Gaming with the Family: Timeline review

Over the course of Memorial Day weekend, quite a few board games were played with my family.  We're on a series of posts that takes a look at a few games played from the perspective of what worked / didn't work for enticing my family into the hobby. 

Timeline

    2-8 players
    15 min to play
    ages 8+



How to Play

Timeline is a game where each theme (I'd brought 3 versions to try with my family - Inventions, Music & Cinema, Historical Events) includes a set of 109 cards. Every card has a picture of a person, place, event, or object on one side and the same picture on the other side, but with a year the pictured thing took place. Each player is given four cards placed on the table with the year side facing down. One card from the pile placed in the middle, thus creating the "timeline". On a players turn, they must select a card and place it to either the left or the right of a card in the timeline based upon chronological order and then flip the card to see if they were correct. If they were, the card stays. If not, the card is discarded and the player must draw a new card to be placed in their hand. Play then moves to the next player. The first player to get rid of all their cards wins.

Thoughts

gameplay - B
components - C

Gameplay is easily understood and works well with those who don't play many games. It helps that difficulty ramps as you play. It's easy to place a card when there's only one or two options, but as the timeline grows, it becomes increasingly challenging to choose correctly. You'll also find the difficulty to be dependent upon your knowledge of the theme. However, unless your knowledge of the theme is akin to Wikipedia, you'll almost always come across cards that trip you up.

One of the great things about the game is that downtime really isn't an issue. You'll either be thinking of what you want to play next or laughing at others for how many years off they were with their choice. With larger player counts you'll likely end up with multiple players placing their last card during a round. This is resolved well by an elimination playoff with each remaining player drawing a single card until only one player remains. This may take a few rounds to complete, but it tends to go quickly.

In regards to the components, art on the cards isn't amazing, but does give you enough to help make an educated guess on the era from time to time. Card size is a bit small, but any larger, would create a timeline too long for most tables. Do enjoy the tin box it comes in, although wish that the various versions would stack better. Overall the components are adequate, but nothing that really stands out.

Yay:

• ease of teaching- able to explain and start playing in less than a minute to almost anyone
• accommodating - works well with various group sizes (we played with anywhere from 2 to 6)
• short length of games - allowed for repeat play with players being able to jump in/out
• various themes - players gravitated to a certain theme based upon their knowledge/interest
• size - easy to pack and play almost anywhere there's a flat surface
• cost - inexpensive, usually can find for around $10

Meh:

• limited replay - once you start to remember the dates on the cards, the games become less interesting (possible to mitigate this by having multiple versions of the game to play on their own or even mixed together)
• minimal strategy - not a ton of tactical planning here

Timeline: Historical Events ended up being my dad's favorite game of the weekend

While it's doubtful it will see much playtime in my gaming group, Timeline is a game that definitely will be played again with my family. Not one of my favorites, but it will remain in the collection to be played in the right setting. Set expectations appropriately and you'll be find this to be a quick and enjoyable game that can be played with a wide variety of people.

-NA

Family Meeples: 4/5




My Meeples: 3/5

Memorial Day Weekend Recap

As mentioned in my previous post, Memorial Day weekend has turned into a day full of family, BBQ, croquet, and board gaming.  Weather was great and the annual croquet tournament was the highlight of the weekend.



 

An early lead was claimed, but unfortunately the quest for a repeat fell short.  Next year!

Many board games were played throughout the weekend.  The next few series of posts will be focusing on a few games from the perspective of what worked / didn't work for enticing my family into the hobby. 

Here's the list of games we'll be looking at:

• Timeline
• Splendor
• Haggis
• Concept
• Rhino Hero
• Pinochle
• Camel Up
• Robot Turtles
• Pandemic
• Tsuro
• Sushi Go!

- NA

Memorial Day Weekend Gaming

Gradually, I've begun to share board gaming with my family with varying success.  Most everyone enjoys card and party games, while some like lighter fare such as Ticket to Ride, Takenoko and Blokus. 

Every Memorial Day weekend, our extended family gets together for BBQ, croquet, and homemade ice cream.

The croquet tournament has become quite the event over the past few years with the winning team being memorialized with their names engraved on a trophy.  Needless to say, the competition has been fierce with rule debates often breaking out.  It's not officially a family event with us until arguing occurs.


In packing for this years long weekend, here's what's getting included in this years box of games:

Lighter Fare

• Camel Up -  have yet to play, but due to it's simplicity and short playtime, thinking it'll work well
• Ticket to Ride: Nordic Countries - only 3 players, but is a game my wife and dad enjoy
• Pandemic - debated between this and Flash Point
• Splendor - great looking game that's easy to teach
• Biblios - enjoy playing this with my wife and eager to try it with more than two players
• Tsuro - simple, short game that accommodates up to 8
• Survive: Escape from Atlantis! - saving yourself while drowning others
• Get Bit - push your luck while bluffing
• Eight-Minute Empire: Legends - been wanting to try this
• Hive - something for when there's just two of us
• Boss Monster - brother has been asking to play

Card Games

• Archeology - just got this and want to give it a try
• Haggis / Tichu - trick taking games, choice will be determined by number of players
• Sushi Go! - hand drafting simplified with a easy to digest theme
• Timeline - some history buffs in the group so this should go over well
• Port Royal - need to learn this one before bring it out

Party Games

• Ca$h 'N Guns - what's a better way for family bonding than pointing guns at each other
• Telestrations - guessing this will result in laughs, arguing, or both
• One Night Ultimate Werewolf - to my surprise, mom really likes this one
• Train of Thought - picked this up on sale recently and think it will work well with our family

Kids Games

• Robot Turtles - one of my son's favorites
• Rhino Hero - thinking this may get some play from a variety of folks

 

While these won't all get played, I enjoy having some options to choose from.  What games do you find work well for your family?

- NA

Rebirth of a Board Game hobby

A couple years ago I was re-introduced into the world of board games.  Like me, at some point you've probably played games like Monopoly, Life, Chutes & Ladders, Candy Land, Battleship, Twister, Yahtzee, Uno, Sorry, Risk, or Jenga.  While I have fond memories of playing these games as a kid, they had lost their luster over the years.  In an attempt to ascertain why, it came down to a couple of things:

1. Simplicity and/or monotonous play.  There's only so many times you can roll the dice, climb ladders, and sink ships before it becomes a chore.  Games like Monopoly or Risk may still fun for the first hour or so, but quickly become enervating once you realize there's no chance of winning, yet you still have hours of "play" ahead of you.
2. Video games.  Despite my numerous attempts, I'd never been successful in convincing my parents to buy me a video game console.  Sure, I played Mario Brothers and R.B.I. Baseball at friend's houses.  But at home the predominate option was cajoling my siblings into playing a game that would often end sooner than expected due to the board being tossed in frustration.  On Christmas of 1989, my gaming world was invaded by Will Wright.  My evenings and free time were consumed with building (and destroying) vast, sprawling cities.  Cities turned into worlds with Civilization. Countless hours slipped away due to "one more turn".  With the SNES (and soon to follow N64), console gaming with friends filled the after school and weekend hours.  Other than brief stints into Axis & Allies and Magic: The Gathering, PC and consoles would be my primary go-to for gaming. My small collection of board games sat on shelves or in boxes gathering dust.

Similar to my inception into video games, it was a Christmas gift in 2012 that reinvigorated my interest in board games.  The gift, 7 Wonders, played unlike the board games of my past.  Games could be completed in less than an hour, with numerous viable strategies for success.  Immediately after playing the first game, I wanted to play again.  I began to wonder, if this was a representation of the new "modern" board game, what else was out there?  Slowly, I began to explore, slowly adding games to my collection.

Then last year, this exploration process hit warp speed.  Two things happened:

1. An enabler.  Was invited to a acquaintances house last winter for a board game night.  Was eager, yet unsure what to expect as up until this point had really only played a few games with my brother or family during holidays.  Over the course of the evening, we played multiple game styles ranging from short fillers, to raucous party, to more complex Euro-style.  Not only did the evening reveal a greater variety of games, but more importantly showcased an enjoyable way to engage with others similar to how video games had in the past.  Over the next few months attended more of these nights along with getting together with the invitee to learn and play other games.  In short, this person became akin to being my board game dealer. 
2. PAX Prime.  Having gone to PAX for a few years now, had usually ignored the board game section for it's larger, flashier cousin, the video game.  This last year, due to my increasing interest into board games, managed to convince my video gaming friends in attendance with me to first investigate the board game area.  What we found is a hesitancy to leave.  There was so much to see, do, and enjoy.  The rest of the convention, while appealing, wasn't enough to prevent us from returning back to the board games again and again.  Even though it was comparatively smaller to the rest of the convention offerings, there was so much to explore.  This experience only served to further cement my interest in this new hobby.

Fast forward to today, board gaming has becoming more than a passing interest.  It's an involved hobby that has definitely overtaken, maybe even replaced video games as my favored form of entertainment.  This blog will be used to share my experiences, both good and bad.  Board games have evolved from my youth.  Some have said we're in a "golden age" of this pastime.  I'm under the impression that it's more of a reawaking and that there's much more to come.

- NA