For the next few weeks I'm going to share some games that fit under the "party game" heading. This week's suggestion is from the makers of Cranium and it's a favorite for our family (especially our kids).
Family Game Night #13: Whoonu
Whoonu is from the Cranium line of games. It's a great ice-breaker game or "getting to know you" type of game because game play consists of taking turns being the "Whoozit" and the Whoozit is ranking what he / she likes best from the selection of cards they're given. Each player chooses a card from their own hand that they think the Whoozit would like best. Then the Whoozit ranks these cards from least to most favorite.
After that round the role of Whoozit passes to the next person. Everyone passes their cards to the left and everyone is dealt a new card. Then you choose a card you think the new Whoozit would like best. Everyone gets one turn at being Whoozit so playing a complete round doesn't take that long. The winner is whomever has the most points (as scored by the tokens that the Whoozits use to rank their cards).
The obvious variation is to play a round of things that the players don't like.
This game inspires a lot of laughter and discussion. ("You mean you like pickles more than cotton candy? What kind of person likes pickles better than sugar?")
This game isn't suitable for non-readers, unless you play with a parent - young child team. Young children do love choosing what they like best (or don't like) and their answers may be surprising to the other players, but the headache of quietly reading the words on the cards and then helping them to remember what they are will most often mean that non-readers will have to sit this one out.
Whoonu is rather expensive on Amazon right now because Cranium has discontinued it, but keep your eyes open at yard sales and thrift stores. We've bought unopened copies for giving as gifts, plus a set to keep for in our church's game room (our church has a room set aside for play equipped with board games, card games, a ping pong table, and an air hockey table) thanks to thrift stores. (Probably our favorite resource for buying games, after the ubiquitous Amazon.)
Cranium is repackaging and marketing their line of games so a newer edition of Whoonu may be coming. We hope so!
Summary of Whoonu:
Number of Players: 3-6
Recommended Ages: 8 and up, but younger players will enjoy it too
Reading Required: Yes.
Does your family have a favorite "party game"? I'll be sharing more of our favorites in the upcoming weeks but I'd love to know your party game suggestions too.
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