THERE HAS BEEN PLENTY ALREADY SAID about The Mind (Pandasaurus Games, 2018) and whether it is really a game or not. The boardgame industry has fully embraced the game awarding it a Spiel Des Jahres (German Game of the Year) nomination and Origins Card Game of the Year Award. It also won three Golden Geek Awards (Best Card Game, Best Party Game, Best Cooperative Game), was nominated for multiple Dice Tower Awards and a nominee for the Diana Jones game of the year award. However, the RockyMountainNavy family was much slower to embrace the game. That is, until this weekend.
The ad copy is right; The Mind is an, “ingenious, addictive and ridiculously fun game. Well, addictive and ridiculously fun. Ingenious? If simplicity is ingenious then maybe….
The Mind is certainly easy to learn. All players are dealt a number of cards (running from 1-100) equal to the level of challenge (1-12). The goal is to simply place the cards down in numerical sequence. The catch is that the players cannot talk, cannot wink, cannot give a sign. Players have to work through multiple levels losing (or gaining) lives along the way and occasionally using a ‘Ninja star’ to save themselves.
The game plays very fast, especially if you are not making it to the higher levels. The instant game reset and feeling that we were ‘this close!’ makes you want to play over and over again.
So, is The Mind really a game? Don’t know, don’t care. The Mind is a good time for the family sitting around the table. It brings us together making us smile and laugh (and groan) and have a good time.
In many ways that makes The Mind a perfect family game.
Feature image Pandasaurus Games
Rocky Mountain Navy Gamer 