Wanna Play?!

These days I’m all about the ‘Fun Factor’ I have to have a good time by force by fire, but not finance. I don’t want to spend large amounts of money. I also don’t want to have to get dressed. I want to be comfortable in my home with friends and family. If you are anything like me, then the pandemic has forced you to pivot and be more creative with entertainment. When it 1st hit you couldn’t find Uno, Monopoly, or any classics. It was crazy. I started to think about alternatives. Well, sunshine, there are games created with us in mind. I’m here to share a few of my faves and encourage you to check them out.

One Gotta Go

Think of this game as the ultimate debate. You will learn so much about your friends. Some will agree with you and others will give you some serious side eye. I’ve been called crazy, insane, and flat out wrong. My response, is a bold declaration, “DOUBLE PLATINUM NO FEATURES” over and over and over again. I stand by all of my decisions in One Gotta Go. I enjoyed this game to be very honest. What I love is that it changes depending on who is playing. Such good vibes all around.

Trap Wars

I would describe this game as the Black version of Taboo. If you are like me Taboo and Pictionary have often thrown me off. Simply put, it wasn’t uncommon for me to have absolutely no clue who the names of the people, event, or places on the cards were. Trap Wars may present the problem for some depending on their Black Culture and/or Black History knowledge. That can be a good or bad thing depending on the people participating. KNOW THIS: There was an unexpected George Floyd card that changed the game for us. A somber moment took over the game as we began to discuss him, case, and etc. After much discussion we decided to get rid of the card. We as a group felt it was too early to have his name in this game or any game. Additionally, if his name was in there, then there should’ve been others, including females. I wouldn’t same game over for Trap Wars, but it is something to keep in mind.

#CultureTags

Are you in hashtags? Do you know Black Culture? If so, this game is for you. Listen #YKTV there isn’t a need to have a #FOMO because #YOLO If you’re like me you know what all of those hashtags mean. If not, Sunshine, I’m here to help you out. The hashtags mean ‘You Know The Vibes’, ‘Fear of Missing Out’, and ‘You Only Live Once’ respectively. Participants who play this game have to give clues in various categories for players to guess the #CultureTags meaning. The down side to this game is that it isn’t in my opinion a game that can be played repeatedly. Once someone guesses the meaning of the hashtag, it’s almost hard to forget. I found myself wondering, did this person really know this based on the clues or did they just remember from the last time we played. Again is isn’t game over. There are expansion packs for purchase.

Black Card Revoked

First, let me say this game was def made for Black people. There are directions, but not really. They actually have a few ways you can play the game. They even hint at how Black people make up their own rules to games anyway and they don’t expect their game to be an exception. Black Card Revoked is a trivia game and majority rules game combined. Some questions have right answers, while others require a vote of sorts. The majority answer wins. This can get tricky because some people will simply answer based on who is playing and not necessarily what they think or feel. I guess you can call that playing to win in some aspect. I just wasn’t a fan of it.

I wish I could tell you that one game was preferred over the other or that there was a fave. I can’t unfortunately. I found One Gotta Go to the most entertaining, Trap Wars was the most fun, Culture Tags was the most thought provoking, and Black Card Revoked was the most intriguing. Even those I played with couldn’t unanimously decide on the best game. It just goes to show you that Black people are not all monolithic. There are many sides to us as a people. Just like there are many games created with us in mind. I only mentioned a few here, but honestly, there are many out there. Look into it, you won’t regret it.

Let Your Black Owned & Created Game Light Shine!