Dusting some old games off and how to stress out a 7 yr old!

We have decided to sell off the games trunk, so this was a chance to pull out some unused for a while games and give them a play. Gulo gulo is one such game. The idea of the game is to steal different sized and coloured eggs from a wooden "nest" with a stick with an egg weight wedged in. When an egg is stolen, the player risks the stick falling. During a turn, the player turns one card over of a path of cards that indicates a coloured egg to steal or decide to go for a coloured egg previously revealed that may be easier to steal (ie bigger) but would only move the player a short way up the path.

Eventually the players reach the end of the path where there is a pile of egg cards and the player has to turn each one over, removing the indicated egg. Eventually a purple egg card is revealed - and if successfully stolen (quite a small egg!) then the player wins. If ever the alarm stick falls, the player has to move back to the last coloured egg card they attempted to steal.

This is a great and fun game, but can generate high stress in a Kerplunk manner that that can be almost unbearable! lol. The tension in the faces in the pictures says it all!!

Bank Holiday Gaming Madness!!

Wow! What a bank holiday weekend! What do you do when it's the standard UK Bank Holiday fair ie cold wet and damp? Get out your favourite Euro games and start gaming like mad!! This was a weekend we wanted to spend time as a family, and gaming is one of the best ways we can do this.



Firstly, it was one of Maya's favourites - Gulo Gulo. A fun family favourite - nice quick and simple especially for the younger gamer - results: Roshni won! :)



Ok, then it was Ticket to Ride: USA version. An excellent tactical game with nice and simple rules. Last time we played this, the Europe version, the kids just didn't quite get it, so we thought we would play the simpler US one in teams. So it was Kavita and I vs Roshni and Anita with Maya playing with her own stuff by her own accord. They started to get a good idea of what was involved to play, especially Kavita who started to get into the tactical side. Still, it was an Anita/Roshni win at a crushing 131 to 57.

Then came another big family fav, especially with Anita, Zooloretto. This is a brilliant family game with so many tactical aspects that are very subtle and easily played by the kids, even Maya with a little help. Anita obsolutely loves this one and it shows! :) Final scores Roshni/Anita - 35, Maya - 29, Kavita 26 and me bringing up the rear at 17.

The addons really bring great new dimensions to the game and are thoroughly worth it. Cannot wait to get Aquaretto!

Up next was Queens Necklace - a great little 'Days of Wonder' Gem trading game set in the 1800s or something in France. The idea is to purchase gems that may well sell for large amounts at the Kings court at three sales that will occur during the game. And that is what I love about Euro style games - the time limit on the back of the box is how long it will last! When they say 1 hr, its how long it will last because of in built game mechanics and rules. Its an amazing principle. So if we know we have only 45 mins spare, we dig out Zooleretto knowing it will last 45 mins. Again Anita won this hands down - Kavita: £140, Anita: £480, Maya: £240 and me: £280.

Then there was time for quick game of Diamant - always a favourite with Maya - and yes, yet again she wiped the floor with us! Maya: 43, Kavita: 35, Anita: 25 and Me: 18...

Finally today we played Eketorp. Just a great game - all sorts of fun - although I tried lots of tactical gaming and Viking raids on other villages, yet again Maya won us out (She is 5 remember...!) - 5th place - Me 17 points 4th place - Roshni 26 points 3rd place - Kavita 30 points, 2nd place - Anita with 32 points and finally Maya with a whopping 47 points!!

A great gaming weekend for one and all.

Gulo gulo....means "Wolverine"??

Surely this is a mistake.... when someone mentions a Wolverine, the first thing I think of that guy with the hair and claws from the X-Men. Not little cute furry things clutching eggs. But so it seems they are. "Gulo Gulo" is a great little game and much enjoyed by the kids. We played a couple of games last weekend.


Then last night, Anita and I played a great game of Ticket to Ride: Europe - after lights out for the kids and over a glass of wine and a drop of Malibu white rum. :) It turned out to be a complete thrashing by Anita - 120 points to 55. I tried desperately to link up Copenhagen to some place in Turkey but Anita cut me out by using all the trains up, leaving me with a 21 point penalty! Yikes! We agreed we should get the Ticket to Ride:USA edition at some point.


Final Score: Anita 120 Me 55

This morning we decided to crack open the new game Mystery of the Abbey - an interesting Whodunnit based in a monestary. A monk has been done over and it is up to each character to find out which of the 24 characters on the detective sheet did the deed. The abbey is divided up into a series of Latin named rooms, such as the Chapel, Bedrooms, Library etc. On each turn, the players visit rooms and question their fellow monks in the game to determine the characteristics of the wrong-doer - such as fat/thin, bearded/unshaven and which of the three Chapters. This is done by questioning the other players about the cards they hold or which they have marked off on their sheet.


Rooms also allow certain events to take place or cards to be drawn which effect the game. On each rotation of the game circle of players, the current First player moves a little Mass bell one space on the current Mass card until 5th rotation when mass is called (The little tinkling bell is shaken for effect) and all characters return to the Chapel.

It took a little while to get into with me returning to the rule book several times to help people out, but eventually we all got into the game with Anita finally revealing who she thought had done it and was successful. It was a little difficult to understand, especially for the children, what were the right sort of questions to ask, but eventually we all got into the swing of things. It was generally enjoyed by all but again, introducing adults-only to the game may present a different level of game play. Beware, this is a long game - 1 to 1.5hrs recommended.

A weekend of gaming - yay!

Well, what an action packed weekend that was - gaming wise.

Friday night involved a fun game of Zooleretto - this is quickly becoming a family favourite. Saturday we picked up two new games from our local game supplier, www.battlequestgames.co.uk, a great guy called Andy based in Horsham who can get in any game on a whim and we save on postage as we just take a drive over! :)

The games were Gulo Gulo and Bohnanza. The first was received with much anticipation as it is a really kid friendly game where players play gulo gulos/wolverines sent to rescue a baby one from the bird lair. A series of octagonal markers mark out which coloured egg from the nest must be stolen - these eggs vary in size from large blue ones to tiny child-size-only-fingers yellow ones. The problem is that the nest (A wooden bowl) has an alarm - a stick with a small egg weight on the top. The idea is to take an egg without any other eggs falling out and/or the sticking falling out of the bowl to the table. Tricker than it sounds. If you successfully take that coloured egg, you move on to the coloured tile you uncovered, otherwise you move back to the last tile of that colour. Maya and the girls love this game, especially Maya with her tiny fingers. But fortunes change quickly and you can look like you are winning and suddenly the alarm goes off and you fall back several spaces.... recommended for 4+

We didn't play Bohnanza, although I plan to try to get in a game soon. In the evening, Anita and I played an enjoyable game of Ticket to Ride: Europe over a glass of wine. This game makes an enjoyable experience of strategy and skill with the children who just really didnt get the idea.