Canadian Gift Guide

This weekend I spent a night out in cottage country with my boyfriend and his family at the cabin they’ve rented for the week. After much fun in the sun, a BBQ, and several glasses of wine, we decided to play the sole board game I brought out (although after a rousing round of gameplay, I wish I’d brought out some more).

I’m a board game aficionado. Or if you prefer, nerd. I own Cranium, Pop 5, Whoonu, Balderdash, The Game of Things, Would You Rather?, and Apples to Apples, among a few other in the classic and ‘party’ board game genres. After pimping out Cranium and Pop 5 for awhile, my sister wizened up and gave me one of the best gifts ever – Apples to Apples.

This is my go to game to bring to pretty much any event, because it manages to be an icebreaker without requiring an intimidating amount of knowledge about your game mates. The game is simple – one person is ‘it’, and reveals a green adjective card such as ‘Repulsive’, ‘Honest’, or ‘Unique’. The other players have seven red noun cards (with helpful descriptions if you’re unfamiliar with a term) and select the card they think best relates to the adjective in question. The ‘it’ person looks at all of the red cards – without knowing who put down what – and decides which red card is the best example of the green card.  I won ‘Heartless’ with a ‘Tiger Woods’ card this weekend, as an example.

And that’s…pretty much it. That’s sort of the genius behind it. Any group of people – strangers, acquaintances, and your nearest and dearest can play this on relatively equal footing. It’s a game of chance as much as it is a game of guessing the mindset of the ‘it’ person. Although if you own the game, you should note that there is a delightful bonus game. Once someone has gotten enough green cards to win the game, have each player go through their green cards publicly – with the caveat that the green cards then describe their love lives. Fun!

Apples to Apples has gained more popularity in recent years, and several of my friends have purchased it after playing it with me, so I imagine it’s not quite the ‘original’ gift it was several years ago when I first got it. That being said, if you have a board game crazy friend or family member, this is a totally logical and simple gift choice for birthdays or Christmas.

There are a few other occasions in which a board game is a totally appropriate gift. Consider bringing a fun party game out to a friend’s cottage and leaving it there as a thank you for hosting. Or if you’re friends with a couple that is moving in together, bless them with a board game as a housewarming gift, and a ready-made excuse to get together in the near future. There are also expansions for the game (although I personally haven’t felt the game is running low on originality yet) at much lower prices, so if you know someone that already owns it, top up their set for only $20. There’s also a kids edition if you’re looking for a gift for the hard-to-buy-for niece or nephew, and er, a bible edition for the religious types.

Apples to Apples is available at most board games stores these days (my sister had to drive to a tiny toy boutique 30 minutes away to get mine!), but if you can’t find it, Boardgames.ca has it and the expansion sets available. Enjoy!