Math Dice Chase Review

Think Fun, one of my favorite game companies, has released another fun learning game for kids.  This time, the focus is on learning math facts.

Math Dice Chase is designed to be used played with 4-6 players 3rd grade and older, as it is made to be played using multiplication facts.  The play of the game is simple.  Two people on opposite sides of the table each roll their pair of colored dice and then multiply the two numbers and state the answer (which can be checked by observing players).  Once a fact is answered correctly, the dice pass to the next player and continues around.  The challenge comes in the fact that each person takes a different length of time to roll and solve, causing the dice to eventually catch up with the same person.  This is how the "Hot Potato" factor of the game plays in.  The idea is to stay ahead of the other set of dice so as not to be caught holding both pairs of dice.

This game comes with a storage bag, instructions and four 12-sided dice - two in blue and two in purple.

The dice are fairly large in size, not your basic black and white dotted playing dice.  These are kid friendly, big enough for little hands to easily pick up and roll without slipping out of hands with lesser fine motor skills.  The numbers are easily read and well etched into the dice so as not to rub off with regular play.

It all stores nicely in a small bag to keep pieces together.

We have had fun playing this game as intended with the whole family as well as in an adapted form one-on-one with some of our littles.  The game can easily be adapted for addition or subtraction using the same game play rules, or just for practice.  It is also handy to take on road trips or use for quiet times.  There are so many math learning possibilities for this game beyond the written rules.  This is why I love ThinkFun so much!  The games they create are high quality, learning heavy and easily used for learning and fun beyond the intended use.  Another addition to our educational manipulatives that I will be holding on to for years to come!

You can find this game here

* I received this product for free in exchange for my honest and un-biased review.

500 Piece Building Brick Review

My girls are just getting into the joy of building with Legos.  We have been given a couple of small sets, but they kept asking for more blocks to build and create with.  Finding such blocks without buying a set or spending a fortune is difficult to come by, however.  So, when I came across the opportunity to try  a pack of non-branded Lego like blocks, I jumped on it.

This set comes with 500 pieces in 14 different shapes an sizes, in 10 colors (red, green, light blue, dark blue, yellow, pink, purple, white, grey, black).  

These are your basic bricks, and include the following pieces:

- 1 peg narrow

- 2 peg narrow

- 3 peg narrow

- 4 peg narrow

- 6 peg narrow

- 8 peg narrow

- 4 peg double

- 6 peg double

- 8 peg double

- 12 peg double

- 16 peg double

- 3 peg corner 

- 20 peg thin

- 2 peg slant

These bricks work perfectly with Lego branded building bricks.  If not for the logo, I would not have known they were not the official product!

I am very pleased with this set.  I love that the colors are not gender specific.  The bricks are easy to put together and take apart again, they are not too tight or loose.  They feel just like the name brand building bricks, of quality sturdy plastic.  My family spent hours just creating and building with these, no directions, characters, extras or theme necessary.  These are great for sparking creativity, educational purposes, distractions, just play fun.  I highly recommend this product!

You can get some for the kid in your life (or yourself) here

*I received this product for free in exchange for my honest and un-biased review.

Phrase Party Review

Sometimes I find myself wishing I had a game on hand with me while I am on the go.  For instances like vacations with rain, road trips, or long appointments, even small group meetings, I don't often have physical games on hand.  Now, with Phrase Party, I have that option!

Phrase Party, which I have downloaded on my iPad and iPhone, is much like Catch Phrase or Taboo.  This is a word game in which requires the player to guess the word without gestures, saying what is sounds like or starts with.  The cool thing about Phrase Party, is that it can be played three ways; by yourself against the computer, with other people in the room, or online.

When played alone, the computer says clues, which also flash across the bottom of the screen, and blanks are given to show how many letters the word or phrase is.  A scramble of possible letters is also shown at the bottom of the screen, so players simply pick letters and put them in order to spell the word.  For people who are good with word scrambles, this is an advantage as often the word can be determined by this alone, but not always.  A 1.5 minute timer beeps and the screen flashes momentarily to signal time remaining, speeding up as time gets shorter.  At the end, a beep sounds to signal the end of the round.  Scoring is automatic based on how many words are entered correctly

When played in teams, with other people, the electronic device is simply passed back and forth between teams.  The person holding the device explains the word to their partner or team, continuing. Once a category is chosen (one is given automatically, the players have the choice to choose another), simply press the start button and game play begins.  The screen offers clue prompts while the word to guess is on screen. A 1.5 minute timer beeps and the screen flashes momentarily to signal time remaining, speeding up as time gets shorter.  At the end, a beep sounds to signal the end of the round. Scoring is done by the team, but tapping a + to add points.  Both team's points are shown on screen.

Online play requires a Facebook sign in.  Once logged in with Facebook, any friends who also have the game installed are shown.  If no friends are showing, there is the option to "make a new friend" by allowing the app and Facebook to search players to pair you with.  Once an opposing player is found, game play begins similarly to the single player method.  Coins are earned for wins.

The game has many customizable options, including the ability to record game play (in case you are super competitive and need to review), game difficulty, sound schemes, timer length, points per game to win, number of teams, even the ability to name teams.  Users can also create custom phrases for the game and purchase new phrase packs if so desired.

There is so much potential in your hand with this game, and hours of laughs and fun - all without having to carry around a box and loose cards or game pieces.  I am a big fan of this new app and have already put it to great use for a recent weekend party with friends.  I definitely recommend this app!

*I received this product for free in exchange for my honest and un-biased review.

Compose Yourself Review

I am so excited to have had the chance to try the newest game from ThinkFun - Compose Yourself

Whether you are musically inclined or not, this game offers entertainment for all.  No musical skills are required! This game comes with a 60 clear music cards, each with 4 different music arrangements (depending on which way the card is flipped), a storage bag and instructions.

 The card are high quality, sturdy and durable.  Each card is different, and can be flipped and rotated to create a new musical arrangement.  A corresponding number indicates which note combination is being viewed.

 Game play is as simple as the contents of the box.  The player simply chooses 4 (or a multiple of four, such as 8, 12, or 16) cards.  After entering the web address and loading the site, a user profile is created by entering an email address and creating a password.

 Once that is complete, the player enters the four digit code from the card into one of the spots on the website.

 Once the code is entered, the image of the card in hand appears on the screen.  After entering the code, the player has the option to listen to that card's musical arrangement by itself.

Once the four codes have been entered, the player can hear the entire arrangement put together.  Players have the option of listening to the composition in Marimba, Orchestra, or both.

For players 6+, this game has tons of potential.  With nearly limitless combinations, the compositions are as unique as the player, and provide hours of fun.  Compositions can be edited, saved and shared,  While this may not entertain adults as long, it is sure to be tons of fun for kids.  My children and I played around with it for quite some time, and even though they are younger than 6 (5 and 3), with help from me, they had a lot of fun making their own songs.

Check it out for yourself!  You can get this game here

I received this game for free in exchange for my honest and un-biased review.

All Queens Chess Review

Another new game from Think Fun!

All Queens Chess is a twist on classic Chess.  This game is played with all queen pieces.

Targeted for players 8+, this 2 player game is a strategy game that requires players to plan their moves carefully.  The goal of the game is to get four queens in a row.  Like in chess, the Queen can move any direction (vertical, horizontal, diagonal) and any number of squares.  The main difference is that no pieces can be captured.

Not much of a chess player, I was a little concerned I would not be able to play this game.  Not so!  Think expanded Tic-Tac-Toe with moving pieces.  Set up is very simple, and play is equally easy.  Once the pieces are placed on the 25 square board, players determine who will move first and play begins.  Players simply take turns moving their color piece, trying to line up four in a row in any direction.  Pieces can move in a straight line any direction, any number of spaces, provided there is nothing in the way. Pieces cannot jump or capture another player's piece.  

Following these simple rules, game play is as varied as the players and their skill levels.  My daughter is able to play with her friend in several short games, while my husband and I can make a single game last over 10 minutes.  There is really no end to the possibility or the fun with this game.

I have really enjoyed playing this game, and have become admittedly a little addicted to it.  This is the perfect game to take along on trips, for a rainy day, or for game night.  Nearly anyone can play this game, and it is near the top of my current favorite games.

Retail price for this game is only $12.99.  You can find it online here

I received this game for free in exchange for my honest and un-biased review.

Houdini Review

Yay!  Another awesome game just arrived at my house from ThinkFun.  This time, Houdini is the name they have given to the fun.

Designed for players ages 8 to adult, this game plays of the intrigue of Harry Houdini.  40 puzzles involving rope, rings and a lock to secure the miniature Houdni himself allow the player to work through challenges to free Houdini, and without cheating!

Each puzzle gets increasingly more difficult, and take more time to solve.  Players start with puzzle one, which is an easy puzzle, and work their way through challenges increasing to intermediate and then expert.

I thought I was smarter than this game, that I could solve a more difficult puzzle starting out, so I set up puzzle number 11

I messed with this puzzle on and off for much of the afternoon, spending a few minutes each time trying to work out how to get Houdini free.  I finally gave up.  There is some serious challenge in working out these puzzles!  Thankfully, for those like myself who get stuck and need to know the answer, there are video solutions available at Think Fun that show the way to solve each puzzle.

This game offers players hours of fun, solo and as a group.  My friends and family have already spent considerable time working out these puzzles and have enjoyed challenging one another over who can solve it quicker.

Available for $19.99, this is a game worth the cost to add to your game cupboard.

You can check out a video here

Go get one for yourself through ThinkFun or Amazon

I received this game for free in exchange for my honest and un-biased review.

Laser Maze Jr. Review

Yet another fun and challenging game is available from my favorite game makers, Think Fun.  Meet Laser Maze Jr.!

Laser Maze Jr. is created with kids ages 6-12 in mind, but is a fun game for adults too.

Players simply choose a challenge card (40 possible, ranging from easy to super hard) and then sets up their satellite mirrors and tokens on the game board to get the laser beam to light up the rocket targets.

 The laser is kid friendly, which is a winner for any parent, and allows kids to explore and learn as they play.  Players must use logic and a little creativity and critical thinking to determine how to get the laser beam to the rocket while avoiding space rocks than can block the beam and halt progress.

My kids and I had fun learning how to play this game!  Even my littles had a good time exploring the lasers and trying to work out solutions.  My 5 year old took to the game pretty quickly and was very curious to discover how it worked.  Bonus for me is that this game is well crafted and durable, as my three year old is not so cautious and it got dropped in an argument over who got to play it.  Regardless, nothing broke and it still works perfectly.

You can't go wrong with this game.

You can check it out through ThinkFun or on Amazon

* I received this product for free in exchange for my honest and un-biased review.

Rush Hour Shift game review

We have tried several games by Think Fun, and each time have been very pleased and entertained.  So, when I got the chance to try "Rush Hour Shift", I jumped at the opportunity.

 This game comes with 12 regular cars, 2 hero cars, a deck of cards, the three piece interlocking board, a storage bag and instruction booklet.

A two player game, Rush Hour Shift mates a little friendly competition with critical thinking and evaluative skills to complete the task of getting one's car through the traffic before the competition.  Strategy, spatial and problem solving skills are also needed to play this game.

Appropriate for ages 8 and up, there are many years to come of use for this game in my house.  There are 10 different set-ups, and from the there the game play is as varied as the players.

From Think Fun:

Escape before your opponent, that's the goal! The best-selling sliding block logic game is now for two players. Every move counts in this race to cross traffic. As you draw cards, you'll need a little luck and a clever strategy to win. Should you use your turn to advance your own Hero Car or block your opponent? The potential moves are endless and the shifting Traffic Grid adds a whole new dimension to play. Just when you think you've cleared a path to the finish, a shift of the grid can change the game!

We are really enjoying this game and think you would too!
You can find it through Think Fun and Amazon.com

I received this product for free in exchange for my honest and un-biased review.

PathWords by Think Fun

Think Fun has released another fun game to challenge and grow the mind.

PathWords™ Brain Fitness
Word Search Extreme
Strengthen your vocabulary and visual perception skills in this amalgamation of polyominoes and word search!
• Ages 8 to adult

Includes:
• 80 Challenges
• 8 Puzzle Pieces
• Instructions & Solutions

 PathWords comes with a spiral bound puzzle book with 40 challenges ranging from beginner to expert, instruction and solution book, and 8 colored playing pieces

PathWords combines Tetris and Word Searches to create a new single player game that will keep you busy for quite some time.  Players place puzzle pieces onto the challenge puzzle page so that letters under each piece spell a word in any direction - forward or backward.

This game is great for killing time, creating challenges for students and children, and challenging the mind all the while.  Each puzzle increases in difficulty and length of time needed to solve, but can easily be done a puzzle at a time to fill a few moments.  I have enjoyed learning this game and spending time playing it.  As a lover of Tetris type puzzle games and word searches, this game is a perfect fit and sure to provide entertainment in my home for some time.

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.