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If this game has caught your attention, you’ve probably been drawn in by the appeal of a fun word game with friends. That’s understandable, word games have definitely become more popular lately. We've recently seen the rise of web-based apps like Wordle and Facebook’s Words with Friends. If you haven't played them, you've probably heard of them!
Ansagrams is a fun and intuitive competitive game, mixing general knowledge with assembling words. Let me walk you through what the game entails.
Setup
The great thing about setting up this game is that there’s not much to it. Everything comes in a small, hand-sized game box. The only things in the box are the double-sided playing cards and the rules, which are all on a single page. The only other things you’ll need are pens and paper and a stopwatch or timer app on your phone.
And that’s it! You’re all set up. Congratulations!
How It Works
Its outer box boasts that Ansagrams takes 30 minutes to play and 2 minutes to learn. Whilst this may be true for some, I’d recommend learning by doing and having the first round be a trial round.
In each round, one player plays the quiz master whilst the other players compete to win the round.
The quiz master starts by taking a card. One side has a large letter on it and the other has 5 questions and a 5-letter word at the bottom of the page. The quiz master will read out each question while the players write down the first letter of each answer. You might be able to see where this is going. The players have to use their 5 letters to spell the secret 5-letter word at the bottom of the card to win the round.
The quiz master will give them 30 seconds to figure out the word. If no one figures it out by then, there is a hint the quiz master can read to help them. If after another 30 seconds, no one can get the correct answer, no one wins the round. Once they have the answer they shout out ‘Ansagrams’ and if they are successful, they win the round and the card. If players do not succeed, they are frozen out, and if everyone gets frozen out, the card is discarded.
Play continues with a different quiz master so that everyone has a roughly equal chance to play. The end-goal is to use the cards you win to spell out a 3-letter word with your winning cards.
These are the core rules but there are a few more that allow for more tactical play. One such rule is that you can never have more than 3 cards at one time. This means if you get a 4th card, you must discard 1 of your cards to bring you back down to 3. Any cards that are discarded, or cards that contestants fail to win, end up in ‘the pot’. If you win a card and decide that you’d prefer one in the pot you can swap the card you've won with one in the pot.
My Thoughts
First thing I’ll say about playing this game is that it’s easy to set up. The cards have a simple but evocative art style and all the different features are laid out clearly. The design’s simple, but that seems to be just what’s needed for a game like this. After a quick read of the rules and maybe a practice round, you should be good to go.
With over 100 cards, 500 questions and many letter combinations, this game has a lot of longevity. I could see myself playing it time and time again and still enjoying it. It’s difficult to say how long this novel formula will last when compared to other more complex games. Whilst there are many cards you can play through before you see the same one again, the game lacks the almost infinite randomness that other word games like Scrabble and Bananagrams have.
Answering the quiz questions and figuring out the 5-letter answer is satisfying on its own. But then, using your prize cards to spell a 3-letter word before the other players makes for a compelling long game. Sometimes games can be over pretty quick if a player lucks out and gets 3 letter cards that spell a word within a few rounds. The game becomes a lot more interesting when the letters refuse to form actual words. This means you have to make use of the pot and sabotage others who look like they're getting close to their game-winning word.
Summing Up
Ansagrams is a simple game at heart, making it user-friendly for seasoned gamers and new players alike. It has the satisfaction of a good brain teaser whilst also allowing fun, competitive gameplay between friends. For this niche, I'd say it ticks a lot of boxes. It’s easy to learn, has a simple set up and enough layers of complexity to keep things interesting. Without playing it many more times, it's unclear how much this simple formula will keep your interest in the long term. But for the moment, it’s definitely got my interest and I’m looking forward to playing more!
