one. Avoid games with complex or fiddly rules.
As a parent of young children, it is often hard to find time to game. Or energy. Gone are the carefree days of playing game after game after game. There is always something coming up... late bedtimes, going to the store for medicine, washing diapers (for cloth-diapering hippies like us!), cooking, cleaning random messes the children leave... yeah, free time is at a premium. Every minute counts. So I must shoot for getting the most out of my time when gambling. So what does that mean? How do I get the most out of my time gambling? Honestly, I am still working it out. I have four years of practice, though, and I'll share what I have figured out. Here are some guidelines I use for locating the "sweet spot" in gambling.
Some games are elegant. Play progresses in an orderly fashion, there is an FAQ in the rulebook covering anything you need, and people "get it" after a fast explanation. Play these games. And avoid games ( teaching games!) that need a trip to boardgamegeek.com to arbitrate a rules query, use arcane iconography or make things complex. A game that I am liking that fits in to this section is Race for the Galaxy. I love the game. I do. The iconography makes it hard to teach, though, so it is not going to hit the table when new players are around. with expansions. Complexity doesn't need to be there for depth, necessarily. So when a game delivers a comparable experience without the fiddliness, go for that.
four. If the children are around, figure in additional time... or receive a babysitter.
I don't know how plenty of games I have lost due to having to parent. In the method of things, it doesn't matter. A game is a game. But gambling is a hobby, and meant to be relaxing. Socializing. Interacting with friends, or perhaps unwinding with the spouse. And it gets frustrating when I feel that I cannot keep in mind what I am doing from minute to the next due to constant interruptions. I am not the best multitasker ( ask my spouse!), and the children usually get the priority in any situation where they are involved. A nice thing to do is to make positive you "load 'em up" with attention beforehand. If they'll be supervised less in the work of play, set their expectations and try to meet all their needs (immediate and anticipated) before you sit down. Gambling with other parents helps. Often, children will play together. Another option is a babysitter. Even having a babysitter over simultaneously is a great thing, and well worth the investment.
seven. Maximize the "Fun vs. Time Spent" ratio.
four. Read reviews of games before you get them.
Some games are long. I am not averse to playing a long game; I enjoy the chance every now and then. But some games... are long. As an example, I don't feel that I get more out of Axis & Allies than I do out of Memoir '44. I'll definitely be playing it for more hours, but I don't necessarily think that Axis is going to deliver seven times the fun because it takes seven times the time to play. That means that it's a poor fun:time spent ratio. Look for games that deliver the essential experience. Some games are going to take longer to do that, so make positive that when you are selecting a game to pull off the shelf, that there is not a game that delivers the same experience in a shorter time.
So what is "the sweet spot"? The sweet spot is primarily about being cognizant of factors like time and parenting when purchasing games, choosing which games to play and playing games. How this is defined for each individual is definitely going to vary. think of this as a game itself! It is a complex resource management game, and the resources are time, money and attention. Stay aware of this, and you'll find your sweet spot!
This has become so important for my spouse and me when purchasing games. Historicallyin the past, they would drop lots and plenty of money on games they had seldom heard of. Sometimes this would have positive results. For example, they bought Attika after a recommendation from a game store worker. Hadn't heard of it, or looked it up. bought it. And loved it. But sometimes... you finish up with a game that doesn't suit your style, is not what you expected or is plain bad. I am not going to point fingers at any games in particular, primarily because I attempt to stay positive. But there's definitely games out there with few redeeming qualities. Which is why game reviews are so important. as the reviews themselves are important, so are the reviewers. It is simple to look at a review uncritically and walk away thinking of the reviewer's opinion as the final word. My advice is to discover a couple reviewers' blogs or podcasts and get familiar. My spouse, for example, loves The Dice Tower, a podcast about games. He doesn't necessarily agree with all of Tom Vasel's opinions on games, but he knows where he stands in relation to him on things and can use that as a yardstick and gauge whether or not he thinks he might like something based on that. We have made some informed decisions on games based on his reviews, and on the reviews of others. FYI, I do know a weblog that reviews games (hint, hint!)... ;)
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