November 23, 2011
Volume 4, Issue 4
Feature Article
New Game: Pyramid Shambo!
As the name suggests, Pyramid Shambo is a twist on Roshambo, aka Rock Paper Scissors. In other words, it's an RPS tournament! It's fast and easy, and we've been having Big Fun playing it. And you can play it with a big group - if you've got a Rainbow stash and a Xeno stash, you can play with TEN people!
Pyramid Shambo is perfectly suited for playing with the family around the holiday dinner table, so be sure you bring your IceDice set to those big holiday gatherings!
One of the most exciting things about this new game is the new format of its rulesheet. As part of the recent relaunch of the Looney Pyramids game system, we've developed a standardized format for rulesheets for pyramid games. Pyramid Shambo is the 17th game Andy has formatted the rules for in this way; the first 16, and soon, yet more, can all be downloaded from our revamped website.
(Speaking of which, we have an awesome new website! It's been in the works forever and we're really excited about it, so please just surf on over to the new LooneyLabs.com and check it out!)
So, the new rulesheet format is great because, like the system itself, it's the culmination of years of development. We've tried a variety of different ways to present the rules for pyramid games, from tri-fold pamphlets to booklets to actual books, but the ever-growing library of wildly-different games requires a more flexible format than any of those. So we settled on a simple, magazine-style, two-column format which be printed on standard letter-sized sheets, with each being one or more pages depending on the complexity of the game. These pages can be made available as downloadable PDF files you can read on your e-reader or print and put into a notebook.
Anyway, if you've never tried a pyramid game before, there's never been a better time to get into the system. And if you already have pyramids, check out Pyramid Shambo!
Please look for a store near you that sells our games - search by zipcode at roster.looneylabs.com. If you must buy online, please buy from us!
Don't forget to use your Coupon!!
To help you stretch your holiday shopping dollars, here is a coupon for our webstore to get $5 off any order over $35. Shop at store.looneylabs.com and use coupon: HH535XIN (expires Jan 15, 2011).
Happy Holidays!
Trivia Question
How many different games have been invented, as of this posting, for Looney Pyramids?
Scroll down to see the answer.
Ask Andy
Q: What's your favorite holiday tradition?
A: "I love the holidays and have many favorite traditions, so I can't give just one answer to this. For starters, there are those wonderful spheres of solid milk chocolate wrapped in colorful foil, like tiny ornaments. For me, the holiday season just isn't complete without them, and I'm always sad when the last of my once-a year-stash is gone. But those are just a treat, not a tradition. My favorite holiday tradition is something we started doing about 12 years ago, when Alison joined us: The Holiday Treasure Hunt.
A Holiday Treasure Hunt is a cross between a scavenger hunt and an Easter egg hunt. To create one, you need a supply of treats or small gifts, a bunch of little cards, and plenty of space. Divide the supply of treats into 10 piles. Depending on the treats you are hiding, you might want to put them into 10 baggies or otherwise wrap each location's prize. (For example, a baggie containing some of those chocolate spheres makes a great hunt prize for me.)
The hunt begins by giving the Hunter the first clue. One of the ten treats will be hidden at each location along the hunt, along with a clue to the next location. The clues should be tricky - but not painfully puzzling - and of course, the various locations should send the Hunter trotting back and forth and up and down as much as possible around the house (or whatever zone the hunt can range across).
The final treat should be particularly big or exciting, so that the hunt ends with a climax. For example, if the hunter is collecting fun-sized candy bars, the tenth treat could be a full-size version. Or maybe it's a larger, gift-wrapped item. These details depend on your situation. Also the treats don't have to be snacks; maybe the main gift is something that disassembles into many parts, so you can hide pieces of the gift along the hunt. Or maybe the big gift is something that will need a lot of batteries, and the hunter gathers batteries as they go. Be creative!
These treasure hunts are both fun to create and fun to play through, and best of all it works with groups of every size. It's a surprise you can set up for someone else; each member of a couple can set one up for the other; or a family can divide the tasks up "Secret Santa" style so that everyone in the group both sets up and receives a treasure hunt. If someone feels daunted by the task of making clues, they can partner up and collaborate with another family member to create the hunt for their person.
When running through multiple hunts at once, we like to keep the group together as each person chases down their next clue. Only when everyone has solved their fourth location can someone move on to their fifth.
Anyway, if you've never done anything like this, you might want to add a new twist to your own holiday traditions!"
Survey of the Month
Which type of our games would you like to see more of?
Take the Survey! We'll post the results in our next newsletter.
Results of Last Issue's Survey
Here's what the 153 people who responded to the last survey said:
Star Wars vs Star Trek
- 58.8% - Star Trek
- 41.2% - Star Wars
beyond those... which do you like best?
- 34.6% - Firefly
- 31.4% - Dr. Who
- 16.0% - Hitchhiker's Guide
- 9.0% - Babylon 5
- 5.8% - Battlestar Galactica
- 2.6% - 2001 Space Odyssey
- 0.6% - Lost In Space
Trivia Question Answer
At this time, the total number of games officially registered at IcehouseGames.org is 381. But that doesn't count the one YOU are trying to invent!