Jeffrey Campbell - December 2020

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Snowed In for Christmas? It’s Board Game Time! 3 New Games to Entertain You Through the Holidays

“Oh, the weather outside is frightful, but the games are so delightful …”

Those might not be the exact lyrics from the famous Christmas carol, but it’s true that decks of cards and various board games get many families through the holiday season. You can only rewatch “It’s a Wonderful Life” and “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation” so many times before the jokes grow stale. While new movie releases can be fun, many have been stalled this year because of the pandemic. Luckily, board games are still coming out on schedule. If you’re on the hunt for alternatives to Monopoly, Clue, and Scrabble, check out these fresh 2020 games, which all come recommended by the experts at Thrillist. 1. THE ALPHA: A NATURE LOVER’S DREAM GAME If your childhood dream was joining a wolf pack like Mowgli in “The Jungle Book,” this is the board game for you! The Alpha is a beautifully illustrated strategic game where players act as pack leaders and compete with other players to acquire territory and snag the best food. Gameplay is done in rounds that include four stages: stalk, chase, resolve, and advance. The game is rated for 3–6 players ages 10 and up. 2. HALF TRUTH: BRILLIANT MINDS MEET HERE If you’re a fan of Trivial Pursuit, you’ll love Half Truth. At its heart, it’s a trivia game, but it ups the stakes by giving players the opportunity to bet on how many correct answers they’ll get. Really though, there’s only one thing you need to know about this game, and Thrillist said it best: “It’s the brainchild of legendary Magic: The Gathering creator Richard Garfield and 74-time Jeopardy! winner Ken Jennings.” What a pedigree! Everyone 12 and over will want a seat at the table. 3. GETCREWD: A PLAYGROUND FOR MOVIE BUFFS getCrewd is a card game that comes in a retro-style film can, and that single trait speaks volumes. In this PG-13-rated game, you play a film producer in search of the perfect actor, director, and crew to make your movie happen. However, the deck will keep throwing obstacles in your way, including everything from flash floods to writers’ strikes. If you have a competitive side, you’ll love this mad scramble to the finish line.

What Christmas Trees Look Like Worldwide Whether it’s floating on the canal or pictured in lights on a mountainside, the tradition of the Christmas tree is beloved worldwide, and its reiterations might surprise you! For example, the Galeries Lafayette in Paris (not dissimilar to Macy’s in the U.S.) does a dazzling Christmas tree display in their main store. In 2019, they did an incredible upside-down Christmas tree that hung from the ceiling and had a light show every hour. In Rio de Janeiro, they have the world’s largest floating Christmas tree, which is over 85 meters tall and weighs 542 tons! It was revealed with a huge firework show and floated over the gorgeous Rodrigo de Freitas Lagoon. In Gubbio, Italy, they can see their city’s official “tree” from a hundred miles away — because it’s a massive light fixture along a mountainside. Every year, it’s switched on by a notable figure. In 2014, it was turned on by the Pope, and, last year, it was switched on from space!

With these games in your cabinet, you won’t even notice the snowbanks outside!

We hope you enjoyed discovering these international traditions as much as we did. Merry Christmas!

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