Qwixx

qwixxHmmmm……

What were those criteria for a game to be Major Fun again?

1. Game can be learned in 15 minutes or less?

CHECK!

2. Played in under an hour?

Check!! Two or three times.

3.Fun enough to play over and over again?

Check!

4. Suitable for a wide audience?

Check!.

Qwixx! Tell me what game I’m thinking of.

🙂

I just did.

Now, those criteria:

1. Qwixx is easily understood. By kids even. 8 and up. Maybe younger.

How is it played?

Each player has a score sheet (pictured).

The remainder of the game is….wait for it……

Six Dice!

qwixx scorecardTwo white dice and one each of Red, yellow, blue, and green

(which match the rows on the score pad)

Red and Yellow numbered from 2-12. Blue and Green, from 12-2.

When it’s your turn, you (the “Active Player”)roll all six dice.

Then everyone (Participation! Yay!) has the *option to use the two white dice as two red, two yellow, two blue, or two green and cross off that total # in the appropriate space on the score sheet.

Once that’s happened, the “Active Player”(only)has a further option: She MAY add the pips of one white die and one colored die  and cross off the number in the row matching the colored die.

Like a white 2 and a red 2 can cross off the  red 4 on her score sheet.

But here’s the thing about crossing off. Once you make a check mark on a particular row, you can’t put any checks to the left of it. So planning can be challenging.

There’s one more thing. The “Active Player” MUST put an X somewhere on his sheet. If he can’t or doesn’t want to (because he’ll have too many empty spaces on the left side, he must fill one bad one on the bottom right of his scorepad. (Those are -5 points at the end)

What now?

The game continues with the players taking turns as the “Active Player” until the game ends.

One more special rule:

The last number in each row (12 for red and yellow. 2 for Blue and Green) cannot be crossed off unless you already had at least five or more Xs in that row.

If you do, you put an X in the 2 or 12 AND you also get an X in the “Lock” space to the right.

That color is now closed (unavailable for any future Xs ) for the rest of the game. If the game isn’t yet over, that die is removed for the rest of the game.

When two of the colors have been locked in that manner…or when one player has put 4 BAD Xs in the bottom right, the game is over.

Scores are added up using the formula at the bottom of the score sheet.

2. &  3. The average game takes 20 or so minutes, which makes #3 a certainty. Everybody wants more. Usually immediately.

(The first game of Qwixx we played, I devastated the opposition with 109 points!!

(Inside my addled brain, I’m saying “Finally. A game I’m good at. Maybe even great!”)

Everybody wanted to play again so we did.

I scored 21.

(Cue comedic trombone sound: “Wah! Wah! Wah!!”)

But, truth be told, I enjoyed the second time as much as the first. Oh joyous Major Fun!!

4. Qwixx is easily understood by kids of just about any age. (The publishers say ‘8 and up’ although I know a couple of six year olds….

But here’s something else about Qwixx….a very attractive something…..

Major Fun awardTHERE’S NO DOWN TIME!!!

“No Whaat time???” you ask.

“Down Time” for a player of games, which I am….and so are you….

is when  it’s your turn, the other players end up sitting there (patiently?) waiting for you to do your thing.

This can really minimize the fun aspect of a game.

Some more complex games suffer terribly on account of this. This and

“Analysis Paralysis”.

Why yes, you’re right. It DOES rhyme.

Some players are a little too……um….”deliberate” in their choice of moves. I’m being polite here. They take a long time, even when it’s not really called for.

Not fun. Not even minor fun. Let alone Major Fun.

Qwixx doesn’t have that! YAY!!!

Quixx engages everyone. On everyone’s turn. There’s always something to do. Or at least the potential to. So you remain involved. For the whole game.

More games should do this.

Until they do….play Qwixx!!!

Fun? Major!!

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