Freedom: Underground Railroad Game Launched on Kickstarter

 

Games in Schools and Libraries Interview

I had a chance to talk with Giles Pritchard and Donald Dennis of the Games in School and Libraries Podcast a bit about my work and the value of games in education. Episode number 19.

https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/gsl019-interview-brian-mayer/id574644106?i=133483856&mt=2

 

Animal Upon Animal: Balancing Bridge

Name: Animal Upon Animal: Balancing Bridge
Publisher: HABA
Number of Players: 2 to 4
Play Time: 15 Minutes
Grade Range: Elementary and Middle School
Return on Investment: High
Format: Analog Game
Jungle animals are setting off on an adventure, but there is only a rickety old rope bridge for them to cross. With the help of the players, animals cross the bridge by balancing on the back of a crocodile. Each player has a handful of cards that show sets of animals that need to be piled together. When the right combination of animals are touching, players can discard the matching card from their hand. The first player to get rid of all of their cards, wins the game.
Game play is fast and very accessible. On their turn, students roll a die. If it shows one of the four valleys, they take an animal from that area and add it to the stack on the bridge. A question mark symbol lets players pick any animal, while the bridge allows for rearrangement of the animals already stacked. If animals fall, the player must pick a new assignment card, pushing their victory one more card away.
Animal Upon Animal: Balancing Bridge is a big box follow-up game to popular game Animal Upon Animal. While both game help students strengthen their fine motor skills, Balancing Bridge is worth the small price bump from the original because of the pattern matching element that it adds.

 

Spooky Stairs

Name: Geistertreppe (Spooky Stairs)
Publisher: Drei Magier Spiele
Number of Players: 2 to 4
Play Time: 15 Minutes
Grade Range: Elementary and Middle School
Return on Investment: High
Format: Analog Game
Awards: Kinderspiel des Jahres 2004

At the top of the stairs in the old, spooky castle there lives a ghost. Each of the players race up the stairs, trying to be the first to scare him. But the castle is enchanted and plays tricks on the students as they make their way up to the top. Whichever player is able to keep their wits about them, not forgetting who or what they are, and frighten the spectre first, wins.

Geistertreppe is a wonderfully accessible racing game in which player identity get shifted around. The game is played on a simple game board that features a staircase that spirals in towards the center. On their turn, students roll the die and move their pawn the number of spaces indicated, unless the die shows a ghost. If a ghost is rolled, the student can take a ghost piece and place it on top of one of the player pieces. Once a pawn is covered it stays covered for the rest of the game and its color can no longer be seen. Players will need to remember which pawn is theirs for the rest of the game. After all of the pawns are covered, anytime the ghost is rolled the player can swap the position of two ghosts on the board. Play continues until one of the pawns is moved to the top of the stairs and the winner is revealed.

With just a simple rule, Geistertreppe takes what would be a simple memory game and makes it into something challenging and fun. Besides encouraging student to focus by tracking their piece, the game also provides opportunity for students to explore simple strategy when switching positions of the ghost covered pawns. Initially, students switch pawns to move their piece forward trying to get to the end as quickly as possible. After several plays though, students begin exploring moving other pawns as a distraction away from their own. This gives students a simple way of thinking about the game from other players’ perspectives, an important step towards interpersonal skills and empathy.

 

Tabletop Games video series with Wil Wheaton!