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Puppy Love
There is a reason why these fluffy creatures are nicknamed ‘man’s best friend’. Dogs are always there for you, snuggling up with you on the sofa watching tv. Or sitting beneath you when at the dinner table hoping for some cheeky scraps to be thrown their way. They sense moods and so come close when you need them and give you distance when you don’t. And those eyes! Those big doggy eyes are irresistible. And so it is no wonder that people have wanted to express their love of their canine pals through their board games. So for Dog Appreciation Month here is a selection of games that celebrate those four legged wonders in tabletop form.
Fort: Cats And Dogs Expansion
Fort is a deck builder in which players assume the role of kids expanding their neighbourhood group of friends in order to build and play in their fort. Coming from Leder Games, the game not only gained attention for its incredible production value but Kyle Ferrin's art being the primary draw.
This expansion, much like the title suggests, introduces pets into the mix - perfect for Dog appreciation Month. The pack comes with 18 unique (and adorable) dogs which are added into the main deck with each player starting with a kennel board to go alongside their player mat. In many ways Dogs work the same as friends in the base game. They have the same suits as before and can be played to follow the leader at any point. But they can't be trashed or placed in a treehouse and can only be played on your turn if you can satisfy their play conditions. If so, then you play the dog, which nobody else can follow, and gain the rewards. Once the dog is confirmed as yours you place it on your Kennel and at the end of the game, the player with the most dogs gets seven points. Much like friends, dogs that aren't played with will go to the yard, allowing them to be recruited by another player. But be careful because if you don’t play with your poochy pal, they will wander off to an adjacent player instead. Fort is a great game and the dogs really add another layer of depth. And what is better than an hour staring at those gorgeous illustrations.
Dog Lover - Favouritefoe
I appreciate my doggo. I don’t always appreciate the things she does; chasing the ducks, eating the hens’ oats, digging up my spuds, and walking farm-fresh muddy footprints everywhere. But I appreciate the love in those gorgeous black eyes and the bear hugs she gives me when I walk into any room. As such, a game called Dog Lover (which is the follow up to Cat Lover) was going to appeal. And that’s lucky (no, not the name of my dog!), as it’s a pretty darn cute set collection card game from AEG. In it, you’re trying to feed, amuse, walk, and generally spoil your pups. You can also adopt doggies from the rescue shelter and nurture your fur babies’ special traits for pawsome points. There are doggies in a range of sizes, food types (which you need to feed your hungry point awarding pups), trait cards (which give your pups ongoing powers and point scoring pawsibilities), bones, training, walks, adoption papers, and favourite things. Each card type does something specific, and it is down to you to decide what to collect, keep, swap and/or tuck. But watch out! There’s a guard dog about! The added twist in this terrier’s tail is the way the tricks work. Each turn you are selecting cards from a 3 x 3 tableau of cards. There’s also a column of rescue pups waiting to be adopted as well as a column of Trick cards. But you can only take cards from the grid that match the shape shown on one of your Trick cards. And that Guard Dog? Well, it’s playing sentry next to one of the rows or columns and stops you picking more than one of the cards in the line it’s protecting. Dog Lover is light with a little bite – just like our Star when she’s off chasing something down the fields!
Dog Park - Rachael Duchovny
During Dog Appreciation month, why not put Wingspan away and start up a game of Dog Park instead. This game is ideal for canine lovers and is a must for anyone with furbabies, if, for no other reason than the artwork is AMAZING! Each dog card has been beautifully designed to give you a wonderful illustration of a dog as well as some basic information. For example, the type; i.e. toy, worker etc, its breed; i.e. Irish Terrier, Pug etc, and even includes a snippet of information about the dog at the bottom of the card. Each dog is featured on the backdrop of a soothing pastel colour representing its type to make them easier to identify and includes simple rules and bonuses that are easy to understand. You can clearly see what resources you need to pay to be able to walk your dog and the benefits you would get from doing so. Use the breed expert track to try to collect dogs of a certain type in your kennel, walk them for resources and reputation and bid your reputation to gain more dogs in your kennels for walkies. So, if you appreciate nice artwork, snippets of factual information and a wonderful set collection, resource management type of game then this really should be on your list to buy and play. That said, my doggies strongly believe that every month should be dog appreciation month, so we have to play with the European Expansion and it’s a race to find the King Charles Spaniel and add them to our kennel regardless of whether we need a Toy or not. Look into their eyes… they know if we’re favouring a different dog over them! They can sense the betrayal.
Pick A Dog - Max Davie
Pick a dog begins with the players presented with a grid of 30 cards, each adorably adorned with a dog, and their own starting card. These dogs vary in five different ways (big/small, light/dark, one/two arms, with/without sunglasses, and with/without popcorn). The player’s task is simple, pick up as many dogs as possible, as fast as possible! The trick is that you must pick a dog either identical to the one atop your pile, or which differs in only one respect. Thus, you may need to think quickly to see a ‘chain’ of dogs which you can take in quick succession. And I do mean quick- a round is over in no time at all.
When a player thinks they cannot pick any more cards up, they shout STOP to end the round. Players now check if they have picked up cards within the rules, and in the case of the person who stopped the round, whether they had indeed exhausted their options.
Play till you have run out of cards, at which point the person who has picked most dogs is the winner! You won’t be surprised to learn that this is a game for children, one of a genre of game where their quicker brains and sharp vision is a significant advantage. It can be stressful if a child has taken the wrong dogs, but you can usually just re-play the round. It doesn’t feel like a high stakes game! This is a staple of our school games clubs, and engaging for children aged about 5 and up. It kind of doesn’t matter how many players you have. Strictly you can go up to 5 but really, any number will have a good time. Plus you can combine it with sister game, PIck a PIg, for mega-picking fun! It won’t keep anyone entertained for very long, but for that time, it’s delightful, so what’s not to like?
Happy Dog Appreciation Month everyone, be sure to give your pooches a big cuddle!