In the spirit of Landstander's recent Geeklist about how certain life events are rated on the 10 point BGG scale (What would YOU rate it?, www.boardgamegeek.com/geeklist.php3?action=view&listid=11863 ). I thought I would try to review Parenthood.
General Overview:
Parenthood is THE oldest known game. It predates the appearance of Hominids on the Earth even and their have been generations of species playing this for thousands upon thousands of years. Evidence of its early existence has been seen in cave paintings, found on scrimshaw, & mentioned in the holy books of several major religions. The general idea is that a Parent (or Parents) attempt to rear another member of their species (though interspecies play has been well reported and "Animal Husbandry" is well documented and still practiced by millions) over a variable span. Given that I know the most about Parenthood for Humans, I am going to focus on that (all in keeping with the rule that you should never review a game you haven't played
).Components:
The components for Parenthood are top notch. They are well constructed and durable. The best thing about the components is that they are completely customizable and their appearance changes over the years. My wife and I have the misfortune of having a pair of Children (that is what the components are called, perhaps Cheeples would be better) that look very much like me and not my wife. Given that she is an auburn haired Goddess, it would have been better if they looked like her. That is life I suppose. Don't let all that amniotic fluid, the placenta, and the initially smushed face fool you, these Children will soon become the most beautiful components you have ever seen. The number of expansions available for these Children is also mind blowing. There are expansions that are for warmth and to enhance their cuteness (the so-called "clothing" expansions), the expansions for travel ("car seats" and "booster seats" that fit into "mini-vans" and "family sedans"), educational expansions ("grade school", "middle school, "high school", "college", etc.), and other expansions.
The down side is that the components themselves can be tough to find. The options include: (1) procreation, (2) adoption, (3) Foster Parenthood (dealt with in another review), (4) Step-Parenthood, (5) and others. There are other ways to obtain children; these are some of the accepted methods. The biggest downside I can see to the game, with respect to the components anyhow, is the cost. If you decide to use option (1) procreation, the initial phases of the set-up can either be brief or extended over many months. Ultimately, some poor woman (be it the Mother of the children or a Surrogate) has to carry the Child around for approximately 40 weeks. This can be an expensive process. You will find that your excitement, and angst, for the upcoming gaming session grow during this 40ish week waiting period. Option (2) (adoption) can also be very time and money intensive. Without revealing the rest of this review, the cost is worth it... though you will find some of the expansions to be rather pricey.
Setup:
As mentioned above in the components section, setup time can be rather lengthy. That being said, once the game has begun, setup becomes but a memory and is frequently eclipsed by the game play time.
Flexibility/Ideal number of players:
The game is VERY flexible with respect to the "board" and the number of players. There are several excellent solitaire variants that require an exceptional amount of intestinal fortitude. Many people prefer to play with two. The genders of the two players has come under debate over the decades, but the simple truth is that it really does not matter what genders the players (called Parents from here on) are. Personally, my wife and I are currently involved in the "One-Man-One-Woman" variant and it is going pretty well. There is even a variant where many people act as Parents, the so-called "It Takes a Village" variant. There is another variant popular in Hollywood known as the "David Crosby is My Father" variant. Apparently, he makes good Children. The trick is to find a willing player, or willing players, to play with and go with that number.
Game Length:
My understanding is that this game never ends. My mother continues to inform me that she is still my mother, and that she always will be. This is usually mentioned with a fair amount of finger pointing and head tilting...
Goal:
The goals of the game are to raise your children to be functional and successful members of society. Luckily, there are many different definitions of "functional and successful" so there are myriad victory conditions. Ultimately, you want to make sure that your Children do not complain about you on their therapists' couch at any time during the game.
Game Stages:
(1) Early Game: (AKA "The First Age" or infancy)]
Some folks feel that the Early Game portion is where the game is at its hardest (these are usually the players who have not yet borne witness to the later stages of the game). It involves a lot of sleepless nights, crying, dirty diapers, spitting up, and the like, not to mention what the Children will be going through. Players in this stage are easily spotted on the street because they are obviously exhausted but beam a great smile whenever anyone asks how the game is going. You will also find that people in this stage of the game gravitate towards others in this stage of the game and they usually travel in sleep deprived packs. They can also be identified by their relative dishevelledness.
Feeding and growing are the foci of this early stage. The rewards in this stage are frequent and large (smiles/laughter/rolling over/first words/sounds/wide eyed excitement at exploration and discovery of new things/etc.). This stage is also expensive (but it becomes cheaper with successive plays as expansions purchased for prior Children can be re-used [so-called "hand-me-downs"]).
Strategies for this "First Age" are varied. Many of the good ones involve including family members. The frustrating thing about this age is that the rules of the game are amorphous and you pretty make them up as you go. There are lots of books that provide "guidelines" but none with any clear rules. You will also find endless kibbitzing from family, friends, and complete strangers. Do not let the "First Age" get to you. It gets better.
(2) Early Mid Game: (AKA Toddlerhood and Pre-school)
A lot of folks feel that the mid-game tends to be the part of Parenthood that bogs down a little. It is fairly repetitive on a day-to-day basis with the emphasis being on keeping the Children clean and fed as well as making sure they get to school each day and do their homework. Did we mention that the game comes with a free set of expansions once they start school: Viruses, Bacteria, Social Stress, Peer Pressure, et. al? These are the expansions that make the basic game so much harder. Sometimes those Viruses and Bacteria can just cause runny noses and fevers, but they can lead to a trip to the Emergency Department and/or pediatrician. Which reminds me, you should probably buy Health Insurance before you even think about playing this one.
...to be continued, I must attend to one of my children. We are in the "First Age" with that one.
Part II to follow...
(3) Late Mid Game: (AKA This is where it can get Really Expensive!)
(4) Early Late Game: (AKA Move out and get a job, would ya!)
(5) Mid Late Game: (AKA How come you never visit or call?)
(6) Late Late Game: (AKA When are you gonna give us grandkids?)
(7) End Game: (AKA Living Wills/Wills/Picking the right proxy)
...and with full Props given to Fawkes...The Reviewer's Tilt...
Please forgive me if you feel this does not belong on this site, or in this forum...
Posted Tue Jan 10,2006 02:30 pm
