PinkFae Archive #35: Board Game Review: Tell Me a Story

This week's entry is another PinkFae Archive, this one being a review of the game Tell Me a Story from Escape Hatch Games, by Kirby Atwood, Cody Faulk, Brent Woodside, and Kayla Woodside. It is also an installment in the series I wrote about Gen Con 2016. This article first appeared on 1 October 2016.

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A brand new company called Escape Hatch Games had just released their first game a month or so before Gen Con. As I was wandering around the exhibit hall, I saw their booth, with the name of this first game proudly displayed on a banner behind them, and I knew I had to check it out. I stopped to ask them about it, and they did a quick one-round demo with me, and I knew I had to have it. Last week, I finally got to play a full game for the first time with three of my friends. It was epic. So now I shall review for you, my loyal readers, the wonderful game called Tell Me a Story.

You may notice that I have formalised the additional Gamer Profile ratings mentioned in my last review into my new system. So let's see what this game has for us:

Strategy: 0
Randomness: 2
Complexity: 1
Humour: Implicit, Inherent
Attractiveness: Average
Average Length of Gameplay: Varies wildly, depending on the number of players and their ability to tell stories.
Gamer Profile Ratings:
  Strategy: Low
  Conflict: Low
  Social Manipulation: Low
  Fantasy: High

An Overview of Tell Me a Story

This is a game in which players tell stories. Surprise, surprise, I know. Here's how it works: the box contains (apart from the rules) five types of cards. There are the red Conflict cards, which have a source of tension. Green cards are Settings. Blue cards have Characters, whilst purple cards are Advantages, and yellow cards are Curses. In addition, there is a single black card, labelled simply, 'Judge.' Each player starts with three each of the Character, Advantage, and Curse cards. Let's see some examples of these cards:

One player gets the Judge card. The others tell the Judge stories. The Judge decides which story he or she likes best. That player gets a point. Then the Judge card passes to the left. Repeat until one player has as many points as there are players. That player is the winner.

How the Cards Work

The Judge will draw the top Setting Card. He or she then draws three Conflict cards, and chooses one. He or she reveals these to the other players. The other players then take turns telling stories about the chosen Conflict in the revealed Setting. On his or her turn, a player chooses one Character card and one Advantage card. His or her story is about that character with that advantage in that setting with that conflict.

Other players are allowed to play Curse cards on the current player. The player must then incorporate that curse into the story. You may only play one curse card on any player, but multiple players may play curse cards on the current player.

After the current player has finished his or her story, the next player chooses a Character and an Advantage, and tells a story about that character with that advantage in the same Setting with the same Conflict.

After each player has told a story in the current Setting and Conflict, the Judge decides which he or she liked best. That player gets a point. Everyone draws back up to three Character and three Advantage cards (but not Curse cards). The Judge card passes to the left, and the new Judge draws a new setting and three new Conflicts. Game play continues in this manner. After each player has served as Judge, then you draw back up to three Curse cards.

The first player to have as many points as there are players (e.g., four points in a four-player game) is declared the winner.

More Depth about Tell Me a Story

This is one of those games in which you don't play to win. You play to hear the amazing stories that you and your friends tell. These stories can be funny, exciting, sad, or anything else. The first story I told in my game was so popular that I decided to write it up as a short story. It's called 'Wilma,' and it was based on the following cards:

• Setting: The edge of a cliff
• Conflict: You fell in love with someone, then recently found out that they are your long lost sibling
• Character: Nagging wife
• Advantage: In some circles, you are known as 'The Boss.'
• Curse: Real douchebag

You're welcome to read it, if you like.

The stories got more outrageous as the game went on. Some highlights included:

• A squire to a mediocre knight, who couldn't stop using profanity, in a creepy attic, being chased by the Dark Lord.
• A televangelist berating someone for talking through the whole movie.
• A girl who has been prophesied to be the saviour of the world travelling back in time to prevent herself from being killed as an infant.
• A cheerleader with uncontrollable flatulence at a containment camp for chronic merriment.

And some of the awesomeness came not from the stories themselves, but from how they were told. Like when I played a curse card that required a player to sing her story.

Final Thoughts on Tell Me a Story

Tell Me a Story is, like many games that I enjoy playing, best played with just the right group of players. I've tried to play storytelling games (like Gloom or Fiasco) with people who aren't very good at telling stories. Not only do these non-storytelling players not enjoy the game, but they also make it less enjoyable for me and others who are good at telling stories.

This means that I won't get to play Tell Me a Story very often, which is a shame. But with the right people, in the right setting, this game can be lightning in a bottle. We all had a ridiculous amount of fun, and one player in particular kept chanting 'This is the best game ever' throughout the evening. So if you're the kind of player who likes stories and storytelling games, Tell Me a Story is probably for you.

So that's enough for now. Don't forget to come back next week, when I talk about Zombie Orpheus Entertainment! Until then, tell more stories, and

Game on!