This was a very entertaining video and would love more of this. This format is just class. Loved the intro and I can clearly see how much research you guys put into it. Would love to see the both of you take on more board game genres.
There were many offshoots and imitators of "Peter Coddle" (he took a *lot* of trips...). "Conundrum" games like that (yes, that's the genre) were very popular around 1875-1925, as were "conversation" games based around riddles and punny question/answers - sort of like early Apples to Apples (one player would draw a question, everyone else would have a potential funny or silly answer...). Look up "Komical Konversation Kards" sometime; a lot of "conversation" games were meant as icebreakers for socializing young people, and they're a little flirty!
Great history lessons and great chat! I think the real issue with all of these games is that they all operate in the same game space, and it doesn't make sense to own all of them. But they're also all so good, so it's difficult to choose. I've ended up trending towards the lighter ones (Codenames and Just One) just because of who I play with - sorry Decrypto!
The biggest reason we didn't is because So Clover just blows it out of the water for us both. It was odd not to have it because it's a clear favorite in that genre.
Taboo was ruined for us when we figured out that you can use the taboo words to quickly and easily generate clues. Horse is taboo? Say large pony. Can’t say cow? Say moo.
Codenames is a good game with tons of replayability, but suffers from downtime and the fact that only really the spymasters are being creative. I like Just One more; it's faster, easier to explain, and cooperative (which is a plus for me but maybe not for everyone), but it really needs more cards in the box. I think So Clover is probably better than both, though. It has the cleverness of Codenames with faster rounds, more simultaneous play and everyone in the game gets a chance to do the fun task. Plus, it's great at 2P which is a big plus. Decrypto is the ultimate word association game for people who want cleverness, but it's a much harder game than any others on the list, both to explain and do well at. Plus it needs at least 4 players (and probably 6 is better), yet it's not really a "party" game in the same way the others are so when you do have bigger groups, other games tend to get played. I really like it but it's kind of hard to get to the table. I played in a BGG forum game for Message from the Stars and liked it, especially since I think it would do well at lower player counts than any game other than So Clover. But it asks a lot from you (highly AP inducing) and, ultimately, I think it's a bit more "solvable" if you played it 10 times than the other games on this list. I think there is a best strategy for dividing and conquering unknown letters. Also, a shoutout to Letter Jam which isn't listed here because it's strictly a spelling game with no word association at all. I think any person who likes word games should own that game, as long as you aren't put off by spelling.
It's funny that the reason Chris gives for preferring Codenames is the exact reason I i find it a poor party game. It allows for passivity, which is the opposite of what a party game should do. If you're on my team and you aren't contributing, then why the hell are you on my team? Why are you even playing games??
We have multiple close friends who don't enjoy playing games, so this is good for when we have them around. They want to hang out, others want to play a game, so we go for passive games!
History lesson with the Yi’s! This BETTER be a new series on the dice tower… I seriously ❤ this
We have a few other videos in the series.
I loved this series! Learned so much! Could y'all do one on spelling games or maybe logic/deduction games?
When I clicked on the this video, I did not expect to learn so much. 🤓
Shout out for Phantom Ink, one of my favorite new discoveries.
This was a very entertaining video and would love more of this. This format is just class. Loved the intro and I can clearly see how much research you guys put into it. Would love to see the both of you take on more board game genres.
Codenames (& Duet) and A Message from the Stars because they are also playable with 2.
There were many offshoots and imitators of "Peter Coddle" (he took a *lot* of trips...). "Conundrum" games like that (yes, that's the genre) were very popular around 1875-1925, as were "conversation" games based around riddles and punny question/answers - sort of like early Apples to Apples (one player would draw a question, everyone else would have a potential funny or silly answer...). Look up "Komical Konversation Kards" sometime; a lot of "conversation" games were meant as icebreakers for socializing young people, and they're a little flirty!
Super cool history. Thanks for sharing! Peter Coddle sure did a lot for a simple country bumpkin!
Really enjoyed the educational part in the first part.
Really fun opener. Really needed comparison review to understand what game will work better with which groups.
Not sure they quite fall into the same camp but my favourite word party games are snake oil and balderdash.
I do love balderdash. Originally it was just a word game, but now it has so many topics, I feel like it falls into a different type of party game.
GIMME 5 BEES FOR A QUARTER!
Great history lessons and great chat! I think the real issue with all of these games is that they all operate in the same game space, and it doesn't make sense to own all of them. But they're also all so good, so it's difficult to choose. I've ended up trending towards the lighter ones (Codenames and Just One) just because of who I play with - sorry Decrypto!
Well now you have gone and hurt Decrypto's feelings. That's ok sweet heavy word game, I'll still be your friend. *Glares daggers @TabulanteNewt8*
@DT_Wendy Nooooo! It's not you Decrypto, it's me, and by me I mean my lame friends! I can change! I still love playing you on BGA!
What came first, Banned Words or Trapwords?
I'm surprised codenames wasn't compared with so clover.... Way more similar than just one.
The biggest reason we didn't is because So Clover just blows it out of the water for us both. It was odd not to have it because it's a clear favorite in that genre.
Yeah, I remember it won multiple Dice Tower awards!
Taboo was ruined for us when we figured out that you can use the taboo words to quickly and easily generate clues. Horse is taboo? Say large pony. Can’t say cow? Say moo.
Good advice except my brain approximately 40% turns off when on a timer. That's a way to get around that brain-turn-off though.
Codenames is a good game with tons of replayability, but suffers from downtime and the fact that only really the spymasters are being creative. I like Just One more; it's faster, easier to explain, and cooperative (which is a plus for me but maybe not for everyone), but it really needs more cards in the box. I think So Clover is probably better than both, though. It has the cleverness of Codenames with faster rounds, more simultaneous play and everyone in the game gets a chance to do the fun task. Plus, it's great at 2P which is a big plus.
Decrypto is the ultimate word association game for people who want cleverness, but it's a much harder game than any others on the list, both to explain and do well at. Plus it needs at least 4 players (and probably 6 is better), yet it's not really a "party" game in the same way the others are so when you do have bigger groups, other games tend to get played. I really like it but it's kind of hard to get to the table. I played in a BGG forum game for Message from the Stars and liked it, especially since I think it would do well at lower player counts than any game other than So Clover. But it asks a lot from you (highly AP inducing) and, ultimately, I think it's a bit more "solvable" if you played it 10 times than the other games on this list. I think there is a best strategy for dividing and conquering unknown letters.
Also, a shoutout to Letter Jam which isn't listed here because it's strictly a spelling game with no word association at all. I think any person who likes word games should own that game, as long as you aren't put off by spelling.
Thanks for your thoughts. I agree that Decrypto is a much harder game to get to the table. It's worth the teach, but you need the right group.
Hot take: Blank Slate > Just One
What? No So Clover?
I thought this
No, that's a nature game.
Banned Words sounds like Trapwords.
It's funny that the reason Chris gives for preferring Codenames is the exact reason I i find it a poor party game. It allows for passivity, which is the opposite of what a party game should do. If you're on my team and you aren't contributing, then why the hell are you on my team? Why are you even playing games??
I also don’t like how there can be pretty significant downtime and pressure on the codemasters to come up with good clues
We have multiple close friends who don't enjoy playing games, so this is good for when we have them around. They want to hang out, others want to play a game, so we go for passive games!