Author Archives: wingan

Game of the Week Blog Reflection 5: Fiasco Week 2

In class we played Fiasco two weeks in a row. For the second week we played from the Tilt to the Aftermath. The hardest part for me was that I had never played a role-playing game before. I tend to be more shy around people I don’t know and it was hard for me to start scenes at first when I was really nervous. I purposely made my character outgoing because I felt I could hide behind that. I was pretending to be someone I wasn’t. Aside from that my group chose not to involve a lot of the more risker behaviors that could happen in Fiasco. I wouldn’t have minded to include some of those things because I know it’s just a game and I wouldn’t actually be a murderer or hard core drug addict in real life. 

In our game I had a competing lemonade stand to another player. For most of the game it seemed to revolve around the two of us. Though we made sure all characters interacted with each other and had a part. At the end I rolled the highest number and had the most positive outcome where I married an EMT and got away from my failing lemonade which was my goal. My goal was to get away from something so I got away from my lemonade. 

In fiasco I noticed it is important to have a vision for your character or really all of the characters. I think this applies to leadership because it is important for a leader to have a vision and be able to share their vision with their team. 

I think some of my guy friends who already play role-playing games would like to play this game. I am going to suggest they try it and may even join them to see if I enjoy the game more in a comfortable setting for myself. 

Overall, I do not think role-playing games are for me. I did not like the aspect of role playing in this game and the lack of rules. I am definitely more into strategic games. I did share some laughs with my group, but this is not really the game for me

Game of the Week Blog Reflection 4: Fiasco Week 1

In class we played Fiasco two weeks in a row. For the first week we played up until the tilt. The hardest part for me was that I had never played a role-playing game before. I tend to be more shy around people I don’t know and it was hard for me to start scenes at first when I was really nervous. I purposely made my character outgoing because I felt I could hide behind that. I was pretending to be someone I wasn’t. Aside from that my group chose not to involve a lot of the more risker behaviors that could happen in Fiasco. I wouldn’t have minded to include some of those things because I know it’s just a game and I wouldn’t actually be a murderer or hard core drug addict in real life. 

In our game I had a competing lemonade stand to another player. For most of the game it seemed to revolve around the two of us. Though we made sure all characters interacted with each other and had a part.  

In fiasco I noticed it is important to have a vision for your character or really all of the characters. I think this applies to leadership because it is important for a leader to have a vision and be able to share their vision with their team. 

I think some of my guy friends who already play role-playing games would like to play this game. I am going to suggest they try it and may even join them to see if I enjoy the game more in a comfortable setting for myself. 

Overall, I do not think role-playing games are for me. I did not like the aspect of role playing in this game and the lack of rules. I am definitely more into strategic games. I did share some laughs with my group, but this is not really the game for me. 

Game of the Week Blog Reflection 3: Mysterium

In this class I played Mysterium for the first time. The hardest part of the game was trying to figure out the clues. There were times throughout the game where multiple people thought their clues were pointing to the same room or object. We knew someone had to be wrong, but it was hard to justify why someone could be more right than another. Another thing that was hard at first was getting used to being able to help people. I am used to games where you don’t want to show people your cards. It was hard for me at first to remember I could collaborate with the other players. 

In terms of leadership skills, I tried to make sure everyone was able to be heard. I think including everyone at the table is important, so I tried to make sure everyone felt included and had a chance to share their thoughts. 

I think my extended family would like to play this game because we like to play games together. I also think it would be good for them because my little cousins would be able to play and understand the rules, but also since it is a cooperative game they could get help when they got frustrated. 

I really liked this game and plan to buy it! It was fun to play a game where the best strategy was to work together. It was a new type of game that I haven’t really played before, and I really enjoyed it. 

Overall, the game session was fun, but we lost. We had two players not get through before the 7th hour ended. This I think was partially because their items were very similar so there was confusion amongst the players as to which it could be. Yet, it was still a lot of fun and well worth the play. 

Game of the Week Blog Reflection 1: Ultimate Werewolf

For the first week of class, we played the game Ultimate Werewolf. It is very similar to the game Mafia which I had played before. However, in this game the werewolves kill and not mafia members. There are also many different roles in this game compared to how I have played Mafia before with just villagers, mafia, a nurse, and a police officer. In Ultimate Werewolf there are many positions, such as werewolf, villager, mason, seer, and many more. I think the game was a nice ice breaker into the course and I am looking forward to playing more games.

For me the hardest part was the large number of players and the fact that I didn’t know anyone. I have never played Mafia with that many people, so trying to play Ultimate Werewolf with that many people and positions was hard to figure out. It was also hard because I didn’t know anyone’s names, so it made it hard for me to speak up because I found it very awkward, since I am shy around people I don’t know. I was also a mason, so I couldn’t even tell anyone what I was to defend myself.

In our game I was a Mason which didn’t have any benefit to me. I couldn’t defend myself by saying what I was. After the fact it occurred to me that maybe I could have said something like I was a MIAMI student and maybe people would have caught on. However, I’m not sure if that would be cheating… When we were playing I was voted out pretty early on, much sooner than I wanted to be. However, I knew that I came to class to play, so I wanted to play. For the first 2-3 rounds I said nothing, and I was mad at myself for not trying to speak up and suggest something. I ended up accusing the wrong person and the tables turned on me, but I at least wanted to do something instead of just sit there. I liked this game because it was a challenge with all of the different roles. It was more complex than just regular Mafia. Overall, the session went well for many people having never played before. The villagers won and I was on that team, so yay us! I can’t wait until I can play it again! My former youth group loves to play Mafia at our Church lock-ins, so I definitely think they would enjoy playing this game. It is very similar to Mafia. I am excited to introduce them all to this game at our next big gathering.

I can see how leadership strategies help in this game. Being able to lead people can help you get people on your side to trust you or get them to vote for who you suspect. I think it also shows a great deal of confidence and leadership if you are willing to speak up during this game. Having the skills to talk in front of a large group of people would definitely be an advantage in this game, especially when like us it was our first time all playing together and we didn’t know each other.

I think the biggest risks I saw taken were people talking. It seemed like for the most part those who spoke up were either immediately killed or voted out. I think anyone who tried to be a leader in the game was taking a risk. My biggest and really only risk, since I was voted out early, was accusing someone of seeming nervous. I am definitely shy around people I don’t know at first. So, for me I was sitting quietly, but annoyed with myself that I was just sitting and not really playing. I didn’t want to just sit there I wanted to speak up when others weren’t and offer accusations/suggestions. I am an ambivert meaning I am outgoing in a group of introverts, but introverted around extroverts. I am extremely extroverted around my family and close friends, but not strangers. So, I knew it would take a lot to step out of my comfort zone and speak up, but I wanted to. I think how I played is very similar to my leadership. When I am not elected/appointed as a leader I will not lead a group unless no one else steps up, then I will lead.