A friend of mine was over recently and asked if I could recommend a card game that’s “like UNO, but not UNO, but is easy for non-game people to get, like UNO — oh and it also has to be fun for two players.”  Huh.  So we headed up to my hallway of games and I started pulling products out for him to look at.  He really wanted something simple, fun and that takes 2 seconds to learn.  Something “familiar.”
The game that really resounded with him was Ratuki by USAOPOLY.  …

There is just something about the look of Blue Orange games that I love.  Previously I reviewed Gobblet Gobblers (see here) and I got quite a bit of good feedback on that one.  It’s cute, fun to play and easy to learn – three things that they were able to successfully replicate in their game ChickyBoom!  Though unlike Gobblet Gobblers, ChickyBoom is a game is really a kid’s game – not an all-ages game in kid’s clothing.  But for the children in your life this one is going to be …

I think that games should look fun to play.  It’s much easier to convince a newbie to play a game if looks fun – granted it should also be fun, but I think that almost goes without saying.
Today’s game review is on Gobblet Gobblers.  It’s the colorful, cute version of the abstract strategy game Gobblet which has been a success for Blue Orange games for a couple of years now.  Invented by Blue Orange’s founder Thierry Denoual, the game is easy to play and learn but takes a bit of …

For those of you who don’t know, I’ve got a degree in industrial design and ending up in the game industry was somewhat a fluke.  I needed a job, they were the only ones hiring after 9/11 so voilà -  “toy/game inventor Kim.”
Now if you don’t know what an industrial designer is, consider what a graphic designer does for 2D designs; industrial designers do that for 3D products like cars, electronics, household goods, furniture and the list goes on.  Essentially it means that I have a weakness for beautifully designed …

I know LOTS of people shy away from drawing games because often they think their drawings would be identical to that of a preschooler’s if instead of a marker they were using a bright green crayon.  I’ll admit it – I’m in that group.  I think I can hold my own pretty well but I avoid participating in any drawing contests if they include any of my designer friends.  I’m just not that great of an artist when it comes to sketching.
So then why would I give a good review …