Game gift idea

[Dianthus]

Dh is taking kids shopping tonight and needs some gift ideas for me. I was thinking a game. I think I saw Azul listed as fun, but is it similar to Patchwork? My mom got my kids Patchwork, Isle of Skye, and Hive for Christmas this year.

Any other game ideas? I don't like long drawn out things like Ticket to Ride or Catan or Monopoly. Ds7 loves Monopoly, ugh. Monopoly Builder is much faster.

[rutheart]

Fluxx games are pretty fast. If you like Monty Python, I think Monty Python Fluxx is the best one.

Scattergories Categories is a great spinoff of the Scattergories game.

[Meriwether]

Splendor, Love Letter

[wathe]

Not too long, quick to learn, but still relatively complex:  Century and 7 wonders.

ETA I also despise Monopoly.  It's on my very short list of Games I Will Not Play, along with Risk.

Edited December 23, 2021 by wathe

[wathe]

For more social/party games:  We've just rediscovered Balderdash.  The kids (12 and 13) are hooked.  They think it's the funniest thing ever

[Kareni]

How old are your children, @Spirea?

Regards,

Kareni

[Dianthus]

12, 10, 7, 1. But this is a gift idea for me. Dh is taking the kids shopping for me tonight and needs ideas. I was looked at the azul game last night so if I say "a game", he might get that, but I wasn't sure if it's too similar to patchwork which dd is getting.

[Storygirl]

Azul is not like Patchwork at all. We have both and love both, but they are very different.

For Patchwork, you choose game pieces and place them on your board, Tetris-style, trying to fill in all of the gaps with the odd-shaped pieces. It's a two person game.

Azul is a tile-placing game, where players take turns choosing colored tiles and placing them on their game boards. Which may sound similar to Patchwork, but really isn't, at all. You are trying to fill in lines of tiles in patterns, before the opponents do, and you get points for how you arrange your colored tiles. You can play Azul with 2-4 people, and I believe there is a solo variant included in the directions.

The way the games are played is completely different, and people who like tile-laying games would probably like both of them.

FYI -- There are two other variations of the Azul game, so if you want a specific one, be sure your husband knows which one to get. The one I describe is the original.

[Storygirl]

I also would highly recommend Century Golem (there is a version of Century that is called Spice Road, instead of Golem, that plays the same but has different visual elements). Someone above mentioned Century. But it may be less easy to find in a store. Golem is one of my very favorite games, and we have a lot of games! It plays in about 30 minutes, which sounds like what you prefer.

[Storygirl]

Another tile-laying game that you could put on your list is Carcassonne. In this one, you place tiles that represent fields, roads, or towns, and you claim your ownership by adding little wooden people, called meeples. You get points for the towns and roads (and other features) that you claim, once you complete that element and finish the road or fully build the boundaries of the town.

[Dianthus]

OK, maybe azul is good then. There was only one left

[Kareni]

9 hours ago, Meriwether said:

Love Letter

Seconding this.

I'll add Bananagrams (for one to six players), Quarto (two players), and Morels (two players).

Regards,

Kareni

[Dianthus]

Well, he stopped at store and bought stuff for me himself because it was so busy. He didn't want to come home, get kids, and take them back. I'm really disappointed because I wanted the kids to be thoughtful and get me gifts. When I took them shopping yesterday, I deliberately hinted that I really liked a book, hoping they would be observant and surprise me with it. I hate telling dh what to buy me and then trying to act delighted with it. I also generally don't like the gifts he chooses, only one that I can think of. I guess I want him to read my mind.

I got hardly any sleep last night, so that's probably why, but I feel quite let down about this. I wanted the kids to choose my gifts.

Eta, and I think dd12 is more likely to choose something I like than dh. 

Edited December 24, 2021 by Spirea

[Kareni]

Well, drats, @Spirea. I think you are not alone in wishing for a mind reading partner.

Regards,

Kareni

[Dianthus]

Such a nice guy though. And I won't know until Christmas if he did not read my mind! Having a better attitude now.

[Dianthus]

I had no idea what to get him either. He got the game "Go" which he recently mentioned he has never played.