Adam Daulton
United States
Indianapolis
Indiana
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My 2,800th game played since I began logging games back in March 2006 was Candyland and so it makes it into my Every 100 Games Series. This is only the 2nd time I’ve played it in that span, but I’m sure it won’t be the last, though I personally wouldn’t mind if it was. So here is what I think about it.
Sticky Pieces
First off, the components in Candyland aren’t that great. The board is just fine, with lots of bright colors, crazy looking characters, and a really curvy road. I found though that my 2.5 year old, had some difficulty knowing which way the road was going, because of its curviness. The player’s pieces are big plastic gingerbread men, which I think serve their purpose very well. The cards are basically business cards, with colored squares. Nothing on the back of them, no art, nothing. But for $5.88 I’m not complaining.
Game Play (aka Torture)
The game play for Candyland is about as boring as it gets. You flip a card, go to that next colored square or the special icon on a pink square. That is it. So for a gamer like myself, who likes meaningful decisions, this game is torture. However, there is a reason I bought it and there is a place in the life of daddy gamers for Candyland.
What it Does
Candyland does a couple things very well, which will help your young kids grow into the gamers you hope them to be. First, it teaches them turns in a formatted way, unlike playing with toys, where each kids “turn” is undefined. This is going to be important later on in games, as most games do have individual player turns. Second, it teaches them how to win and to lose. Eventually, we all pray and implore, Candyland will end and there will be a winner. Teaching them to win and lose graciously will go a long way in future gaming. Of course, Candyland can teach other non-gaming related things about life like colors, being nice in general, and that the goal in life is to get into a big candy castle.
My Thoughts
So if I’m rating Candyland, it’ll likely be a 1 or 2 out of 10, that doesn’t mean it isn’t useful for what it is. A stepping stone for my daughter to play bigger and better games later on and also a good tool for me to spend time with her.
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Jay Sachs
United States
Williamstown
Massachusetts
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Speaking as a gamer father who's played too many (i.e. more than zero) games of this, definitely
lose remove the last two special character cards from the deck. This helps ensure the game reaches a conclusion "normally" (as opposed ending due to lost interest).
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Sean Shaw
United States
Georgia
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You could Reiner Knizia it (like LotR which many seem to love). Instead of one card, you get 5 cards to choose from.
Of course that's a cooperative game, so for this pvp game, instead you could also have it where you can play a card from the hand on another player...so theoretically one of those cards that take you back, you can play it on your opponent.
Then again, you play that on the 2.5 year old they might just throw a temper tantrum...
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Andy Andersen
United States
Newark
Delaware
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If my kids would get moving and provide me some grandchildren, I would be playing this.
Thanks.
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