Tolkiens Arda – Sveriges stora Tolkienforum

Om det inte var min födelsedag och jag därför har annat för mig så hade det varit intressant. Vad är det för något?

ubject: Shall I compare thee to a Summer's Day
My Game: My husband gave me this game for my birthday. After playing this game once, I believe that this game was made specifically for me. This game has everything I could have wanted in a Shakespeare game. After my bias intro, we shall move to the review.

Game play: This is not a trivia game! This game is a strategic game where each player is a play manager who must put on plays at various theaters. The game lasts the span of time agreed upon before the game starts by the other players. The object of the game is to collect acclaim points by putting on a play. To put on a play, you must buy a script from Shakespeare and collect the correct number of props, actors, and patrons for that script. After you collected all your items, you must go to the theater of you choice (you can perform at the globe only once). Each theater has a different value depicted with the number of dice on the side of the theaters. This value is important in calculating acclaim points. For example, the Globe has five dice. Roll five dice, one die for each patron, add the cost of the script, and add the rating of each actor you use for this play. If you have a great actor, add another die. This is how you calculate your acclaim points if you perform at the Globe. That is a simple summary.

Everything has a price: You begin with 40 shillings. You must pay for each prop at five shillings each, an actor is five shillings which is chosen at random, and a patron is requested without cost at a great house. You may gain a second patron or ten shillings at a great house by answering an easy question correctly. Each script must be bought from Shakespeare if he is not busy. Draw a tile script and pay the cost on the tile for that script. You must pay the cost he is asking or you have just insulted Shakespeare.

Now, you may be asking, how do I make money in this game? This is the heart of the game and also why the game was specifically made for me.

1. You may either recite a speech where your audience decides how much you gain (1-10 shillings) based on your performance. This is a great idea because Shakespeare recited is very hot and my husband is a great performer. I particularly enjoy trying to guess the play it comes from and who is talking. This is a good choice for those who are not as interested or possess knowledge of Shakespeare.

2. You may show your knowledge by answering an easy, medium, and difficult question about Shakespeare and gain 10, 15, or 20 shillings. These questions can be multiple choice or true/false. I always choose this option because I like answering the questions. Since they are multiple choice questions, it is not just a shot in the dark if I am having trouble. If I do not know the answer, than I have learned something. This is so perfect because I hate reading aloud. The summaries inside the instructions would be helpful for those finding the trivia hard. As I say trivia, I must also say THIS IS NOT A TRIVIA GAME.

3. Lastly, you can Busk. Busking is an impromptu performance where you gain five shillings and a fate card.

Little perks of the game: You can gain a fate card after a Busk or by rolling an f on either or both six sided die. A fate card is a positive or negative fate. Like, \x{201C}Your greatest actor dies. Discard him and remove him from the game\x{201D} or \x{201C}Gain 20 shillings for performing for the Lord Mayor\x{201D}

You may also trade, brawl, or flirt with your opponent. A trade has very loose requirements but both opponents agree on the terms. A brawl is battled by dice rolls. The winning picks an item from the looser. Flirt is like a forced trade. To flirt, you offer and item. In turn, your opponent must give you an item. Money is not to be used during a flirt. It\x{2019}s really a funny concept.

There is a jail. If you cannot pay a fine, which is found on the fate card, you are thrown into jail. You loose all your money and loose a turn but you do not collect debt. You also loose a turn when passing throw the gallows. You must stop and miss the next turn because you are watching an execution.

You can gain turns by rolling double but only up to two times. You automatically gain an extra turn passing through the Cathedral. If you roll doubles at the Cathedral, you gain three turns.

Appearance: This game is of extremely great quality. The board and tiles are sturdy. The illustrations of the many locations on the board are beautiful. The actor tiles have names of actors with their ratings. The trivia questions (even though this is not a trivia game) have three questions front and back. This helps with space and I don\x{2019}t think I\x{2019}ll ever run out of questions. There are many little compartments inside the plastic tray to organize the game. Since there are so many pieces, I bag them which made it difficult to fit into the tray. I am still uncertain about the rhyme or reason to the organization of the game in the tray. This would be my only complain and is more of a complaint because I can\x{2019}t figure it out.

Conclusion: I love this game. Yes, I\x{2019}m bias. I\x{2019}m an English major who dreams of teaching Shakespeare. But I must say over and over THIS IS NOT A TRIVIA GAME ITS A STRATEGY GAME. If it was a trivia game, my husband would not have played the game with me. Actually, no one would play this game with me. My husband would not have won the game if it was a trivia game. And he did win! But I love a good challenge. I can\x{2019}t wait to play again. Time just ran out.