Looking for a cooperative party game that can be played by just about any level of gamer? Just One, a game by Repos Production, is my absolute go to game to play when I have a variety of different types of gamers over. Be they veterans or complete non-gamers (of which there are a few in my family), this game is so easy to teach and fun to play that it's a surefire hit no matter your group.
My name is Ben Shantz. I am the general manager of GameKnight Games, and I recommend Just One to just about everyone.
The game takes just minutes to teach. One player draws a card and, without looking at the five words on it, chooses a number 1-5 and sets the card in their stand, facing outwards. Every other player then writes down a single-word clue, JUST ONE word (hence the name of the game) on their whiteboard that will (hopefully) help the active player guess that secret word on the card.
Seems easy, right? If you want the person to guess "Sherlock", the obvious clue might be "Holmes". But here's the hitch -- once everyone has written down a clue on their whiteboard but before the active player gets to see them, they have to compare them to each other, and any clues duplicated (or triplicated or even ... quadroplicated? tetraplicated?) are completely erased.
Oh no, three out of four people put "Holmes"? All three get erased, and only that fourth clue is shown to the active player. Would you guess "Sherlock" if the only clue you had was "Cumberbatch"? Maybe, but it's certainly less likely!
The wonderful elegance of the game is coming up with clues (and remember, JUST ONE word!) that is not so obvious that others will duplicate it, but also still useful in figuring out the clue. "Cumberbatch", "Pipe", "Moriarty" and "Watson" would almost certainly help you guess "Sherlock", right?
The goal is simply to get as high a score as possible, fully cooperatively. I've played this game countless times, with scads of different people, and I don't think we've ever achieved a perfect score. One day, though... one day.
Try Just One through GameKnight's rental program or buy a copy today in-store or online.
It's great. You'll love it. I sure do.
