You ever stumble on a game you instantly love. No second guessing, no price matching, no review reading. Just buying and playing for the rest of your life. You may never need anything or anyone else ever again with this game in your life…..oh so i’m the only one? Moving swiftly past that personal revelation and pivoting to a relatable example. Remember your first time….playing Cards Against Humanity. Just like an industrial oil plant it was so dark, so crude, so fluid. It was deeply hilarious cruelty fueled by your perverted friends. But as time passed, the boxes got bigger, the laughs got shallower, and the desire to play ran dry. The game that once seemed so full of life had turned into a sticky, black, compressed fossil, that has become a relic of past mistakes.
Now don’t get me wrong I still love a friendly game of obscenities and outrage every now and again. These Make Your Own Fun games are a significant category in their own right. But what I can’t stand is this idea of playing the same category of game multiple times a night until it ceases to breath. I won’t mince words here, PLEASE TRY SOMETHING NEW! I recently had the distinct pleasure of attending a game night where each of the involved parties brought a couple games to share with the group. We played a classic the whole group knew, we played a newer game that only one member was heavily invested in, and we ended the night with a hit or miss endeavor that felt like more work than it was worth. Sounds typical for a multi-hour gaming affair. Here is the tragic reveal:they were all CAH style “work for the fun” games. In each game players were dealt cards and were given a prompt to either create the most laughs/cringes (CAH), create the most insane superhero (Superfight), or create the ideal partner (Red Flags). This game structure has many strengths(few rules, shock value, easy player scaling, inside joke creation) all of which benefit from their “Stop whenever you get tired of it” ephemeral nature. The cracks become unforgivably exposed when repetition sets in. A card is played a second time to a tepid response, the same guy keeps playing that one card for what seems like every answer, or you are just tired of laughing at nonsensical banalities. The tragedy of this situation lies in the fact that earlier in the night some new games were played and about to be replayed at the request of most of the table. But each time a different member would persist that there were a lot of games others brought and needed to get through as many of them as possible in the limited time. Let the record state that I am highly in favor of playing a dynamic range of games with variations in theme, mechanics, and player counts but this focus should never come to favor sheer quantity over quality. If the table wants to play one more hand of a game it might be an indicator that they actually enjoy it.(Novel idea) Speaking beyond the “create your own fun” genre, variation in gameplay mechanics and themes is highly essential to keeping games from becoming a stagnating pond of discontent. Each of these games is a host unto itself with enough laughs and interplay to create interesting combos over multiple nights/gatherings.
So now I will try to give a hint as to which one might be the best fit for your jigsaw. Below I have ranked games from “buy this” to “near miss” in a quasi scientific methodology based on:
(# of emotions + # of replays + relatability)
Frustrated Groans
Monikers
If you want to be rewarded for actually being witty, or make lasting inside jokes, or laugh at your friend’s genius instincts, or give someone an Oscar for "best use of arm based pantomiming in a supporting role", or just want the best game in this entire genre.
Red Flags
If you like learning what is/isn’t a deal breaker for your friends and what “lesser evil” truly means
The Metagame
If you smart, you loyal, you enjoy including others and not perpetuating negative stereotypes
CAH
If you are insulted by the previous entry, like offending people, and buying endless expansions
Million Dollars, But...
If you like wasting your money playing a less fun version of Red Flags
Joking Hazard
If you like comic strips, or drawing the perfect card, or repeatedly saying “do you get it?”
What Do you Meme
If you like outdated references or constantly making updated cards with the most dank, lit, swag fam
Superfight
If you like making up endless house rules and buying expansions
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