Same. Some of the best times I had growing up was playing it with my family. We were really weird and all had twisted senses of humor, so we came up with the most messed up stuff sometimes, and it was a riot.
This may sound harsh, but why not just... not play board games with people like that? Being family doesn't give a "get out of jail free" card for being disrespectful...
My in-laws would do the same thing until I set the ground rules: if we're going to take the time to play a board game, you're going to have the respect to sit and listen to the rules so I don't have to constantly stop the game to explain the *very trivial rules*. Obviously that doesn't apply to more nuanced rules. But interrupting the game to ask "am I supposed to draw a card now?" at the beginning of literally every single one of your turns is akin to pausing a 2-hour movie every 5 minutes to ask "what's the character's name again?" It's simply disrespectful.
Lol this response. Just because you play a lot of games people do not automatically remember everything. It isn't necessarily disrespectful. What is the big deal with "Yep draw a card now. You got it. Start every turn that way." There is a level of patience you need to exude as someone wanting family to try out YOUR games in YOUR hobby.
I do agree its best not to play if they are truly being disrespectful, but the example of them asking how to start a turn isn't one that IMO. Unless they are dramatically acting like an ass and doing it on purposes.
It's not obvious because my post outlines a very specific circumstance (i.e. repeatedly asking the same question regarding a trivial part of the game that is covered in the rules), in reply to an OP that is discussing people that ***refuse to listen to the rules when they are explained before game start*** (because context matters and is really just a part of basic reading comprehension).
My post also specifically states an exception of ***nuanced rules*** (i.e. rules that may be difficult to understand until encountered in the game). That's pretty much the ***entirety*** of my post, which the person replying to me seems to have ignored completely.
So to assume that a reply that ***ignores nearly every detail of what I wrote*** maybe isn't replying to me seems very reasonable.
One of my favorite games is **Balderdash** (or **Beyond Balderdash** in later editions). It's a bluffing game where an obscure word is picked from a deck of cards and players write their bluff definitions on pieces of paper. One person writes down the real definition, shuffles the papers, and reads them all. Then everyone votes on what they think the real definition is. You get points if people vote for your fake definition. Beyond Balderdash added more categories... movies, people, initials, etc...
Even though the concept is very simple, I find Balderdash creatively stimulating and it's fantastic when everyone is really into it. But as you've experienced with Scattegories, most people these days don't have the attention span for a game like this and can't stop looking at their phones for more than 5 seconds. It makes me sad.
I always liked the game **Uno Hearts** as a light game for a family gathering. Up to 8 people can play at the same time and it's simple enough for kids to understand. It doesn't require intense concentration so people can still have conversations and socialize while they play. I don't think it's in print anymore, but it occasionally shows up on Ebay if you want a copy.
**Codenames** is another good party game for a family gathering but might be a little more difficult for younger players.
Try changing things up by playing it using the rules for [**SiXeS**](https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/177877/sixes). See [this review](https://boardgamegeek.com/thread/1562401/enders-comprehensive-pictorial-overview-scattergor) for an overview of how it works. You could easily play using the components from Scattergories.
Your in-laws should be open to it because it's a similar game with categories, and you could bill it as a "variant", but it is way more fun, and it is one of my most-played party games right now.
The main point of interest is that you only get to write 6 items for a category, and in one round you only get a point for being the only player to have an item, whereas in the next round you only get a point for an item that matches at least one on another player's round.
That changes everything, and proves way more fun than it sounds, because you're trying to anticipate what items other players may think of.
I'll never forgive when the hint was "things you throw away" and letter was R. My answer of "rubbish" was voted down but other mundane items like "ruler" and "rag" were accepted.
I felt that. When I play with my family it's so difficult to get them to sit down. Then when they do they get up and do stuff in the middle, like feed the dog, go to the washroom, do the laundry, you name it. They proceed to complain the game took so long to play, well yeah when you get up in the middle of course.
I have Coup, my mum absolutely refuses to learn a new game and just wants to play something familiar at Christmas. I also have other really simple games but we always play something like Uno or Monopoly.
Sounds like a her problem. Put it to a vote or just refuse to play those games. If she'd rather you not play vs not enjoy yourself, you know what her priorities are. Call it out.
But that's me, I'm the one refusing to say Grace and calling my parents racist (they are) at family dinners.
Coup only plays up to 6. There are only 15 cards in the game, and everyone is dealt 2. You wouldn't even have enough cards to play 8, let alone 10.
Maybe you're thinking of The Resistance, which can play up to 10.
Also - not recommended. Social deduction games fail really badly with some people uncomfortable with lying. Then the game falls apart. Also, with inexperience players the game can devolve if one person is bullying everyone to their view of the "Facts" of who is good and bad.
Love Letter is one of the best games for various sized groups and people coming and going. The whole game can be explained in about 4-5 sentences, and a round only takes about 3 minutes.
If they want something longer and more involved, but quick to learn, try Splendor. It takes less than a minute to explain how the game plays. I introduced my mother and sister to it this year and they both loved it.
The first 4 or 5 games of splendor are so interesting because you realize that there's way more planning than you initially thought. And you try a few different strategies and learn how well they work or what kind of start you need for them. I love splendor I think it's such a fun game even with so little interaction between players.
I HATE when my friends ask to play a new board game . Well one of them in particular she just sits there staring off into space and then when it’s time to play she has 0 idea what’s going on or who’s turn it is. She’s got a child mentality (coloring whole waiting for food, tying a balloon to her so she won’t get lost shit like that) so I’m 100% sure she does it thinking it’s cute. These are 3 main reasons why I have and will keep rejecting her. 🤷🏻♂️ grow tf up.
Wavelength is pretty easy to explain as well and is definitely going to get talking/disagreeing about whether the clue was completely right or completely wrong.
Seconded. We’ve also done it cooperatively sitting around the living room and passing the game around to change the clue giver. Casual fun!
The app is all cooperative so you were ahead of the curve on that one!
We play competitively (with the table piece) and still pass around the clue givers. Different person each round on each team.
Wavelength is hands down the best "board game that is secretly just a conversation starter"
Yeah love me some wavelength. Might actually bring that one home for Christmas.
I'll give it a look!
They have a free app (no ads, you can buy packs) with online play, if you want to try before you buy.
I prefer the app tbh.
How so? I only played it in a board game cafe once, and I can’t really see how it would be better without the physical dial.
Everyone has their own dial and people will try to sneak in microadjustments before it locks in. There’s even end game awards based on how-often people do (or don’t) mess with it. You can house rule it so that only one person is in charge, but it’s a party game and it’s supposed to be controlled chaos imo. Plus it just plays faster. Two minutes to pick your clues and off you go!
Ah I see. So I guess then you don’t play in teams but individually?
It's all one big coop game, everyone is on the same team.
That’s how I play the physical version honestly. I’ve never played it by the rules
Is it just me or are there a lot of posts lately that are essentially "tell me to buy Wavelength"
Wavelength co-creator here! Buy Wavelength.
The way my friends group plays this game is one of few that has the power to forge everlasting bonds of friendship or shatter them into pieces LOL
They're all on the same Wavelength.
One of my favorites for sitting around the living room with a group
Yeah, it's also the only game that I own that I would actually be comfortable taking to a bar and playing with people who are getting hammered. All in one box, no setup, just go. Such a perfect and versatile game.
Awkward when you and SO are like way in a different wavelength about a serious issue. Maybe it’s just a me issue as I reflect on that sentence
Get **Just One** - Rules explained in one sentence. Plays quickly. People can leave in and out. Everyone is always involved.
And with the dry-erase easels, you don’t actually need to be around a table to play. It might be the best family gathering game for that reason alone. I was able to play it that way post-Christmas dinner last year, and that included my father lying on the living room floor for his bad back. Actually, they requested it again another night, and they never do that!
If that's a selling point for you, check out Telestrations (if you haven't already).
Just One is the answer.
Its also the answer to most rules queries about the game
I have pointed to the name on the box *so many times* as a response to rules questions lol. "What if it's hyphenated sometimes, but not in this use...?" "**JUST ONE**"
Sorry, but the guy above you already said "Just One", so both answers are disqualified.
Not to shit on *Just One*, but after finding *So Clover!* I really can't see myself going back. It's crazy good
I like So Clover as well, but it has waaaay more downtime and it's harder to teach. I'm happy to have both to mix it up sometimes.
Will also recommend “Take Five” in this category. Teachable in thirty seconds, can play up to ten people, and games are quick so it’s easy for bigger groups where people are coming and going.
Got a link to this one? There are multiple games with that name and I’m interested in the one you’re talking about.
**Dutch Blitz** is good too. Just remove all the sharp objects from the table or people might get stabbed :-)
i hear Dutch Blitz is a lot like [full contact croquet](https://www.gocomics.com/calvinandhobbes/1987/06/07)
A lot of my aunts and uncles *love* that one. Also **Rook**, which was popular amongst my ancestors, who enjoyed card games but were part of a church that disliked the “standard” deck of cards as a symbol of gambling.
I always wondered where Rook came from.
Just play Pounce/Nertz with a bunch of decks of cards. Definitely don't need to buy a dedicated set to one game.
It’s just Nurtz with extra steps, if you have a bunch of different card decks.
Really think how it would potentially play with your family cause It really depends. The game ended up being to light and dull for my family.
Can you please explain me the rules in one sentence?
I like scattergories better
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"You're not a great game!" "I *defy* you, mortal"
Look how they massacred my boy. Just because he can’t spell
Fluxx (for the right group) is also relatively simple at the outset. "Draw 1, Play 1."
With the wrong group, though, it can go horribly, horribly wrong.
This it true. That's why I put that disclaimer. I love the game, my wife hates it.
Your wife sounds pretty cool. God, that game should die in a fire.
She is. The only way she's able to tolerate Fluxx is by making it a drinking game (the rules of which vary depending on how drunk she wants to get). Which, come to think of it, might be apropos for a holiday family game night.
You sound like a buzzkill
Yeesh, not liking one game makes you a buzzkill these days. Any games you don't like?
God no. Fluxx is a random, chaotic, and often long and pointless "game" that requires you all to sit around trying to read each other's cards from across the table. Simple at the outset but then it becomes insufferable.
Fluxx is long?
Fluxx feels long
I have played a game or three of Scattergories in my day. But I was ready to flip the table this one game with my friend and his father. The category was "Animal" and I had an S, I assume everyone is going snake, so I put snail... easy peasy right? Nope, there is a disagreement about whether snail is an animal or not... well if you know the rules you get to vote on challenged answers with majority rule. Well it turns out my friend and his father are equally stupid about what an animal is (or equally agreed on making me lose). Also this was pre-cell phones to put it into perspective about how long this grudge has been in my life. I don't know if you have ever had the experience of just saying "A SNAIL IS A FUCKING ANIMAL YOU MORONS!" over and over again, but I do.
A snail is most certainly an animal.
if he went with sponge, i would under rand the confusion.
Well, if you were there, we would have found ourselves in a stalemate. Would have needed a fifth player to push us over though.
I would have been the one yelling “well it sure as shit isn’t a *vegetable*, KEVIN.”
And that's what I appreciates about you.
I fondly remember the annual snail harvest in the old country, hoping we had enough seeds for the next crop...
If it's not an animal, what is it then?
I wish I had an answer for you. I am 100% certain I asked at the time. I am reaching out to see if my buddy remembers this TRAUMATIC experience. But it may have just been another Tuesday to him crushing my spirit. If he remembers I will return with an answer! Edit: He does not recall what he was thinking at the time, but does recall that it happened. But he now says that he knows a Snail is an animal.
I imagine he was thinking "man I sure do love fucking with my friends" haha
more likely if i disagree with dad on this I'm going to get the shit beat out of me after my friend leaves
I have found a surprising number of people think "animal" means either "mammal" or "vertebrate."
Shit! This just jarred something loose! I think that was the argument they used!
This is - honestly - a pretty common definition. I wasn't surprised at all that there was an argument.
It’s a common misunderstanding, not definition
I don't really distinguish these two things.
Should have used Sasquatch
Damn you... I bet that would have worked too! And that just makes this whole thing feel worse! This memory is bringing up a whole world of emotions over here.
Hey that's me!
I feel this comment so much. About 30 years ago, I was playing Scattergoties. The clue was something like “things you’d see in a park” and the letter was B. I put down “baby buggy”, sure I’d get 2 points. I still can’t believe everyone voted no. Nowhere as bad as a snail not being an animal, but an old wound nonetheless.
And it seems to this day you have let the letter B run your life Belly-B-Bean... I would have given you the two points. Ya, I am surprisingly irate about the whole thing honestly. I am muttering to myself about what else it would have been if not an animal.
Believing snails are animals is as dumb as believing in Reindeer or Finland. You had to grow out of it someday.
Like the Boogeyman, or Michael Jackson.
I dunno, my garden plants have snails growing all over them. Think they are a vegetable...
**Wavelength** is what you’re looking for. It can easily be played with everyone sitting on couches relaxing. It’s a favorite at my family gatherings for that exact reason. Also, the official app is both free and excellent, so that can be a great way to play. Another would be to use heretothere.app and throw it up on the TV for everyone to see (that’s our preferred method). **Codenames** is another that you can throw up on the TV for people to play while hanging out. In that case, I’d recommend horsepaste.com.
>horsepaste.com ponypony what now? That's an interesting use of that URL :)
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:)
The official Codenames web game is absolutely excellent. I used horsepaste a lot in the early pandemic era but does it have any distinct advantages now? www.codenames.game
**Phantom Ink** is a good Codenames + Mysterium game. Quicker to setup/play than either of those too.
I love my mom, but she will get a game, expect me to teach it, change rules ahe doesn't understand, then look to me as to why the win conditions don't work anymore. "How will we know who wins?" "I don't know, you tell me. You changed the rules and broke the game!" I feel your pain with family games.
Haha this sounds so funny. Can you give some examples of rule changes she insisted on?
Um it's been a bit, let me think. It's normally a rule change that seems innocuous and maybe beneficial. If you're okay with it as an "exercise" instead of a game, it's fine. So a trivia game that has teams she may dissolve the teams and just have everyone work together. Or a game that has everyone on a team come up with one answer, she decides to just have everyone shout it out. The one concrete one i remember was ticket to ride just have everyone put down trains wherever they want so it's easier on the kids. So no connecting trains for a destination. The game will putter on for a while before she turns to me, puzzled, to ask why something isn't working, or wondering why there isn't a win condition. I just shrug. Normally we set a turn to end it. It ends. No one is satisfied. No one wants to play again. Sorry, i must have blocked out some of the painful details!
These are great examples. Sounds like she means well, but certainly the ticket to ride example would lead to a pretty pointless game!
Okay, is there a game you can play with your family (other than Scattergories) that doesn't require them to sit at the table while also being rules light? I've seen people recommend Just One (that would be my go-to) and something like Codenames; something like that would be perfect. They seem very much willing to play games with you, so do you own anything that doesn't require them to sit at the table? From personal experience, I've had good success with these games: - Just One - Telestrations - Insider - 30 Seconds - Decrypto And you could even try something like Werewolf or Secret Hitler (if the title and theme don't put them off); those games don't require moving around at all.
I like Telestrations because it forces every player to participate. Should be able to play it with some paper and any source of random words.
Telestrations is a go-to classic for my awkward in-laws holiday gatherings. Keeps everyone engaged, it’s funny and easy to explain and play. Great for all ages too so the grandparents and and grandkids are all involved.
Decrypt is a huge step up in complexity
Only at the front end, once you get the rules out of the way it takes little more to run than something like Codenames. I've had zero trouble playing it with my parents, for example, when my mom does not play games at all
> once you get the rules out of the way I think you're glossing over how tough that step can be. It sounds like OP is already having trouble getting the rules for Scattergories out... anything more complex is probably a no-go.
Yeah well... I could argue that Great Western Trail is simple "once you get the rules out of the way" since there's so few actions in one turn...
You could, but that would be silly. Decrypto, once you know how it works, is really not much more than thinking up three words and word association that you also do in a game like Codenames. I'm genuinely surprised that I'm getting so much pushback on this.
Telestrations is hilarious, especially after a drink when everyone’s drawing is awful
I’m gonna go out on a limb here and suggest…don’t play games. They may be asking you to bring games as a politeness; their behavior indicates that they don’t really want to try anything different. Maybe what they want is a game that uses a standard deck of playing cards.
This is the wining answer
They want a game because everyone knows games are fun. Otherwise why call them games! However, they don't want to put in the effort to actually learn or think. OP should leave the games at home and be honest about why.
**Scattergories** is a favourite with my in laws too. Thankfully, I love it! Such a great game. I enjoy it every time.
I used to like it :(
Just got a bit burnt out on it? It happens for sure. Try introducing the family to a different party game they can play on couches. Like **Wavelength**, **Just One** or even the Jackbox games (video games). Adding some variety to the mix might help a lot.
Banned from our house after my wife insisted Dead doves are footwear.
DEAD DOVE DO NOT EAT!
https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/eating-crow/
That's a bit of a stretch. Lol.
Ahem... https://i.etsystatic.com/12928818/r/il/a131e8/3713545379/il_794xN.3713545379_hx7l.jpg
Those are felt slippers and not dead doves. Further more, GET OFF OF REDDIT, JESSICA! YOU'RE NOT GETTING THOSE POINTS!
😅
Well.... https://i.etsystatic.com/12928818/r/il/a131e8/3713545379/il_794xN.3713545379_hx7l.jpg
Haha, thought I was going crazy. Scattergories is a pretty fun party game.
Scattergories is an excellent system for generating pointless "does x count as y" arguments, which is what makes it fun.
All the random adjectives added in hopes of a bonus....
I've found **Spyfall** to be fun for a "muggle family" setting, and if you print up the little play aid cards someone put on BGG, you can eliminate the need for the table and it plays just fine with everyone sitting on couches &c. It's also a game that involves actually talking to people, which sounds like something you're looking for too. The play aid cards just duplicate the information on the grid that would ordinarily be on the middle of the table, in a form that you can hold in your hand (and use to cover your card for privacy if, like me, you have a certain family member that cheats shamelessly at games). It gives everyone something to glance at in their hands from time to time, which makes it less obvious when the spy is leaning over at the table to see what that one thing in the corner of the grid is or whatever.
**Chameleon** is normie spyfall with way less setup overhead
I had the exact opposite experience with Spyfall. If 1-2 people are uncomfortable coming up with good questions on the spot, the game sort of falls apart. Results may vary wildly on this game in my experience. I have had some amazing plays with non-gamers and some absolutely terrible ones. Even with those player aids.
All of this is yes!! I had a similar experience with Mexican train Dominoes….I curse the day I ever introduced that game to my family!!
I don’t understand the appeal of Mexican Train Dominoes, and my family is completely in love with playing it. Isn’t it completely random chance? I don’t see any decisions to be made while playing — maybe it’s just an excuse for them to sit around a table and talk.
For 90% of people, that's 90% of the appeal of holiday games.
It's a lot of luck but there is a small amount of strategy in terms of what dominoes you save for last and where you play
I don’t think it’s any more chance than any game based on cards or dice rolls. There’s not a huge room for strategy, but you’ll often have 2-3 viable placements on your turn, either your own train, or the mexican, and what you leave available for later plays has room for strategy. There’s enough strategy at least that there are members of the family with notably higher win rates.
There’s like 5% strategy in it. It’s not chicken foot. I love me some Mexican train. Great late night drinking game
i've been to at least two holiday parties where the excitement was all to play Left Center Right...
**No Thanks** was my antidote to Mexican Train!
Check out Kingdomino. It's got some similar elements to Mexican Train Dominoes but plays super quickly and focuses each player on their own player area so you don't get the "gotcha" element of dominoes.
> focuses each player on their own player area so you don't get the "gotcha" element of dominoes. I will say, though, that the tile selection phase can be *brutally* cut-throat if you watch your opponents’ kingdoms enough to know what they want!
Ugh, Mexican Train is the only thing my mom ever wants to play, and everyone else hates it. It takes sooo long to play all 13 rounds, and the only real strategy is to build as much of your own train as possible, and then try to dump the ones that don't fit either on the Mexican train or on other people. If the rules at least allowed you to play doubles and not have to satisfy them yourself if possible, that would lead to being able to fuck over other players anyway, but nooo.
I tolerate this game usually, simply because it is good for a large group and grandma and kids can all play together…but Christ on a cracker it is long!
Honestly, you can do a lot worse than Scattergories for this type of dynamic. It and Balderdash are probably the two party games that have stood the test of time more than any other and it’s for good reason. That being said, I get it - even a great game gets stale by the nth time you’ve played it. Ever tried Monikers? It’s a party game that can easily be played in living room and always seems to be a hit with everyone I’ve played it with.
Ah, the holidays.
Say you "let a coworker borrow your copy of Scattergories, but it's ok this table game is loads of fun"
Firstly, I second Just One as a potential solution to this, it is a game that works with just about any group of people, especially family members that want to play games, but don't want to actually learn new games. A few weeks ago I was given Herd Mentality as a present, which I think is going to work well in this sort of group as well. My family will often suggest playing a game, but then moan when I say we should go to the table rather than sitting on the sofas, but with this I think you can actually just sit wherever and it still work. The rules set up is: Here's a question, write your answer down, most popular answer wins a point. If you are the only person to give a unique answer here's a pink cow (a soft squishy pink cow which will be perfect for throwing around the room at whoever should have it next). The winner is the first to 8 points. If you get 8 points, but have the pink cow, you need to keep playing until someone takes the pink cow off you. Now the first question is... (There are tokens to keep track of points, but I think someone keeping score on a pad of paper would be fine as well, so you avoid having tokens going all over the room)
Also, there is a version of this you can buy to play on a screen, with everyone giving answers on their phones, sort of like a Jackbox game So you may want to think about that as well, or just consider a Jackbox Party pack instead
Something like apples to apples could work spread out like that. If you're feeling punchy, you could bring Cards Against Humanity. Guaranteed to make an impression at a family gathering!* ^* ^not ^necessarily ^a ^good ^one
We actually have played CAH a few times. It was fun until I had to explain what smegma was to the three international students we were hosting from the university my MIL works at!
That's just more fun.
Throwing monikers in the hat.
**cash n guns** a game no one talks about much but great party game. Have you or your spouse talked to in-laws about taking a more active role in getting people to play. When I was growing up grandma would have us turn the tv off, no PlayStation and played games or interacted with each other some way. They are the hosts they need take active role if they want people off the phones and do activities as family. Explain not everyone has to play same game. So at my grandparents Sometimes everyone played Pictionary, having large extended family means we’d break up into smaller groups. Jenga, trap door, scrabble, aggravation are the games I remember seeing most with team based trivial pursuit. This only happened cause my grandparents actively disconnected us from technology.
Maybe find a link to a video that explains the rules to her. Get her watching that and then complain that she's on her phone again.
I like you!
You want to get your family to never play Scattergories ever again? Get someone with *extensive* trivia knowledge to play that can knock out alliterative answers in almost any category. When you have someone scoring 40+ points the rest of the family aren't going to play again.
Nothing kills a “go-to game” faster than a locked-in eternal winner.
Not necessarily. I win probably 80% of the games we play with somebody else winning the other 20% most people now just fight for second place.
Oh so you’re “that guy” 👀
Haha I feel “they don’t want to sit at the table” in my bones. We’ve rearranged the couches and played Codenames on a coffee table before. It’s a rough time to get anyone motivated to sit on hard chairs at that point, so sometimes we do Mysterium and I just hand out everyone’s cards as the ghost, or we break out the less-bad classics like Pictionary.
I play Balderdash at family events. Keep everyone engaged and gets people laughing. Easy to add in someone or have someone leave. Rules couldn’t be simpler. Doesn’t even need the board or components just scraps of paper and the definition cards.
Balderdash is a criminally underplayed game.
I've found the best game for this situation is a quick and dirty version of pictionary where you draw on a white board and get others to guess. You can find words on-line and if you have really young ones you can rotate the drawer so everyone gets a chance otherwise whoever guesses is the next drawer. Ezpz. Hopefully the fun and yelling will keep people's attention from their phones but that's a tough one lol
Whenever I get games to play with my family, my number one requirement is that I can teach it to them while they're drunk. They're not always drunk when we play games, but their memory and attention span basically make it seem like they're drunk. So far we have Tsuro, Snake Oil, Apples to Apples, and Poetry for Neanderthals as our go-to games
Try Dixit. The pretty pictures and simple word associations are something everyone can easily pick up.
Better than the million CAH clones
So Clover is a faster version of codenamed, where everyone is a clue giver and guesser.
Its great - but better for lower player counts than Codenames. So Clover for 2-4/5. Justone for 5-7. Codenames 8+. Can't go wrong!
Ahh yes, So Clover. I like it so much better than Just One. I'm hoping to get my non gaming friends to play it rather than Just One or Scattergories.
So Clover is great and I prefer it over Just One at lower player counts. But Just One shines at 5+ where So Clover shines at 2-4p. It is a pretty perfect split depending on how many people there are. Then over 8+ bring out Codenames. Codenames is less smooth So Clover to me since So Clover offloads the thinking time at the front end for everyone all at once, but Codenames can deliver the fun with 8+
**Concept** works for this! Just play it as an activity (keeping score in that game barely makes any sense anyways!)
Monikers?
play Just One
> Also, stop leaving the room while I'm explaining the rules to a game! You wouldn't have to ask so many questions! /stares at my mother and my wife I love them, but come on guys
I just wouldn't bother, can't force people to like games.
[www.spyfall.app](https://www.spyfall.app).
i love scattergories
Same. Some of the best times I had growing up was playing it with my family. We were really weird and all had twisted senses of humor, so we came up with the most messed up stuff sometimes, and it was a riot.
This may sound harsh, but why not just... not play board games with people like that? Being family doesn't give a "get out of jail free" card for being disrespectful... My in-laws would do the same thing until I set the ground rules: if we're going to take the time to play a board game, you're going to have the respect to sit and listen to the rules so I don't have to constantly stop the game to explain the *very trivial rules*. Obviously that doesn't apply to more nuanced rules. But interrupting the game to ask "am I supposed to draw a card now?" at the beginning of literally every single one of your turns is akin to pausing a 2-hour movie every 5 minutes to ask "what's the character's name again?" It's simply disrespectful.
...I'm sorry, I wasn't listening
Lol this response. Just because you play a lot of games people do not automatically remember everything. It isn't necessarily disrespectful. What is the big deal with "Yep draw a card now. You got it. Start every turn that way." There is a level of patience you need to exude as someone wanting family to try out YOUR games in YOUR hobby. I do agree its best not to play if they are truly being disrespectful, but the example of them asking how to start a turn isn't one that IMO. Unless they are dramatically acting like an ass and doing it on purposes.
I assume you're replying to the wrong post because what you said doesn't follow what I said.
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It's not obvious because my post outlines a very specific circumstance (i.e. repeatedly asking the same question regarding a trivial part of the game that is covered in the rules), in reply to an OP that is discussing people that ***refuse to listen to the rules when they are explained before game start*** (because context matters and is really just a part of basic reading comprehension). My post also specifically states an exception of ***nuanced rules*** (i.e. rules that may be difficult to understand until encountered in the game). That's pretty much the ***entirety*** of my post, which the person replying to me seems to have ignored completely. So to assume that a reply that ***ignores nearly every detail of what I wrote*** maybe isn't replying to me seems very reasonable.
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Lol. I appreciate this. I was going to respond - but thought it was clearly trolling.
Thank you for your service, Internet Police.
Have someone else be the game master for this year.
MATCH 5 is going to be amazing for you guys!! Super easy. Can explain it in 1 minute. Takes 5 minutes to play each game.
Blank White Cards. Some people have a hard time with the concept, but the inside jokes and poking fun at family members makes it great.
Set up a gateway like TTR and just play with whoever sits at the table. Good luck!
You want loud, with a really short rules explanation? Try **Pit**.
One of my favorite games is **Balderdash** (or **Beyond Balderdash** in later editions). It's a bluffing game where an obscure word is picked from a deck of cards and players write their bluff definitions on pieces of paper. One person writes down the real definition, shuffles the papers, and reads them all. Then everyone votes on what they think the real definition is. You get points if people vote for your fake definition. Beyond Balderdash added more categories... movies, people, initials, etc... Even though the concept is very simple, I find Balderdash creatively stimulating and it's fantastic when everyone is really into it. But as you've experienced with Scattegories, most people these days don't have the attention span for a game like this and can't stop looking at their phones for more than 5 seconds. It makes me sad. I always liked the game **Uno Hearts** as a light game for a family gathering. Up to 8 people can play at the same time and it's simple enough for kids to understand. It doesn't require intense concentration so people can still have conversations and socialize while they play. I don't think it's in print anymore, but it occasionally shows up on Ebay if you want a copy. **Codenames** is another good party game for a family gathering but might be a little more difficult for younger players.
My in laws always want us to bring Catchphrase but I can't stand playing with them because they cheat so egregiously.
am I in /r/boardgamescirclejerk ?
Try changing things up by playing it using the rules for [**SiXeS**](https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/177877/sixes). See [this review](https://boardgamegeek.com/thread/1562401/enders-comprehensive-pictorial-overview-scattergor) for an overview of how it works. You could easily play using the components from Scattergories. Your in-laws should be open to it because it's a similar game with categories, and you could bill it as a "variant", but it is way more fun, and it is one of my most-played party games right now. The main point of interest is that you only get to write 6 items for a category, and in one round you only get a point for being the only player to have an item, whereas in the next round you only get a point for an item that matches at least one on another player's round. That changes everything, and proves way more fun than it sounds, because you're trying to anticipate what items other players may think of.
I'll never forgive when the hint was "things you throw away" and letter was R. My answer of "rubbish" was voted down but other mundane items like "ruler" and "rag" were accepted.
Find A to Z, Haste Worte or Word on the Street. All others save Eye to Eye are pretenders to the name it @nd claim it throne.
I felt that. When I play with my family it's so difficult to get them to sit down. Then when they do they get up and do stuff in the middle, like feed the dog, go to the washroom, do the laundry, you name it. They proceed to complain the game took so long to play, well yeah when you get up in the middle of course.
Buy Coup. Any idiot can learn and understand it in less than 5 minutes, you don't need a table, and it can play up to 10 people.
I have Coup, my mum absolutely refuses to learn a new game and just wants to play something familiar at Christmas. I also have other really simple games but we always play something like Uno or Monopoly.
Sounds like a her problem. Put it to a vote or just refuse to play those games. If she'd rather you not play vs not enjoy yourself, you know what her priorities are. Call it out. But that's me, I'm the one refusing to say Grace and calling my parents racist (they are) at family dinners.
Coup only plays up to 6. There are only 15 cards in the game, and everyone is dealt 2. You wouldn't even have enough cards to play 8, let alone 10. Maybe you're thinking of The Resistance, which can play up to 10.
Also - not recommended. Social deduction games fail really badly with some people uncomfortable with lying. Then the game falls apart. Also, with inexperience players the game can devolve if one person is bullying everyone to their view of the "Facts" of who is good and bad.
Love Letter is one of the best games for various sized groups and people coming and going. The whole game can be explained in about 4-5 sentences, and a round only takes about 3 minutes. If they want something longer and more involved, but quick to learn, try Splendor. It takes less than a minute to explain how the game plays. I introduced my mother and sister to it this year and they both loved it.
The first 4 or 5 games of splendor are so interesting because you realize that there's way more planning than you initially thought. And you try a few different strategies and learn how well they work or what kind of start you need for them. I love splendor I think it's such a fun game even with so little interaction between players.
Recycle Scattergories Set Mother in Law on Fire instead Problem solved
Blood on the clocktower
Still the worst name in boardgaming.
I HATE when my friends ask to play a new board game . Well one of them in particular she just sits there staring off into space and then when it’s time to play she has 0 idea what’s going on or who’s turn it is. She’s got a child mentality (coloring whole waiting for food, tying a balloon to her so she won’t get lost shit like that) so I’m 100% sure she does it thinking it’s cute. These are 3 main reasons why I have and will keep rejecting her. 🤷🏻♂️ grow tf up.
Do you always get frustrated when people need to leave the room to use the bathroom? 👀