My 4yo loves storytelling so much, and has little patience for learning and following rules -- she'd rather invent her own. She also doesn't like games where bad things happen, which rules out a bunch of a games. (Having a penalty for something happening, or some sort of doomsday countdown timer, is a very common mechanic.)
We've landed on two reliable favorites for her:
-Lion in My Way, which is basically a storytelling framework. You have some tools (a hand of cards) and an obstacle to overcome (face up setting card), and need to say how you'd use your tools to cross it. No wrong answers. Just lots of riffing and storytelling. https://www.amazon.com/eeBoo-Problem-Solving-Obstacle-Board/dp/B07F6QQVMX/
-Amazing Tales, which provides slightly more structure to your described storytelling RPG model. Characters have 4 skills which each have a die (d6/8/10/12), and a 3 or higher succeeds, a 1 or 2 requires using a different skill. But basically the same idea as what you described -- it's all about telling a story and creativity. https://www.amazon.com/Amazing-Tales-Children-Adventures-Revised/dp/9493010015/
Really enjoyed all your paper wave stuff Justin and this was really helpful too. Any other tips as my daughter is 7 now so tends to enjoy some more advanced games but isn’t quite a strong enough reader for the more general recommendations? Thanks
Thanks! Since I wrote this my 7yo has become a strong enough reader that we can now play some of the less complex "adult" board games out there. A minimum level of reading skills are often required, regardless of the complexity of the game. Quacks of Quedlinburg and Patchwork have been very popular!
Hey Justin! Super excited to be a part of this! I have been a Goose Camp attendee for YEARS and I have always enjoyed your perspective and critical thought regarding the gaming topics (whether physical or digital) that also interest me!
In GameScoop fashion: my favorite board game is Catan and all of its expansions!
Looking forward to diving deeper into the nerdy hobbies that define us!
(I realize this probably isn't the right place to post this stuff, but there it is.)
One of the great game we played a 1000 times with our young kids was the "can you see what I see" book from Walter wick. https://www.amazon.com/Can-You-See-What-Picture/dp/0439163919/ref=mp_s_a_1_10?dchild=1&keywords=wick+can+you+see&qid=1631324552&sr=8-10 Each page is a beautiful photo of a scene filled to the brim with zillions of small items, with plenty of hidden secrets. It's fun to together find those secrets, and after several "reads", it still had tons of replay value as we compete on who's going to be the first to find a specific trinket called by the game leader.
Thanks! Good picks. By 9 you can probably get them into whatever, tbh Based off their interests. Ticket to Ride, Carcassonne, Pandemic, Isle of Cats, Azul... a lot of the "usual suspects" would probably go over well.
My kids thought it was silly but there's definitely skeletons, zapping magic spells, swords. There's no blood. So it'll depend on your specific family dynamic.
Once they're old enough to read they'll see the all the card names are puns and whatnot and that it's a silly game
My 4yo loves storytelling so much, and has little patience for learning and following rules -- she'd rather invent her own. She also doesn't like games where bad things happen, which rules out a bunch of a games. (Having a penalty for something happening, or some sort of doomsday countdown timer, is a very common mechanic.)
We've landed on two reliable favorites for her:
-Lion in My Way, which is basically a storytelling framework. You have some tools (a hand of cards) and an obstacle to overcome (face up setting card), and need to say how you'd use your tools to cross it. No wrong answers. Just lots of riffing and storytelling. https://www.amazon.com/eeBoo-Problem-Solving-Obstacle-Board/dp/B07F6QQVMX/
-Amazing Tales, which provides slightly more structure to your described storytelling RPG model. Characters have 4 skills which each have a die (d6/8/10/12), and a 3 or higher succeeds, a 1 or 2 requires using a different skill. But basically the same idea as what you described -- it's all about telling a story and creativity. https://www.amazon.com/Amazing-Tales-Children-Adventures-Revised/dp/9493010015/
Thank you for the excellent suggestions!
Really enjoyed all your paper wave stuff Justin and this was really helpful too. Any other tips as my daughter is 7 now so tends to enjoy some more advanced games but isn’t quite a strong enough reader for the more general recommendations? Thanks
Very relevant read for me. Thanks for the cool ideas, Justin!
Thanks! Since I wrote this my 7yo has become a strong enough reader that we can now play some of the less complex "adult" board games out there. A minimum level of reading skills are often required, regardless of the complexity of the game. Quacks of Quedlinburg and Patchwork have been very popular!
Hey Justin! Super excited to be a part of this! I have been a Goose Camp attendee for YEARS and I have always enjoyed your perspective and critical thought regarding the gaming topics (whether physical or digital) that also interest me!
In GameScoop fashion: my favorite board game is Catan and all of its expansions!
Looking forward to diving deeper into the nerdy hobbies that define us!
(I realize this probably isn't the right place to post this stuff, but there it is.)
One of the great game we played a 1000 times with our young kids was the "can you see what I see" book from Walter wick. https://www.amazon.com/Can-You-See-What-Picture/dp/0439163919/ref=mp_s_a_1_10?dchild=1&keywords=wick+can+you+see&qid=1631324552&sr=8-10 Each page is a beautiful photo of a scene filled to the brim with zillions of small items, with plenty of hidden secrets. It's fun to together find those secrets, and after several "reads", it still had tons of replay value as we compete on who's going to be the first to find a specific trinket called by the game leader.
this is great.
Excellent read. Cannot wait for your recommendations for slightly older kids. We currently love Kingdomino and Small world with our 9YO
Thanks! Good picks. By 9 you can probably get them into whatever, tbh Based off their interests. Ticket to Ride, Carcassonne, Pandemic, Isle of Cats, Azul... a lot of the "usual suspects" would probably go over well.
Thanks Justin. We have most of these but will check out Isle of Cats and Azul. By the way I love these posts, keep up the good work and Goose Camp ;)
Love this - will pick a few of these up. Question: Did the Dungeon Mayhem art initially scare the little ones, or is it playful enough to be harmless?
My kids thought it was silly but there's definitely skeletons, zapping magic spells, swords. There's no blood. So it'll depend on your specific family dynamic.
Once they're old enough to read they'll see the all the card names are puns and whatnot and that it's a silly game