dovrar Posted November 20, 2013 Share Posted November 20, 2013 Have you played any of the following games? What did you think? Any chemistry gems you've found that I don't have listed? Compounded Reaction Elementeo Brain Links Chemical Reactions Periodic Quest Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kerileanne99 Posted November 21, 2013 Share Posted November 21, 2013 Hubby and I are chemists, and we have a couple of these games so I can share our opinion:) First off, I have not played Compounded so no opinion there. But of the rest, if I were going to choose one? Hands down, Periodic Quest. I actually bought it last year as a Christmas present for my husband. It is fun for so many levels, even my almost-four-year old gets in on it. And it is definitely the most versatile. It is supposed to be six games in one, although I consider one of those to be just a variation, but we have used the cards and tiles to make up other games as well. We like the scrabble-esque game with tiles for making compounds the best:) The BrainLinks is also fun, but is really just a card game. Definitely not as versatile, but is pretty good for learning basics. Elementeo- this one I really wanted to like as it was invented by a high school entrepreneur! But I just couldn't get past the whole give each element a strange personality. Just not my thing. Sort of a Basher books meets Dungeons and Dragons kind of thing. And the whole thing was just too 'distant' for me from the real chemistry. Still, I can see the allure for a certain group. Hope that helps a bit. If you have specific questions or can tell me what you are specifically looking for I can give you more details:) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OneStepAtATime Posted November 21, 2013 Share Posted November 21, 2013 I haven't used any of them, but just bought Elementeo on the recommendation of a friend. They have Periodic Quest, too, but they were concerned that someone with no Chemistry background (like me) might find Periodic Quest a lot more difficult to use, especially since the kids are just starting out in Chemistry. The other family likes both and felt that Elementeo would be the easier of the two to start out with. Their kids have really enjoyed playing it and do seem to be learning and reinforcing quite a bit. I can see how anyone really good at chemistry might find assigning personalities to the elements a less than comfortable option, though, and this approach probably wouldn't work for everyone. I am just very chemistry challenged (but I am working on it! :) ) so after looking at the rules for Periodic Quest, I felt my head spinning and they suggested Elementeo. Once we get further along in our chemistry endeavors, we plan to try out Periodic Quest. The kids have been really enthusiastic about starting to learn Chemistry and I am all for different approaches. I do wish I could find some sort of computer chemistry game or curriculum where the kids could manipulate the atoms and form molecules, etc. and see what happens visually within the atoms. Both of my kids are very visual learners and are dyslexic so lots of text is difficult for them. Has anyone heard of anything like that? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shawthorne44 Posted November 21, 2013 Share Posted November 21, 2013 Not directly a Chemistry game, but I think it would be helpful to do some Hashi logic puzzles. The idea is that you have numbers spread around the page. The number tells you how many bridges go and come to that number. The bridges can go up, down, left, right and no more than 2 bridges in each direction, so a match of 8. Reminded me a lot of one type of chemical bond diagram I was taught. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dovrar Posted November 21, 2013 Author Share Posted November 21, 2013 Hubby and I are chemists, and we have a couple of these games so I can share our opinion:) First off, I have not played Compounded so no opinion there. But of the rest, if I were going to choose one? Hands down, Periodic Quest. I actually bought it last year as a Christmas present for my husband. It is fun for so many levels, even my almost-four-year old gets in on it. And it is definitely the most versatile. It is supposed to be six games in one, although I consider one of those to be just a variation, but we have used the cards and tiles to make up other games as well. We like the scrabble-esque game with tiles for making compounds the best:) The BrainLinks is also fun, but is really just a card game. Definitely not as versatile, but is pretty good for learning basics. Elementeo- this one I really wanted to like as it was invented by a high school entrepreneur! But I just couldn't get past the whole give each element a strange personality. Just not my thing. Sort of a Basher books meets Dungeons and Dragons kind of thing. And the whole thing was just too 'distant' for me from the real chemistry. Still, I can see the allure for a certain group. Hope that helps a bit. If you have specific questions or can tell me what you are specifically looking for I can give you more details:) Thanks for this. I was thinking about Elementeo because dd is all about anything artsy. She's okay with having to learn chemistry, but is less than enthusiastic. My reason for shying away from Periodic Quest is a review I read about the rules being crazy hard to understand. What's the deal with the rules? Would you be willing to do a post on "rules for Periodic Quest for laypeople"? These are the two I was leaning towards, but wanted some reassurance before spending any money. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dovrar Posted November 22, 2013 Author Share Posted November 22, 2013 Just found two more to add to the list Chemistry Top Trumps and AtomMate Card Game I haven't played either of these. Comments from the Hive? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TrixieB Posted November 23, 2013 Share Posted November 23, 2013 Just found two more to add to the list Chemistry Top Trumps and AtomMate Card Game I haven't played either of these. Comments from the Hive? I showed Chemistry Top Trumps to dh and he said he'd play it with the kids. So I ordered it from Dr. Hal's website (better price). After looking into this Top Trumps thing, I found that there are a lot of different TT games. A few of them will be arriving for Christmas... :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SeaConquest Posted November 23, 2013 Share Posted November 23, 2013 I love this board! So many great ideas. Does anyone have any recommendation for other science-related games? I apologize for the hijack, but I thought this crowd might know some other good ones. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kareni Posted November 24, 2013 Share Posted November 24, 2013 Not directly a Chemistry game, but I think it would be helpful to do some Hashi logic puzzles. The idea is that you have numbers spread around the page. The number tells you how many bridges go and come to that number. The bridges can go up, down, left, right and no more than 2 bridges in each direction, so a match of 8. Reminded me a lot of one type of chemical bond diagram I was taught. I hadn't heard of these. May I ask you to provide a link, please? Regards, Kareni Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shawthorne44 Posted November 24, 2013 Share Posted November 24, 2013 I hadn't heard of these. May I ask you to provide a link, please? Regards, Kareni I like to do the ones online at www.nikoli.com. They have 10 sample problems of each type of puzzle that they produce. Right now I have 4 types of puzzles that I like to play Hashi, Akari(lightbulbs), Kararu (if a crossword and soduku had a child, it would be this puzzle) and slitherlink. I run through the sample puzzles and the championship puzzle of each type in turn. By the time I restart on a new type, I have forgotten the puzzles, and it is new and interesting again. I liked the Hashi puzzles enough that I bought a "used" book on Amazon for $4 that was pleasant. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kareni Posted November 25, 2013 Share Posted November 25, 2013 I like to do the ones online at www.nikoli.com. Many thanks, shawthorne44. I have some investigating to do now! Regards, Kareni Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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