Gaming Saturday

Botticelli

I had never heard of this game until I took a family car trip with my wife's family. It was a long drive so they suggested we give it a try. They had played many times since they had done cross-country treks in the past. It took a little while for me to get the hang of it, but then I really got into it. The rules are simple and it can really help pass the time.

The basic premise is that one person thinks of a famous person. One important thing to remember is that everyone who is playing needs to be familiar with the mystery person. The next step is that the individual who came up with the mystery person needs to announce what letter their name begins with. Then the other players pose yes/no questions. The trick to this is that these questions need to be about someone who also begins with the same letter. I don't think that I will be able to explain it very well in text, so I will let the Wikipedia page describe the rules for you.

Sometimes one round can last for many minutes. Other times it can go very quickly. One time I announced that I was thinking of someone who begins with the letter 'L' My sister-in-law then asked, "Are you someone who is very good at shooting arrows?" That was in fact who I had chosen so I had to announce, "Yes, I am Legolas." She guessed my person with the first question. Then it was her turn to come up with someone to try and stump us. 

I really enjoy this game now, but it is important to try and play with people who have a similar knowledge base. If you don't, you run the risk that you are not thinking of a person that they will ever have a chance of guessing. Those games are not very fun since they last FOREVER! A good game will make a several hour car trip zoom right by.