Party Games

Babbling at the Counter #25 – Video Games

Party Games

This overlooked category has a lot of room for development. What do I call a “party game”? Well, and example would be Uberleben, from last week. A simple short game, that can accommodate multiple players and with great replay value.

Let’s see each one of this points and why they are important:

Multiplayer: This one is obvious. In a party, there will be more than 2 players, so a game that can be played by more people at the same time is good.

Replay value: This ties to the “short” part of the definition. You won’t play this game once, but multiple times with multiple people. And it should be fun to play even after you have seen someone else do it.

Short: If the game can’t handle more than two people, you will want turns to rotate fast. And even if it does have room for three or more people, it’s best if each game round is short. So everyone gets a turn, mainly.

Simple: Up to this point, lots of games would qualify for a party game. What sets them apart is this very idea. Fighting games, for example, are multiplayer (two people), with short rounds and with replay value. But they are so complex that an experienced player can go around undefeated and that’s not fun. When designing a party game, keep an eye on this one.

This may be one of the most rambling babbles I have ever written. Some time I could try and organize it better. We will see.

- The Storeman