By Xchel Nakamura
As most of us know, it’s pretty hard to get into Hollywood nowadays, let alone, having a huge posse or entourage. Some of us dream of having the lavish lifestyle, glitz, and glamour. Game for Fame offers you a chance to experience the struggles, the fun, and just a little bit of what those real Hollywood stars get to have (even if it’s fictional). This is a very unique and fun board game. Developed by Joseph Pitcher and David McGranahan of Banter board games, it offers a creative and hilarious experience in how you work towards gigs, auditions, and how-to in the business.
Game for Fame contains:
- 1 Game board
- 4 Player pieces
- 1 Bank credit pad
- 1 Mini sand timer
- 1 Notepad
- 4 Mini pencils
- 100 Money Maker cards (total)
- 23 Papped cards
- 77Audition cards (Co-star and Solo star)
What is great about this game is that you can play with more than 2 players. You can actually have up to 16 players, as it provides you with 4 game pieces (but each team can’t have more than 4 people). Though it makes for a great party game, the way that you prepare for this game is a bit out of the ordinary. Nevertheless, this is fun to play with more than 2 people. It’s very simplistic and easy to understand (although it would have been better if it contained a die to better determine whose turn it actually was). The Money Maker cards are what make the game what it is, and the Audition cards function by having you act and perform to get the part, as well as having paparazzi catch you in an embarrassing moment.
Board and gameplay
Previously, I mentioned that this game has a very unique way of preparing to play. As per the norm for pairing up or making teams, it asks not to shuffle the Money Maker cards (which I found a bit strange) since most of these kind of games usually have you shuffle the cards, in order to have a variety of scenarios. You then pick one of the 4 pieces and place it on the “Start” space. The last step was to have a glass of water on hand (seriously). Apparently, this is to gargle after every performance (it actually came in quite handy). The basic principle of this game is to become the biggest “Superstar” by reaching the 30 million dollar mark. The way that it determines the players’ or teams’ turn is by simply picking up a Money Maker card and just follow the directions on that card. Now, each Money Maker card has a different “audition,” which can require a co-star or acting alone. To get deeper into what they are, I’ll explain what each role does:
Solo-Star: These cards are meant to be essentially “you vs. your team.” The twist is that you are trying to gain the votes of your enemy team. It alludes to you actually auditioning for the part in front of a casting director, writer, and producer. This makes it more of a competitive environment, not just for the rival team, but for your team as well.
Co-Star: this type of card allows you to be the actor. The player is allowed to be creative, spontaneous, and overall, fun. The enemy team is supposed to guess who you are. It will ask you to be happy, sad, and enthusiastic. Remember that water I mentioned? Yes, you can gargle in the middle of it, as it adds a bit of a challenge to have the enemy team guess who you are. Once the enemy team gets one right, you move up 3 spaces.
After a certain number of rounds, we noticed that there was a bit of a repetitive pattern. Though it may have different ways of playing the cards (and not to mention the choices of what actors to portray), some of them became, more or less, the same thing. Now, in the mix of the game, we came across what is called the “PAPPED!” card. These cards are designed to set you back a bit. With most of these cards you, must read them out loud and it will make you, your team, or make the enemy team a decision based on what “PAPPED!” card was picked. This was actually pretty interesting: it caused the game have a funny twist of which all of us enjoyed. It reminds me of taking a “Chance” card in Monopoly: you never know what to expect.
For a 2 player game, it’s pretty short. It gets very interesting as each of us acted out scenes and auditioned for the part. However, the game shines when you get 4 or more people involved: chaos, mayhem, and hilarity ensues. Now, as much fun as this is in multiplayer, the point of the game is to get YOU to the $30 million jackpot. You have to be a little sneaky to get to the top of the mountain, and if you can’t get to the top, the person with the most revenue-gained wins the game. You can keep going if you want to get to the amount desired, as there is no time limit.
Game for Fame is a rare amusement that I actually got to enjoy. The fact that you can act out and be yourself makes for a great party game. Plus, using the water in a game, I have to admit, made it hard to pinpoint who was who. That alone makes the game even more amusing.
Gameplay: 4.5 out of 5 Atoms
Packaging:
The packing for this board game was very ordinary. It left a little to the imagination. You have your basic logo on the top with the glasses and the red carpet showing, with a dark blue silhouette curtain on the side. A few shots of flash photography and some actors that seem to spot a celebrity. It just had that feel that this has been done before. This is called Game for Fame, so a little more pizzazz on the cover would have matched how awesome this boardgame is.
Packaging: 2.5 out of 5 Atoms
Final Reaction:
This has been one of the few board games I enjoyed that was fun to play with a lot of people. It’s not often we all get the chance to be silly and act outside of our comfort zone in front of people you know. Game for Fame really lets you experience acting in your own way without any shame. Plus, if the others like the way you act and perform, you are one step away from being a real superstar!.
Overall rating: 4 out of 5 Atoms
*Board game provided by company for review
from Nerd Reactor
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