Game Review: The Game Room & Dixit

old drawing of the GAME ROOM 

Of all of the rooms in my "I wish for . . . mansion" the one I think that I would most like to have is a game room.  My grandparents started us early on games. I have many fond memories of them helping us learn to spell playing scrabble, of chess matches with Grandpa, and of all the times Grandma and Grandpa battled it out in a game of Hearts - yes, Grandpa won most of the time, but when Grandma won it was so worth the reaction. 

Happy times those. And it left games in my blood.

So I have this dream room in my mansion. The first part of it is like an indoor amphitheater - in fact I guess it could double as a home theater. A very large screen with multiple game consoles in a built-in under neath. Shelving off to both sides to store remotes, games, maybe a few DVDs & CDs, deep concentric steps about 2 -3 feet deep with giant bean bags thrown about - hey lets make them leather bean bags - because if you are going to dream this big - you might as well go all the way. Plus leather wipes off easy - and I imagine this area will be popular with teens and pre-teens and kiddoes with sticky fingers. There's a snack bar and kitchenette, 'cause snacks and games go together, making the need for easy-wipe surfaces doubled.

Yet for me this tech heaven of electronic games is not the most exciting part of this structure that only exists in my imagination (though I love the idea of hosting youth group there and dimming the lights for movies). In every dream home I've ever imagined there are secret doors.

One of those shelves packed with digital paraphernalia swings on a hidden catch and beyond there is a small foyer opening up into my sanctuary. An octagonal room with a large round table, the center of which is a digital screen that can be linked to a laptop to project maps and game boards, animations and video clips. Three walls have deep shelving units and are packed with games of almost every variety. The wall opposite the foyer has french doors heading out to a patio and terraced garden (that I admire so very much, because I cannot seem to keep green things alive - so my imaginary mansion must have an imaginary gardener). The remaining walls have windows that let in tons of natural light and views of the garden. Those views feel peaceful and serene - I could enjoy this room - Christened "the keyhole" because of it's shape. The ceiling has a one of a kind galaxy light fixture that is equipped with color changing LEDs and dimming switches - a useful piece of art that effectively sets the mood for the entire room. At night it is magical.

This room has a much more intimate feeling. It demands social interaction, whether playing RPG's with adult friends, Pandemic with teens, or Mousetrap with a child. While technology has it's role in this room - from putting a battlemap on the table to changing the lighting to express how close Forbidden Island is to sinking, it's role is an assist to human interactions rather than a player on it's own right. For me that feels right somehow - though I have been trying to get over those feelings - so please note I am not slamming video games (I have devoted a lot of space to them here in this imaginary dwelling. . . ).

Yeah, I build stuff in my imagination.

I don't have a game room, but the reality is, it really isn't that important. I do have shelves overflowing with games, a kitchen table that is only half cluttered, and people who want to play games to sit there. Some of whom are my children, my husband, dear friends, and now my children's friends. I have the really necessary things. The rest I can afford to leave in my imagination - though I do mentally toy with trying to learn enough about electricity to create that galaxy light - it could add a lot of class if installed over my kitchen table. . . .

_____________________________________________________________________

So yes, we play a lot of games here. And I thought that if I could review one from time to time - well, it might prove interesting for the 4 people who read my blog heh. Actually, I write for me, not for readers - and tonight the truth is that I am procrastinating - and any excuse will do not to have to clean out my craft closet.

So in the way that procrastination heads, I sat down and played a new game with my kids. One by the name of Dixit. And I loved it. Here's why.

The game plays like a visual Apples to Apples. Each player has a set of cards with different images on them. The active player comes up with a verbal clue that has something to do with one of her cards.

The other players cannot see the card - they only have the clue. They then try to pick one of their cards that could also illustrate the clue. All of the cards are given to the active player who arranges them randomly in numbered spaces. The rest of the players then vote on which they think the original card is.

Here's where it gets fun - in the scoring. The active player only gets points if one or more players chose their card and one or more players didn't choose their card. Meaning, that you want to try and come up with somewhat ambiguous clues, because if everyone guesses your card - you don't get any points. If you can reach this happy medium, the active player receives 3 points and players guessing the card correctly get 3 points plus 1 point for each person guessing their card as the original. The guessing players get 2 points each if everyone guesses the correct card, active player gets 0 points. If no one guesses the active players card, the other players each receive 2 points plus one point for each vote their card received, active player gets 0 points.

So this puts a different twist on the creation of the clue. For those with tactical or verbal minds - this part of the game is intriguing. But for me the real charm of this game is the visuals. The artwork on the cards is amazing, evocative and open to a "zillion" interpretations, making this game a stroke of visual genius.

After each round we talked about why we had chosen the cards we had, and I learned a lot about my children, what they think, and what they feel. Every once in a while the explanation was " I couldn't find a good card" but for the most part my 11 & 14 year olds had reasoning that fit. It also made the game an even playing field for adults and children/teens.

This is a quality game, with sturdy playing pieces, a stunning visual representations, and thought put into the design. For instance, the box has space set aside already for future expansions, which we will probably obtain.

The box suggests 8 years or older, which I would concur with. The thinking that goes into the game might be difficult for younger players, and a few cards might be scary or sad (for instance, a man made of leaves blowing away in the wind) - though given the typical TV viewing habits of children these days, only the extremely sheltered should take issue. It is for 3-6 players. We played our first game using the special rules for a 3 player game and enjoyed it a lot - looking forward to playing it with more.

So yes, a game I loved - good for families. I can highly recommend it!

Whether or not you have a game room.

because it's not happily ever after. . . freedom to struggle

It's been a while since I've written anything here. But today I am driven here by life to help me process things.

My own job hangs on a thread with  political agendas and budget cuts.

My brother in law has been forced from his position as a teacher (something he had remarkable skill at) because an administrator just didn't like him.

Our youth pastor has been asked to leave a thriving ministry that is very much a reflection of his heartbeat, because of personality differences with the governing body of the church.

Of all of these, it is the last that seems to sting most. And I know why. Because the church, the body of believers is supposed to be better than that. We are supposed to be able to work through personality differences. Firings like this should be because of moral failure, not - "We find it difficult to work with you." Especially when there are so many families involved. So many many teens whose lives have been impacted, a wife who has impacted just as many. Four young children, too young too understand.

But then I don't understand either.

There is going to be grieving here.

But it won't turn to railing against the church, as much as I am tempted. Because there is this thing in the Bible, a theme of sorts - and paraphrased it goes like this.

Just 'cause you are a Christian doesn't mean you are good.

Even the redeemed are broken.

We don't focus on this in the church. Maybe because we are all pursuing peace and happiness and joy, and to be sure, that is there, but there are equal measures of broken nastiness, the mire that we just can't seem to escape.

I've never heard a sermon on how David - the one who would be king, who would be given important promises from God, whose bloodline would lead to Jesus. Yup that David, "The man after God's own heart, David" how the end of his life was miserable.He made disastrous choices, and his family life was a wreck. His kids were evil and the end of David's life is simply heartbreaking. We don't hear sermons like that, and if we do it is all about a warning - "don't make those choices, raise your families right."

But what if there is more than a warning. What if the story has more to it. What if it follows the same theme that held true in the lives of the patriarchs in Genesis, or the apostles in the New Testament, or Paul the missionary. What if it isn't a warning, but a statement. "Even when you believe in God, life will be a struggle."

There is no "smooth sailing after salvation" clause. Nor is there an agreement that we are going to make right choices, react in godly ways. In fact there is very little empirical evidence that Christians will live much differently than those who do not believe the Bible.

And for me there is a comfort in the fact that the Bible reflects this. It talks about real broken people. Paul who argued with Barnabas - a difference of opinion that became "we cannot work together". The letters to the churches - sheesh! guess what, those churches had issues, and we still do. The leaders and array of humanity listed in scripture have an overriding theme -
busted up,
broken,
sinful,
not good,
evil.

So where does that leave us.

It gives us freedom to flail, to struggle, to realize that we are broken.
It gives us freedom to accept that life is a struggle and that "happily ever after" might not happen, but that is OK - because there is something deeper than that in the journey.
It lets us cherish peace and joy when they are there in the middle of the struggle - because that is one of those inexplicable treasures that God gives us.
It allows for grief over our own brokenness and over it in the lives that touch us.

And those are good things. That is where we want to be.
Because think of stopping to struggle - that is death. And we can long for the end of that struggle and look forward to it, but if we stop trying to fight while we are still alive we become nothing more than a zombie. (Yes, our youth pastor has had a mark - I just used the word "zombie".)

And if we stop grieving over brokenness we are a no longer what we should be. No longer humans in God's image, but something less.

So today I will grieve.

Today I will struggle.

And I will find comfort in that.