Sunday, December 01, 2013

Making Memories: Homemade Whoknew?

Cranium has a great game (one of their manys) called Whoonu. But, truth to be told, we prefer our homebrewed version of the game. Here's how it works.

Materials needed:
  • creativity
  • index cards
  • pencils
  • scrap paper for score keeping

First, you need to cut a bunch of 3x5 index cards into halves or fourths or something. Basically you need several small cards for each person to write on. (Say 8-15 cards per person depending on how many players you have and how many rounds you want to play).

Second, you distribute an equal number of cards to each person. Each person also needs a pencil.

Third, each person writes one specific thing that people might like on each card. (If your index cards are lined on one side, write on the lined side). The more specific the better, so as to avoid duplicates. So, "Graeter's double chocolate chip ice cream" is a better bet than "ice cream". These can be nouns, activities, whatever. Players need to complete this step without discussing or comparing what they write on their cards. Print neatly so that others can read your card easily.

Fourth, all the cards are placed face down on the table and shuffled. (Given the nature of the card quality, just put them in a pile and mix them up a bit. Think back to your "Go Fish" days when your five year old hands were too clumsy to shuffle cards correctly.) After they are shuffled, the cards can be neatly stacked.

Fifth, each player is dealt four cards. It's perfectly all right to get some of the cards you wrote. That won't matter during game play.

Now....actual game play progresses as follows.

One player is chosen to go first. You can go with the youngest or the oldest or the player whose birthday is next or roll a dice or whatever. That player is the first "judge".

All other players pick ONE card from their hands that they think the judge will really like. They lay their cards face down in front of the judge. The judge mixes up the cards and then turns them face up and reads them all aloud.

The judge then puts them in order from the card they like best to the card they like least. This can be a difficult process and the judge is encouraged to think it through out loud. Other players can contribute suggestions and try to sway the judge's opinions as long as they do not reveal which card they laid down.

Once the judge has ranked the cards, the cards are scored. For a game with 6 players you score 10 points for the favorite, 7 for the second favorite, 5 for the next one, 3 points, and then 1 point for the least favorite. (You can adjust the scale for more or fewer players as needed. Make the favorite worth 12 points or take off the 1 point score or whatever. But each player should be able to get a score each round.)

Once the cards have been scored, the players claim the cards they laid down, and their scores are recorded on the score sheet. REMEMBER, the players get the scores of the cards they played, regardless of who the author of the card was!

All players draw another card to have four cards in their hands. The player to the judge's left becomes the new judge.

Play continues until all the cards are gone or until the majority of the players vote the game over. We've never run into that as a problem. In fact, we sometimes play till all the cards are gone....then go cut up another bunch of index cards.

Sweetling and Toa of Boy played the homebrewed Whoknew? with their cousins the day after Thanksgiving. I found the stack of cards they made and have to share them.

  • Being the all powerful super sugary epic insanity merican of taco incorperations EVERYWHERE
  • DoctorWho
  • Slippery Ducks
  • ALPACAA
  • Nyan Cat
  • The M.r fluffy friend.
  • Minecraft PVP
  • Pecawn PIEE
  • orange
  • Jumpropes
  • Hobbits
  • Hungers Deens
  • Girfar Jiggle Stand
  • DerpDerp Day
  • being a ninja
  • Phineas and Ferb
  • one direction
  • freddy
  • Charades
  • dry ice & soap
  • Gravity Falls
  • bubble gum
  • Cookie Clicker
  • hump day
  • Smokey the Bear
  • singing
  • children
  • otters
  • Pokemon
  • creepers
  • Beagles
  • PoP music

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