I have a game that plays great as a team game but needs a simple mechanic for alternate play. I would like the game to accommodate 3+ players in odd numbers as well.
The game would play much like Squint in which a player tries to get any of the other players to guess something. Each player in Squint gets a 1 point chip (both the guesser and the person giving the clue). The problem with this model is that if a player is in the lead and giving clues, there isn't enough motivation for others to guess at all (if I need 1 point to win, why guess my clue?).
I need something really simple that works, but haven't come up with anything yet.... also, if it accommodates 2 players, that would be a plus.
Thanks in advance for your ideas.
kodarr - I like the idea, but I can't see slowing down the game to write things down.
Jon - I think there is potential there... I just have to word it right for the mass market. If the person in the lead starts each round and the clues are worth a mere 2 points each instead of 1 for guessers, then it might be enough.
However, it still has the potential for the clue giver to clam up in the final round and give rotten clues... after his turn, the score count would be right where it was. I would implement a -5 point penalty for getting zero clues correct, but the mass market hates penalties and limits the acceptance.
Right now I'm aiming at mass market publishers, so easy and wide acceptance has to remain.
The one thing I am toying with is chip awards that are not flat scoring devices but will determine the scoring in some other way, but if it's too difficult to grasp I may have to stick with team play. The problem is team play doesn't get everyone involved simultaneously and the two teams can't do the same thing at the same time as in some games.