Try Think Fun instead
597329
Arrived on time, and we liked that there were multiple games in the box. Theoretically, this would have given us at least four hours of game play.

During the first game, however, we discovered that the code reader used to see if you got the right answers sometimes said you got the right answers and sometimes the wrong, with the same keys. Sometimes you got a "wrong" buzzer when removing them, not even trying to solve a code.

The print on the items included was tiny (think magnifying glass tiny, not wow we ALL need glasses tiny). Outside knowledge was often needed to solve clues (geometry makes game night FUN?). Clues were wandering, repetitive, didn't make sense, and just plain confusing. Oh, and I did mention that it was nearly impossible to tell if you got an answer right because the code reader was unreliable, right?

My advice to the game makers: Lay off the electronics, concentrate on better puzzles, and you might be on the right track. For users, try Think Fun's games. They're GOOD!
1990295
Fun, brainless chick flick entertainment.  If that's what you're looking for then you'll be pleased.  If you're looking for a thinker here you'll be disappointed.  My daughter and I got several laughs out of it!
1499922
Choose your friends based on whether they get this kind of humor.  You'll be better off.
3876753
My friends and I are serious strategic board game players so normally silly party games don't make the cut in our circles.  You Robot is one of the few exceptions.  We love the challenge and competition of trying to communicate effectively to get our robot into the position the fastest.

It doesn't work for everyone though.  Using cards to direct parts of a person's body is not a common activity, so the participants have to be willing enough to try new things and keep adjusting their methods until they find what works.  Generally, I'd stick to pulling this game out with close friends who don't mind a bit of a laugh and are ok with occasionally looking a little silly.
4376641
The game is more complicated than I care to spend time learning right now.  I'm sure I would enjoy the game, as I love thinking games, however, I don't have the time to put inot learning right now, hence I read only a few pages and quit.
729135
Search inside yourself for what is really important in life before its too late.. Lot of hidden gags, could watch more than once and find new things to laugh at or ponder. Humanity needs to wake up soon.
1820832
You can not be a prude, conservative sheltered person for this game. Super fun with great friends or family with like dirty minds and drinking behavior. Super fun to be had by all. If not, your doing it wrong. Drink more and try again.
882725
My age can now be rounded up to 60, and I really appreciate games that help keep my mind limber and are fun to boot. Though I think the best overall is still&nbsp;<a data-hook="product-link-linked" class="a-link-normal" href="/Brain-Spa/dp/B000U83OOG/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_rvw_txt?ie=UTF8">Brain Spa</a>, I've been playing this original Jewel Quest for years. But you don't have to be ancient like me to like or be challenged by this game.

This review is for the original Jewel Quest. I've considered purchasing newer versions, but the developer has apparently included some invasive programming (according to amazon reviewers), so I've just replayed this original.

Jewel Quest is the common three-match play, timed, but it is much more interesting and requires more brainwork than the standard free games. The screens get devilishly more complicated as you continue. That is, the screens do not stay the standard square shape. Before you know it, you are trying to match three in tunnels and dead ends and around corners. You can't control the colors of the new jewels that come down, but you can, no, you MUST, maneuver the right colored jewel into the place where you need it.

As your screens get more difficult, you also run into special anti-jewels. They are like bombs, and if you mishandle them, they unmatch your squares as well as deduct points. What's fascinating is that there are times where you strategically have to use these bombs.

You are given points for your three-matches, extra points for four-matches, etc. The faster you complete each puzzle (by making at least one match on every square), the more bonus points you're given. And you are told if you surpassed  any previous scores at the end of each puzzle.

If I could make one change to the game, it would be more complete score-keeping. I'd like to see how I measured up with each other player on each game and on each chapter. Each time you start the game, give yourself a new name, and you can tell if you're getting better overall:  James, James2, James3, etc.

Recommended game. a caveat, though. If you have carpel tunnel or arthritis, this could be a difficult game to play for a long period of time, because you are constantly pressing the right mouse button. I've finished it, uninstalled it, waited a couple months, reinstalled and played again, many times. Installation time is less than a minute. I play on a PC XP with no problem. Once loaded, you don't have to insert the disc to play.

Happy Reader
4567811
Good fun and entertainment.  If you are looking to have your intellect stimulated, watch something by carl sagan.  this is just for fun.
3850722
This game is very fun to play with family and friends and very rewarding when you actually guess the phrase.  You get a little thrill when you figure it out!  It is really addictive!

The game is also very good for training the brain.  It involves decoupling sounds from their normal meaning and then brainstorming another meaning that makes sense.  This is pretty much how people think up puns and jokes involving wordplay.  If you are good at this game, you are likely good at coming up with puns.
142204
I agree that more monkeys lend to more options.  It is hard to explore concepts with few "right" responses.  I felt the toy does not live up to its potential and I am disappointed. As a college instructor of learning development, this is not a toy I would suggest due to its limitations even though it has many attractive qualities.
748768
I bought this book in hopes of bringing some new, fun activities to my classroom, but I was pretty disappointed. I am considering returning it. Many of the games are simple retreads of others in the book, eg. "What Can You Do With a Ball of Yarn," "What Can You Do With a Toothbrush," "What Can You Do With a Pencil," "What Can You Do With a Paperclip" etc. One game entitled "What Can You Do With...?" would suffice. There are several others that have the same directions with different topics. Other games encourage children to pick on physical traits of passersby and judge them by those traits. (Chins, hands, noses) The caveat at the end of the instructions, "Make sure you do not point or laugh in a way that could hurt anyone's feelings" is useless. The point of the game is to amuse yourself and your playmates by looking at passing strangers. But don't laugh.
That said, there are a couple of games that should be fun (hence two stars and not one,) but really nothing that one couldn't find in an easy Google search. I would recommend saving your money and using the tool you already have in front of you.
538223
1. Pick a trendy mental function: decision making, memory, addiction, etc.
2. Collect a few juicy scientific experiments on the subjects
3. Sprinkle with as many pop anecdotes as possible - Sports, Television, Finance and the occasional disaster are the most palatable. Don't worry if they are not related as long as they are entertaining
4. Crush a few philosophers - Descartes and Plato make for the best effect.
5. Layer brain transmitters (Dopamine oblige) and brain areas (the dorsolateral prefontal cortex or DLPFC is particularly impressive) to give some substance
6. And don't forget to top with some evolutionary psychology icing

Et Voila! The reader is now full and you haven't even used a single ingredient of your own...
3026057
This game looked cute; and with the,3-D like the ride, could be fun.  Wrong!  We got it for Christmas, sat down and played it for an hour on new years eve with the children (8 and 5 years) after the first two games they quit.  My wife and I tried it for an hour or so, then we gave up with boredom.  Even at this price. Game is not as fun as the characters and idea.
2847807
This game is very poorly thought out and not that much fun.

First, the rules are written rather poorly, and are hard to understand.

Second, the game's basic premise is flawed.  The intention of the game is that you get successive clues that add up to a complete picture.  For example, your clues might be "mine are red", "mine are green", and "mine are tasty", from which one might guess that "apples" are the answer.  In reality, here's what happens:  you'll get clues such as "mine is blonde", "mine has glasses", and "mine is nice", and from that you're supposed to somehow guess "dentist".  This happens a good portion of the time, but not always, resulting in wildly imbalanced game play.

Thirdly, it just doesn't end up being *fun* like other party games.  Everyone in my family has a closet full of games such as this, and we play frequently.  Most games end up being a lot of fun.  This one just never picks up.  Most board games offer either faced-paced excitement (25 Words or Less, Buzzword);  high competitiveness (Scattergories, Wise and Otherwise, Balderdash);  or entertaining creativeness (Apples to Apples).  This offers none of these.  This game is slow, unbalanced, and dull.  I can't recommend it.
2870898
Good title, but the fun ends there. if you are stuck in a car on a six hour drive, and you need to entertain yourself and your husband who is driving, I guess this book would be better than a stiff poke in the eye, but after the first chapter it goes downhill quickly. I kept looking for something to make me laugh (as promised by the reviewer at the book store). I guess my mind is not as twisted as I thought. And, I don't think I'm a prude.

Chelsea's view of the situation works as a 12 year old, and I have to admit the first chapter was kind of funny...but, Chelsea in subsequent chapters, as a 23 (and up) year old, didn't work, it quite frankly sucked.  Sorry I paid full price and bought it for a friend for a  birthday present, (eeek, is that like re-gifting) unfortunately, now I have to look for another gift for my friend. The book was disappointing. So I guess I'll have a Vodka on the rocks, and toss the book in the garbage.
1112517
Puzzles that are just a tad toy-like are, understandably, our favorite. They give us something to play with, while they, in turn, play with us - driving us to, for example, distraction.

This toy-like kind of puzzle is the veritable mtier of a company called "ThinkFun," and Turnstile is one of their newest contributions to mental fitness - the theory being that what doesn't make you crazy, makes you smarter.

The puzzle board contains nine circular depressions which accommodate up to nine different hour-glass-shaped pieces. Four of these pieces are grey. The rest are each a different color. There are four posts separating the holes. There are also nine barriers of 5 different shapes that fit snugly on the posts. Once placed on a post, these barriers can be turned clockwise, or counter-, however the rules specify that they can only be moved when pushed by an adjacent piece - very much as if it were pushing a revolving door, or, more appropriately (and hence the name of the game) a turnstile. And herein lies the toyetic joys of the puzzle. Pushing those turnstiles around, figuring out which can in fact turn and which is locked into position by an adjacent turnstile or piece, is oddly fun, and often deeply satisfying.

A deck of 40 cards provides 40 different puzzles. The object of each is to get each piece of a different color to its appropriate corner (there are four different corners, each with a color that corresponds to one of the pieces). Depending on which turnstiles are used, and their placement, and how many grey pieces are on the board, solving  a puzzle can require increasingly more moves, and become in like manner increasingly more difficult. A solution is on the back of each card, but there is nothing that says you have to follow that solution precisely. There is apparently no penalty for taking more moves than you absolutely have to. And hence there is an implied permission to explore, push things around, see what happens, and, eventually, with enough patience, discover that you have, in fact, solved the thing. All of which makes playing with the puzzle that much more inviting, and fun.

The board, pieces and deck cards can all be stored in a handy cloth bag, upon which is printed an equally handy inventory of all the various of pieces and turnstiles. Designed by Steve Hayton, Turnstiles is another invitation to major fun.