GamerDad.com
Matt J. Carlson
November 2005
USA

The go-to party game for any occasion and any kind of player.

I mentioned this game in my 2003 GamerDad Unplugged: Christmas Shopping Guide. It is very quick to explain and play, and can be started or stopped at almost any time. As such, it's a great game to play at the start of an evening as people arrive. The basic idea is for one person to read a topic card aloud to all players. The rest of the players must select a noun card from their hand that best matches the topic and play it face down in the center of the play area. Last one to play a card has to pick it back up. The topic card reader then looks through all the played noun cards and determines the winner using whatever criteria they desire. For example, she could decide that Elvis is far more itchy than the Brooklyn Bridge. The player who put down the Elvis card wins the subject card for that round and a new topic reader is selected. The first person to win three (or five or whatever) topic cards wins the game. As I said, fast to play, easy to learn, playable with lots of people, and inexpensive to boot. You really should try this game. A minor word of warning, some cards could be more difficult for non-English or beginning readers. While there are some very cultural-specific cards, with a bit of discernment, the game can accommodate a wide range of players.

This a great game and playable by anyone who can read. Some words may be unfamiliar to grade school students, but could also be used as a learning tool. While the language is very mild, there are a few cards with words like "sexy", "mafia", and "violent", which could easily be removed if a sanitized game is needed. There is also an Apples to Apples Jr. edition for younger set.

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