Today we played Mysterium. The hardest part about it was trying to decipher the message from the ghost in the form of “dreams” which were just abstract pictures that were supposed to relate to your next move. I was the ghost at one point also so it was hard for me when I had a bad hand dealt to me and had to guide my people. The ties that it has to leadership are that you must all work together towards the common goal of winning and the ghost has the most leadership by guiding people with the best clues without being able to say anything. We actually didn’t end up winning the two times we played, but we got closer the second time when I was the ghost. I think that my friend Montana would enjoy playing it because she loves art and analyzing masterpieces. She would’ve taken it to a whole new level if the ghost handed her a dream card.

Today in class we played Survive. The hardest part about it was being mean to the other people playing in order for me to win, for example, putting a shark or sea serpent on a spot that other players occupied. The ties that it had to leadership was going after the players who had the most surviving people and trying to take them down which involved some plotting with other players. I think my housemate, Meredith, would enjoy this game because she loves the ocean and exploring and would find it amusing trying to save her people and bring them to shore.

This week we played “Ladies and Gentlemen.” The hardest part about it was how completely random everything was. For example, if you were a lady and you happened to pick the same place to shop at as another lady, this would hurt your chances of picking better items. Also there was the factor of whether or not your gentlemen picked a good number. The only traits I could really think that would relate to leadership was being a gentlemen and plotting to get the best contract before other people, thereby leading by example? I don’t know, honestly, I really did NOT like this game and wouldn’t recommend it to anyone. But if I had to recommend it to someone, it would be my dad because he does stocks.

We played Linkee in class before spring break. The hardest part about it was how quickly you had to think to figure out the pattern in order to shout out “Linkee” before the other team. The ties that it has to leadership are that if you know the answer, you grab the paper and write it down because other people might not know. Also, if you know the answer, your group has to trust your knowledge and you can declare your answer with confidence. My roommate Megan would like this game because she’s very quick witted and likes those kinds of games.

In class we played Ultimate Werewolf. The hardest part about it was when I was the wolf cub and I had to act like I wasn’t guilty, but I ended up winning the whole round! I guess my poker face is pretty good, even though I was freaking out inside. It ties in with leadership because you have to work together and interrogate people. If you are a confident leader, people will follow you and vote for the same person to be hung as you. I think that my roommate Meg would like playing this game because she’s very good at acting and would love to role play like this.

This week we played Captain Sonar, which is basically a cooler version of battleship involving other people. It wasn’t that hard to play so it is hard for me to pinpoint the hardest part about it. Maybe the hardest part was being the radar control person who had to listen for the other team’s moves and try to identify where they are on the map, because it requires attentiveness. The ties it had to leadership were definitely in the communication branch of it. You had to keep your teammates aware of possible explosions, where the other team is, and when you are moving your ship. Everyone has to be on the same page and god leadership requires good communication. I think my friend Megan would enjoy it because she’s in the Navy.

Today we played Pathfinder. The hardest part about it was actually understanding what was going on and staying engaged. Honestly I really didn’t like this game, it wasn’t fun. The ties that it has to leadership were that we had to work together in order to defeat the villain, and when one person didn’t succeed in killing a henchman or the villain, others had to step up and use teamwork and use their strengths in order to succeed. I didn’t like this game so I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone but if I had to, maybe I’d tell my freshman year roommate, Tracey, about it because maybe she’d like it.

Today in class it was free play, so my table chose to play “Say Anything.” The hardest part about it was because I didn’t know some of the people at the table as well as they knew each other, so there were certain answers that were inside jokes which won and I didn’t get points for my answer. The ties it has to leadership is that it brings various people together and they learn new things about one another, which creates a more cohesive group. I think that my housemate, Kayla, would enjoy this game because we know each other pretty well and she would be able to think of answers that I would find funny and would choose for points.

The game we played was betrayal at house on the hill. The hardest part about it was when the haunt started because things started getting very complicated. Our haunt was the one where everyone had evil twins and it caused quite a bit of confusion with every move. The ties that this one had to leadership was the ability to understand the instructions and remember how to go about doing things. I was a leader when reminding people how many dice they had to roll or when they could move places. This game was a little more complex and I think that my assistant coach would enjoy playing it because his favorite holiday is Halloween and this had a very spooky vibe to it.