David Sinur
United States
South Easton
United States
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Coming from a fairly large family of seven, board gaming was an integral part of our growing up and the Game of Life is one of those classic games I played and loved as a child. Whenever the games were brought out, it was always on the top of my list. The cars and distinct people pegs, that unmistakable sound of the spinner turning, and all of the cool spaces to land on were just a few of the draws that I latched on to. Can that wonder hold up against an older, less forgiving critic?
The Game
I won't go into too much detail as I am pretty sure most everyone knows how the Game of Life is played. In short, the game takes the player from approximately being college aged to retirement, going through life events such as choosing a career, getting married, buying a house and having children. Between the major life happenings, the player can also experience plenty of other events that span the winding game track: some that could qualify as midlife crisis, like buying a beach house or plastic surgery, and other, smaller occurrences such as receiving stock, upgrading a computer, etc. The game ends when all players retire and the person with the most money is declared the winner.
I do want to note that the version that I am basing this review on is not the same version that I used to play as a child. This review will be done on 2002 version using the 10/02 rev.2 rule set and I can only guess at what version I used to play. It was during the 1980's when I was first introduced, so I am assuming that I played that decades version. I do remember driving Chrysler-esque minivans along the board and according to the Wikipedia entry on The Checkered Game of Life, the minivans were introduced in the 1980s reinforcing my theory.
Game Pieces
It's not really fair for me to comment about the quality of the game pieces in this review as my "gently used" copy came from a local Savers thrift store at a whopping cost of $3.99. I will say, however, that the spinner has not changed much with this version. If you spin it incorrectly it will jam up and not spin, which is exactly as I remember it. As much as I love the distinguishing uniqueness of the spinner, no one should have to battle against a game to get it to function correctly. I also wish Hasbro would have included additional Bank Loan notes. Between the 100,000 in college loans and having to buy a house only a few spins later, my wife and I managed to eat up nearly all the notes in most of the games we played. If there were more players, we would have had to come up with a solution. It's hard to say if the problem was due to missing pieces when I purchased the game or if it was shipped with what I had, but it looked like the game was only played once before I bought it as only one blue and one pink people pegs had been detached from their plastic housing.
Game Play
For such a complex looking board, Game of Life is one of easiest board games to understand and play. Spin the Spinner, move number of spaces indicated, and then perform action indicated on the space landed upon. Every turn is that or a variation of that, whether it be stopping for a required Stop space, paying out Pay Days that are passed regardless of stopping on them or not, and landing on an optional-to-play blue space.
There are some differences in this version compared to the 1980s version. One is that stocks certificates are purchasable and the player earns money for each time the Spinner lands on the number of the stock. Gone are the times of buying chances of hitting it big on the betting board, which makes me sad. I enjoyed spinning for the winnings Another variation is that no spins are made for money at marriage and adding children, instead you get Life Tiles (discussed below); how dull. I seemed to remember giving money to the person who ended up getting married first, which added some value to being in the lead. Also in this version kids are absolutely worthless. There is one, maybe two, spaces on the board where you owe money based off the amount of children you have, but other than that, they just add color to your car. And those Life Tiles, what are those about? They only make the game even more random. I could understand if there were more interactions with them throughout the game, like what happens with the Athlete career, but there aren't. There are a few other minor variations, selling your house (for potential profit) and purchasing a new one, night school, and changes in available insurances, but they are fairly insignificant to the game.
Final Thoughts
Whether it be the changes in the rules or just the fact that I am not a kid anymore, but the Game of Life just doesn't hold on to the appeal that it used to have for me. I still find the game fun, but I don't have that wonder of experiencing the story of the game that I used to. My mind is now more focused on critically examining the mechanics of the game and it doesn't hold up as it is completely luck based. It's all in the draw of your career/salary cards, the number that turns up on the spinner, and the value of the Life Tiles at the end of the game. For players who have fond memories of older versions, I would not suggest this version over what you are used to; however, if you have not had the chance to experience this game or want to play it with your children, then I say go for it. Your children will still enjoy this game with the excitement of experiencing all the cool events and will be fun for you as well, just not nearly as much as when you were experiencing it as a child. I give it a 2.5 out of 5.   
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Doobermite
United States
Chester County
Pennsylvania
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The newest versions of Life are awful!
All those rule changes ruin the game. Find a copy from the 70's or 80's. It has all the gambling and fun that make that game a special "spin and move" experience. Even though there are not many decisions it still holds up. It leads you along the path of life and the fun is in finding out where you'll end up along the way. We still play this once in a while when we need a break from all the "Euro-ness."
The last game we played I was obviously going to lose so I put everything I owned on one number and spun the wheel. Very exciting when my number came up, giving me the win! That's the kind of game it is, fun and unpredictable in a predictable sort of way.
Find an older copy and give it another try.
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Benjamin Maggi
United States
Clifton Park
New York
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The game has changed over time, but as has been recommended finding an older copy is easy thanks to Ebay and such. There are also many variations (Indiana Jones, Simpsons, Family Guy, etc.) and each introduces its own rules and quirks. Why? I have no idea, but some work and some don't.
A real classic, and one which is fun for the first few times and then it starts to wane. I would suggest just purchasing a D10 die and throwing it in the box... it will make it a lot easier and also avoid arguments like "Hey, you didn't spin it hard enough because you wanted it to stop on ____."
Thanks for the review.
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Bill Eldard
United States
Burke
Virginia
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Thanks for the review, David.
I was a kid in the '60s when The Game of Life was first published. We were already into boardgames like Monopoly, Careers, Clue, and Sorry at that time, and the TV advertisements of the 3-D gameboard were an immediate hit with us (Publishers like Milton Bradley, Ideal, and Mattel flooded the airwaves with ads back then -- Lie Detector, Stratego, Mouse Trap, Operation, Aggravation, and Mystery Date were just a few of the games I still remember the TV ads for). We played dozens and dozens of times.
Unfortunately, even that earliest edition of Life doesn't hold up well against eurogames today. While the theme is good, there are few or no meaningful choices. The game virtually plays itself.
That being said, it is a good game to introduce children to the hobby, though I think Clue and Sorry are better.
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David Sinur
United States
South Easton
United States
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Thanks for taking the time to read and comment on the review, I always appreciate peer feedback. I even remember a lot of commercials in the 80s for a lot of those games you listed Bill and I agree with your sentiments about the theme and mechanics of Life. It is good for kids but it just doesn't have any substance to it.
Games like Clue and Sorry at least teach kids choices and deduction, where Life doesn't offer much other than basic math from the money aspect, but a parent will typically run the bank during games.
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Doobermite
United States
Chester County
Pennsylvania
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Quote: Unfortunately, even that earliest edition of Life doesn't hold up well against eurogames today.
I agree that Life doesn't have the strategy and depth of Eurogames, but that isn't the point. Sometimes we get tired of the endless worker placement, cube pushing, money management, victory point strategies found in a majority of today's Eurogames. I'm a big fan of Eurogames but even I need a break sometimes.
"Life" offers a break from that. It's all about the ride. It's like playing some solitaire games with cards. The game is already predetermined but the fun is in the playing and in the hopes of winning.
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Lindy Castro
United States
Wyoming
Michigan
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[q="dbmite"]
Quote:
"Life" offers a break from that. It's all about the ride. It's like playing some solitaire games with cards. The game is already predetermined but the fun is in the playing and in the hopes of winning.
Well said Doobermite. My kids(8&10) got this game from my mother-in-law for Christmas. I had obly vague recollections of this as a kid of the 80's. We finally broke it out and the whole family had a ball with it. It was about the ride, whenever some would happen like buying a yaht, or goin on a vacation I would ask for mor details. Where did you go? How big is the yaht? They were getting more creative with their answers by the end, leading to a few laughs. My youngest was the banker and she was quite happy not going to school, being a hairdresser the whole game. My oldest went to college, became a lawyer only to get fired. He became a mechanic which did lead to some choked back tears of dissapointment but he recomposed himself and carried on with his game of life.
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criticalgamerds wrote:
I will say, however, that the spinner has not changed much with this version. If you spin it incorrectly it will jam up and not spin, which is exactly as I remember it. As much as I love the distinguishing uniqueness of the spinner, no one should have to battle against a game to get it to function correctly.
I quite like the spinner
It should be pointed out that in some versions they make a feature of the spinner's jamming by penalising the player who jams it. In the Simpsons edition which I have, if a player is the Mechanic (or Engineer or something similar) they receive money from the player who jammed it to go and fix the wheel.
Additionally, dice can hit obstructions, meaning that they land inconclusively.
In response to one of the other comments here, part of the beauty of the spinner is that you can try to adjust the force of your spin as this adds an element of skill (albeit not much of one). You just have to initiate a ground rule that at least one full spin should occur.
There are also strategic elements to the game, with decisions such as when to pay off debts and buy insurance and whether or not to take the slower-starting, but potentially more rewarding, education route. So, while luck is predominant, it is not the only factor affecting the outcome.
I would recommend the Twists and Turns Edition as being a complete game-changer (substantially different board, electronic scorer that is more than just a novelty, spouse and children that do affect earnings, expenditure and life experience points, cars that make you move more quickly but either lose value and die or then start to accrue value as they become classic).
I don't think we should be comparing Game of Life with the Eurogames, because it is just a different sort of game.
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