Bananagrams: a review
I originally wrote this entry to post on Amy Poehler's website for girls, Smart Girls At The Party. It's a social network designed for young girls, so I wanted to write something without sounding like a creeper. I figured a game review is a safe bet. Everyone likes games - adults and children.
Besides, I'm a fan of Amy Poehler. Not only is she funny, which is undeniable, but encouraging to young girls. Not only through this website, but in the characters she writes for herself (Leslie Knope, Bessie Higgombottom...). Anyway.
So, yeah! Here's my Bananagrams review!
I'm a terrible Scrabble player, but I'll admit, I love to play anyway. Just because I have a 1 out of 5 win record doesn't mean I should quit playing. Board games are about having fun, not about winning or losing! (At least, I can say that... since I am a loser)
Then, I discovered this game called Bananagrams! It comes in this cute little banana-shaped pouch, and looks a lot like scrabble, but it's unique because I have the option of playing solitaire if I feel like it. My friends and I call it "free-style Scrabble" because even when you play with friends, you're playing on your own. I know that sounds lame and anti-social, but you'd be surprised. Whenever I take the game out to play a solitaire game, several friends gather around and want to join in too. (Scrabble has a 4 player limit, but Bananagrams has a six player limit - UNLESS you have the party version of the game, which accommodates More players!) All the same, I consider this game perfect for people who aren't very competitive, but like to be challenged, and love crossword puzzles.
The original game is $14 usually, and there are a lot of other games in the series. Scrabble even made it's own version called "Scrabble Apple" which comes in an apple pouch. There's a Spanish version of Bananagrams, Pairs in Pears, and another apple word game, Appletters. I haven't played any of the other ones because they seemed too challenging for me, but apparently Bananagrams was popular enough to start it's own little cute fruit word game following. Maybe if I play often enough I'll get good enough to move on to the other games.
(If you want the link it, here you go: my ''smart girls at the party'' blog