Alternatives to Traditional Tabletop Games: A Response to Cracked

Last year, Cracked posted an article that offered alternatives to 5 "traditional" board games, by Luke McKinney.  Now, in practice, I like this.  I think that tabletop gamers have an uphill battle to fight sometimes, and getting people to embrace the hobby can be difficult when games like Sorry, Yahtzee, and Poker have clearly stood the test of time (even if you're of the opinion that there are better alternatives out there).


However, I had a little problem with the article.  Mainly, it didn't really address actually substituting games for a better title in the same vein- rather, it seemed to be an attempt to suggest games that the author simply seemed to like, with extremely loose connections to the game originally referenced.  Now, I think Mr. McKinney picked some pretty fantastic titles, but we can do a better job of actually addressing the older games being, for lack of a better word, "replaced".

Here's my attempt at that.

5.  Trivial Pursuit

For this game, Cracked suggested Spyfall, with the justification that it's a game that promotes table talk.  I'm not really sure Spyfall scratches the same itch as Trivial Pursuit, though.  Now, I understand why Cracked tried to avoid substituting this with any other actual trivia game. I think trivia games have kind of an inherent issue with them, in that they tend to be totally knowledge based.  Themed trivia games have it even worse- basically, the person who knows the most about a specific topic wins.  That's why it would be stupid for most of my friends to ever play a Star Wars trivia game with me, for instance.  It's over before it begins.

Now, my first thought was basically any of the Jackbox party packs.  Games like Trivia Murder Party put a nice spin on the traditional trivia formula by adding in mini-games and other twists, while stuff like Quiplash and Tee K.O. give players a good degree of creativity, while still causing players to think.

Ultimately, though, I think it's questionable if a videogame like Jackbox could count for this tabletop list, so I instead nominate...

My Pick: Geek Out!

The first great thing about Geek Out is that it eliminates a lot of the needless lame stuff from Trivial Pursuit.  No more game board (because good lord, it's a game about asking questions, why was there ever a board anyway?) and the question rounds tend to involve pretty much anyone.

Each round, players try to think of how many items they can that match a certain category.  For instance, one topic might be named Imperial officers that appear in Star Wars.  Alternating, each team increases their auction as to how many they could name- but the catch is, teammates cannot communicate with each other while auctioning their guesses.  Since the match is pretty much a giant standoff, this game can get a lot more intense than simply answering questions off of a card.

Obviously this game will only work with certain crowds.  My friends are all pretty geeky, so it's great for us.  Maybe not the one to whip out and play with grandma at Thanksgiving, though.  Still, there are a few expansions that add topics to the game, like more pop-culture/celebrity stuff and one specifically about tabletop games.

One more thing- as far as I remember, there is no time limit for turns, but it definitely helps to houserule one.

4) Ludo (Sorry)

For the classic game Sorry, Cracked for some reason picked Avalon (the re-implementation of The Resistance).   From what I can gather, it's because both games are about "screwing each other over", but I honestly think that's a pretty silly and dishonest summary of Avalon, at least not for the loyal players.

My Pick: Ticket To Ride

Ticket to Ride manages to get players on the board and can even give them the opportunity to pull classic Sorry-esque moves that can screw opponents over while giving the player the upper edge.  But it actually has a point.  Unlike Sorry.

Not sorry.

3) Solitaire

The fact that Cracked picked Agricola for this is actually the one choice that I pretty much 100% agree with.  It's a solo game, but Agricola introduces a scoring system, choices, and complexity against solitaire's rather bland nature.  I really can't argue with that.

However, I have pretty little experience with Agricola, so even though I think Cracked made a good choice here, allow me to submit a suggestion from my own experience...

My Pick: Legends of the Alliance (Star Wars: Imperial Assault)

This recently released app for Imperial Assault now means that you can play a tactical Star Wars roleplaying game with (possibly gorgeously painted) detailed minis and an engaging story... solo, if you want.  Han would be proud!

Seriously, I talk about Imperial Assault on here a lot, and you can expect some indepth analysis on the app sometime in the future, but just think- in a world where people could play a lovingly crafted Star Wars RPG without even requiring other players, it's probable that the vast majority of people still opt for Solitaire.  Shameful.

2) Mouse Trap

Cracked's suggestion for this is Pandemic Legacy.  Now, PL isn't really my thing, but I get that it has a lot of fans, so I'm sure it's a good game.  I'm not saying it isn't.

It's just, the justification for associating these two is literally (and I'm really hardly paraphrasing at all) "mousetrap is frustrating when you break the components, but Pandemic Legacy has you do it on purpose.

That's... really stupid reasoning.

Also, it has to be extremely rare to have a situation in which a group of people gathered to play Mousetrap and Pandemic Legacy would've been a more appropriate choice (hint: Mousetrap is popular as a kids' game).

My Pick: King of Tokyo

Let's be real.  Kids don't play Mouse Trap because they... want to enjoy how much it sucks breaking their game components (honestly, Cracked, still confused about that one).  They play it because it is a game that has attractive, interesting, and satisfying components.  It's cool to set up the trap.  It's cool to watch it fall.

Now, maybe King of Tokyo is a little bit too complex for some kids, but I think they can handle it.  It's, at its core, a dice chucking game.  Not a whole lot to it.

And look what the game offers!  Huge cardboard monster cutouts?  Check,  Giant, almost comically sized dice?  Check.  A no holds barred kaiju fight (that is still friendly enough to not make mom and dad worried)?  Check.

I think, given the choice, most kids would pick King of Tokyo over Pandemic Legacy.  But that's just me.

1) Cards Against Humanity

See, this is another situation where Mr. McKinney picked a great game (7 Wonders) but a confusing choice as a substitution.  Once again, I think it just demonstrates a failure to really understand the appeal of a game.  In fact, it almost tries to deny gamers of the purpose that they want to play Cards Against Humanity.

CAH is a party game.  It's something to bring out when every is a little drunk (or something else).  It's just something to do while you party.  I just don't think that, even as good as 7 Wonders is, a game that "starts by giving you one of the greatest achievements of human history... then you win by building a civilization that's even bigger and better" really achieves the same thing CAH is aiming for.  

CAH is McDonalds.  Sometimes (especially when we're drunk) we need McDonalds, even if its clearly not the best option.. 

Now, a lot has been said about Cards Against Humanity in regards to its... somewhat problematic nature.  And that's fine.  If your group (or anyone in it) is sensitive to the kind of humor in Cards Against Humanity, then I would absolutely not suggest playing it.  And I want to be totally clear- I'm not making excuses for Cards Against humanity at all- the game can definitely be uncomfortably racist and stuff.

  But I think the humor in CAH is what people enjoy, and 7 Wonders does nothing for that.  Now, could we have better humor?  Stuff that's not racist or sexist?  Stuff that actually allows for a joke to form, as opposed to simply relying on a ridiculously worded card?

 I agree with McKinney on one point- "Players combine random cards to make awful jokes. But they're random like a Lego set with only pieces for balls, shaft, and bell-end: You don't get to act surprised when the result reveals c***s."

And to this end, I agree.  Cards Against Humanity isn't funny when you play a funny card.  It's funny when a clever combination is made.  Sometimes this can happen with the association between the card on the table and the card that the players put down, but I honestly prefer when players are given more choice to play multiple cards.  This allows for more freedom to actually make a funny (or inappropriate, if that's your thing) statement.

That's why my favorite cards in the game are "_________ + _______ = ______" and the one that has you make a haiku.  By far, they allow the most creativity on the part of the players.

My pick: Joking Hazard   

In Joking Hazard, pretty much every round allows the creativity of "_______ + ______ = ______".  It might seem surprising that a game with illustrations actually allows more room for interpretation, but that's exactly what Joking Hazard accomplishes. 

If you've never played Joking Hazard, it's basically a card judging game much in the vein of Cards Against Humanity.  However, the trick to it is that the players work to make a funny comic in the style of Cyanide and Happiness.  This formula even works to make "filler" cards playable.  In Cards Against Humanity, some cards are so lame that they basically do nothing but reduce your hand size by one.  Joking Hazard has a mechanic that allows mass re-drawing, but you hardly need to use it anyway.  In general, most cards are playable at certain points.  Even if it's just the two characters standing there, it might be just the perfect card for a comedic timing of an awkward moment.

Is it still wildly inappropriate?  Usually- though I would say that the jokes tend to veer away from racism and sexism (usually) in favor of content that's more geared toward kinky humor, 420 stuff, absurdity, and some gore.  So, I'd say it's an improvement on that front, too.

Joking Hazard doesn't fix all the problems of CAH.  There is still some reliance on specific cards, still a bit of weird racism or sexism.  But, in my opinion at least, it's a big step in the right direction.

Anyway, those are just my thoughts.  I enjoy reading Cracked daily, and I liked most of the games that Mr. McKinney suggested.  I just think that if you're going to try to wean people onto newer games, a little more strategy in what you're picking (outside of "I like this game") can go a long way.

May the Force be with you!

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- Thomas