Who are the friends that show up to your game night? We’ve noticed among different gaming groups we play with that there are certain archetypes that show up at game night. Here’s a few of them.
The one that has all the games – Also, usually known as the host. You gather at his place to play because he doesn’t want to lug around hundreds of pounds of games. He’s probably the most broke from spending all his money on table top games, so you’ll pitch in extra for pizza. He can also tell you which games he’s currently backing on Kickstarter, so you’ll have an idea of what you’ll play in a few months
The social one – He spends most of your turn telling raunchy jokes. He likes playing games, but he’s really just there for the atmosphere. He doesn’t mind if he’s losing and is surprised when he wins. Either way, he’s having a great time.
The one that is always on his phone – He can’t remember when his turn comes around because he’s too busy on social media. When it is his turn, you got to get him up to speed on what’s happened since his last turn. When his phone battery dies, he’s a bit more social, but everyone is already annoyed with him.
The one that doesn’t understand the rules of the game – He likes playing games, but needs to play several times through to really understand the rules. He always has lots of questions, the same questions, on his turn. When he breaks a rule or forgets to do something, you just let it go. He’ll catch on soon. He’s probably the newest to your game night, so you don’t want to scare him off.
The one that takes forever to take their turn – Sometimes there are just way too many decisions and too many variables. No matter the play made, he’s kicking himself later for a move he should have made instead.
The one that is a stickler for the rules – He reads and prepares. If it’s a new game, he’s teaching it to everyone. When a rule is disputable, he can quickly find clarification in the rule book because he’s memorized all of it. For further clarification, he’s the first to check the message boards online. In his presence, everything must be done in the correct. No house-ruling.
The one that prefers to be the traitor – This is your friend that always volunteers to play the bio-terrorist in Pandemic. Even if he’s not the traitor in Dead of Winter, he still acts like he is. He’s often the most competitive. Quite frankly, he’s the asshole of your group of friends. Even if he isn’t the traitor, he’ll sabotage the whole game because if he can’t win alone, no one can. Thankfully, he doesn’t come very often.
The critic – He likes evaluating the mechanics of the game. He looks at the pros and cons and puts the game on a rating scale. He likes playing the same game over and over so he can gain different perspectives and see how each game plays out in different scenarios. You know, for his blog or something
The one that doesn’t like any of the games you pick – He complains about the games. Why did you even invite him anyway?
So, which one are you? Am I missing any?
the geek couple 