Super Big Boggle (Game Review)

Yes, this post is coming a little late today. But better late than never, right?!

Life is busy, busy and we're running a bit ragged. But today has been a good, quiet, calm day at home. Despite the busy, we've made time for school which has included some game playing. I introduced Bookworm1 (age 6 1/2) to Super Big Boggle. Now, you regular readers must remember that I'm not a huge fan of games and I particularly dislike word games. So it should be noted that introducing my son to a word game was sacrificial.  (Yes, note the sacrifice. Thank you.) However, that said, I realized after playing it with my son that if I must play a word game it's a good idea to play it with a six year old. I'm about at that level when it comes to finding words. (Bonus for mommy? I win every time!! This makes me feel more inclined to play several rounds of Boggle in quick succession. Yes, I do like winning.)

So for all you Boggle players out there, what's great about Super Big Boggle? Well, it contains 36 letter cubes for one thing. There are two special cubes: one which contains six double-letter combinations (e.g, "th" and "qu") and a second cube which includes "blanks" which create spaces between letters, eliminating hidden word possibilities.

In all other respects, I-who-am-not-an-avid-Boggle-player assume the set-up is roughly the same.

How do you play?

First of all, you put all of the lettered cubes into the grid and dome and shake them around to "shuffle" the letters. This is a super fun activity if you are six. (Admittedly it's also fun if you are 30-something.)

Once the cubes have settled into the grid, you start the sand timer running. Each player has four minutes to find words consisting of four letters or more. When you find a word, you write it down. Players receive points for the number of letters per word and the player with the highest score wins.

Roughly explained, this is how you play the game.

There are certain particulars such as the rule that players cannot both count points towards the same word. For example. if both players find the word "Boggle" then they both must cross it off their list and no points are assigned for that word. You can also play an advanced version in which each player must look for words of only five letters or more. According to the directions you can also play the "Handicap" version wherein "less experienced players look for words of only 3 letters or more." That suggestion would have been made especially for my benefit and it also suits beginning readers and burgeoning spellers! (Guess which way we played?)

I asked Bookworm1 after we had played three times (per his request) if he much liked the game. His response?: "Yes, can we play it again?!" I took that for a yes. And because I am his mother and I love him I said yes and we played again.

Irony for me is that I have given birth to a chess player who likes word games. (My world! My world!) Heh.

Many thanks to Winning Moves for sending a copy of the above game for us to check out and share our opinion of. Our opinion is that this is a fun game. Also, that it is much more exciting for a young kid/student to feel like they are playing a game that is designed for adults rather than a cartoonish spelling game that doesn't stretch their minds very much. Children want to be challenged and Super Big Boggle offered a challenge to my youngster. Thanks for that!