weird & wonderful
Compiled by rAMA rAMeSh
Become a budding journalist
The board game’s name
Man Bites Dog is intriguing
and stands true to the motive
of the game. In true media
style, it’s all about coming up
with the catchiest headlines
using random cards you
draw from a set. It sounds
like it would be good fun with points
for creativity, but it turns out
that luck is probably all that
matters. At least, even if you’re
losing, you can still laugh at
awkward headlines like ‘Angry Dog
Runs Off With Urologist’ or ‘Brave
Family Attacks Devoted Cop’.Much ado about
nothing?
When you see the name Morron
Terror, don’t expect some Jumanji
style action and panic. A character
made of cardboard, Freddy, needs to
be dressed up. The twist in the game
is that you need to listen to an audio
cassette and follow the instructions carefully to dress
Freddy in the correct combination. The player who does
it correctly wins. And that’s it.
The only terror, as far as this
game is concerned, is that it
might bore you to death after
two minutes!Non-athletic tennis
Are you fond of tennis but
think it would be great to play
it while slouching on a couch?
There’s a game exclusively for such enthusiasts. Roll the
dice to decide what kind of move you get to make — a
short lob, a passing shot, etc., on a net-free board. Why
actually physically try these manoeuvres when you can
close your eyes and imagine yourself
on a Wimbledon court playing classy
shots! The game ends when someone
wins or falls asleep.Farmville on a board
Not keen on a game that will make
you sweat in anxiety and pace? ThenSquatter is just for you. The first player to collect a total
of 6000 sheep wins the game. The perils you encounter
on the board are aplenty. Here’s one — a poisonous
plant consumed by the stud ram could cause your sheep
population to plummet steeply. Enjoy this Australian
game of sheep-herding as it proceeds in its leisurely pace
of buying and selling sheep.Fun can be hard work
What stands out about this game is its
insistence on participation of both genders.
Roll the dice and pick a card from the landing square.
Then, you do the stunt mentioned on the card to earn
points for yourself and your partner. The purpose of a
board game seems to be to settle down in a cosy spot and
roll dice. However, this game is intent on making you
run around accomplishing tedious tasks like opening and
shutting all the doors in the house before a sand timer
runs out, or embarrassing
(and possibly unsanitary)
ones like kissing a door
knob four times!Rendezvous with
Big Foot
The game starts with a
mistake right in the name
— Big Foot: The Giant Snow
Monster Game. Wasn’t the
snow monster called ‘Yeti’? Anyway, the other problem
is the deceptive box illustration showing an amicable Big
Foot sitting with children. However, when you play the
game, you clearly see that Bigfoot isn’t the benevolent
character he is made out to be on the box cover. You
can load discs
(some blanks and
some footprints)
into the plastic
figurine of Big
Foot which plays
a major role in the
game.