Brian Homan
United States
O'Fallon
Missouri
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As mentioned in my first two reviews, I've taken it upon myself to share a few thoughts about the games we play at our house, why we love them, and what you should know about them before making a purchase. Today we're looking at a relatively new favorite in our house: For Sale
This is a two stage auction card game. During set up the property and check decks are shuffled and players receive their starting money. In the first stage, properties (valued from 1 to 30) are auctioned between all players and there are as many cards auctioned at one time as there are players. The bid starts with the start player and increases from player to player until someone decides to drop out. When a player drops out of the bidding, he pays half of his last bid and takes the lowest value property still available from the auction. This continues until there is a single player left. That player then pays his full bid and takes the remaining card. This continues for several rounds until all of the properties have been auctioned. Players must be mindful of their starting cash, as once it is gone they will not be able to bid on any further properties, but must always take the lowest value card each round until the buying phase is over.
During the second phase of the game the acquired properties are now sold. This is done by dealing out a number of check cards (equal to the number of players) to the middle of the table. These cards are numbered from $0 to $15,000 (in $1,000 increments skipping the $1,000 value) and each value occurs twice in the deck. Players select one of the property cards in their hand to sell this round, and reveal them simultaneously. The lowest value property played gets the lowest value check, followed by the next lowest property and so on until all of the checks are taken. This play continues for several more rounds until all of the properties are sold and all of the checks are taken. Players then tally up the values of all of their checks and add the value of any starting money they have left to obtain their final score for the game. The player with the highest score (most money) wins the game.
So what's so great about this game?
 It plays with up to six players. This is a rare quality in many family games, making it ideal for some larger families.
It's fast! Six players can rock out a play in about a half hour, leaving plenty of time to set it up and play it again. 
It's simple to learn. All of my girls caught on right away and had no difficulty teaching it to others.
It's addictive. The amount of game you get for the amount of time invested is great and it's interesting enough to play several times in a row.
It's accessible to all. Boys and girls alike enjoy this game, as well as their parents.
It's perfect for family gatherings or social time with friends. This game doesn't require a great deal of thought, so you can play it and still carry on a conversation.
The two stages of play make for an unusually fun playing experience. This game is probably not like any other that your family has played before. It requires you to be strategic in your bidding in the first round and your card selection in the second. It's a great way to teach two basic forms of strategy to your kids. It is also a good introduction to the investing principle of buy low/sell high.
So what's not so great about this game?
 The price. Parents who are not used to paying more than $5-$10 for a glorified card game may find the $24.99 retail price a bit high. It can be had for cheaper from some online game stores, but when you factor in the cost of shipping, there's not much difference. Still, there's enough fun here to make the purchase well worth it.
Being played out. This is an excellent game, but it is still a simple one. Frequent repeated plays may tarnish your view of this game and sour you on playing it. It is perfect to play in a rotation of other family games, though. Mixing it in with other well loved games will help maintain its freshness.
Final Opinion: For Sale is an excellent game that helps kids understand what is a good investment and what isn't. My kids don't even think about what they're learning, then just enjoy playing, and that's fine with me. My oldest two were introduced to this game at a local game day and they immediately wanted me to get a copy. I got one a couple weeks ago (Thanks secret santa!) and we've played it several times since. My family rates this one an 8, and I can see this being requested often for some time to come. It's a fantastic game that I can't recommend highly enough. You really should think about getting a copy!
As always, feel free to comment. Your input only helps me get better at writing meaningful reviews. Thanks for looking!
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Jason Meyers
United States
Illinois
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Succinct review that includes the important info. Nice format. Well done. Maybe a quote or two from your girls about what they like and/or don't like about the game would add flavor?
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'The Completist'
United States
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Nice review. We do find that the game can get "played out" during a gaming night but still feels fresh the next time it comes to the table.
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Brian Homan
United States
O'Fallon
Missouri
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Spielemitkinder wrote: Succinct review that includes the important info. Nice format. Well done. Maybe a quote or two from your girls about what they like and/or don't like about the game would add flavor?
Thanks for the input! I'll try to incorporate more of their specific comments in future reviews.
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mark coomey
New Zealand
AUCKLAND
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bmhoman1 wrote: Frequent repeated plays may tarnish your view of this game and sour you on playing it.
I have played this game a lot. But at the same time it is only played as a filler either at the start or the end of the night, so it's usually one game. But it's very quick to play and hasn't tarnished yet.
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Brian Homan
United States
O'Fallon
Missouri
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A geeklist has now been created for this series. You can find it here.
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Ira Kalina
United States
Deerfield
Illinois
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Just picked this up. How old was your youngest when you first played it and did she pick it up pretty quickly?
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Brian Homan
United States
O'Fallon
Missouri
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Kalii wrote: Just picked this up. How old was your youngest when you first played it and did she pick it up pretty quickly?
My youngest was seven when she first played it (we just got it a month ago), and she picked it up pretty quickly. She doesn't completely get what a good value is yet, but that's part of what this game will teach her. Abby does know not to pay a lot for low cards, and to be willing to pay more for high cards. She enjoys this game quite a bit, but she is currently requesting another game a bit more right now. If your kids are 6+, then they will probably be ready to learn what For Sale can teach them, and it won't be a frustrating experience for them.
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Posted Wed Dec 7, 2011 6:44 am
