Concept reboots the whole concept of a guessing game
Guessing games have always been a rich source of group entertainment. Charades and Pictionary are approachable enough that almost anyone can play, but that doesn’t mean everyone always has fun playing. With very little structure or knowledge of how someone else thinks, it can become downright undignified. That’s exactly the result Concept tries to avoid by renewing and updating the classic guessing game. We had a blast playing the game in the latest episode of Overboard with our special guest (and colleague at Eater) Jay Saxena.
Concept‘s changes to the typical guessing game formula begin immediately. Instead of a single clue giver, two players join forces to hand out clues to everyone else. This makes the game less dependent on figuring out one person’s mindset. You can even include a third player on the team if people are having trouble guessing the prompt.
The team cannot speak once they draw their prompt. Instead, they must transfer their clues using the game board and Concept pawns. The board is full of simple iconography that represents categories like “real person” or “mythological creature,” or more conceptual ideas like “fast.”
The clue givers first place the unique “Master Draft” token on the icon that best represents their prompt. For example, if their prompt is “T-rex,” they place the pawn on the animal icon. But if their prompt is “Jurassic Park,” they’d categorize it as a movie (or book). They then elaborate their main concept using cubes of the same color to provide more specific information. So for T-rex they can add Big and Old.
If those details aren’t enough, they can add a “sub-concept” pawn. This represents something related to the main concept, but it’s not the specific thing that the team is trying to keep the players guessing. So, continuing with the T-rex prompt, the team was able to place a sub-concept pawn on Mouth and add details like Sharp/Pointy and Weapon.
Most icons on Concept‘s board are vague enough that misinterpretations are guaranteed to happen, but the game is not rigidly structured. There are no penalties for the team that deletes or changes the clues, and the rest of the players can guess as many times as they like.
Points are awarded to the team when their clue is guessed, as well as to the player who guesses correctly, but points aren’t really the point here. Concept is most entertaining when you’re trying a tough prompt – quotes and aphorisms are especially fun to figure out, as you’ll see in our episode above. If you like it, be sure to check out the rest of Overboard on our YouTube channeland subscribe for more!