Sometimes a game doesn’t get your juices flowing the way you would like it to. This isn’t necessarily a fault of the game, it could be that the game just isn’t a good match for you. This is where “House Rules” come in.
It’s your game, so you can play it any way you want. Just remember that the designer had a certain game in mind and you really should try to follow their vision and play as the game was originally intended. If that isn’t making you happy, then you are free to implement any home rules to make it a more pleasurable experience. Just don’t break the game in doing so.
I remember making up rules for games when I was a kid. I thought nothing of it and assumed this was how it was done. If you don’t like a game, fix it! When we played Crazy Eights (Uno for 59 cents) we each got to make up a rule. Sometimes it was just silly like “You have to eat a bug if somebody plays the 6 of spades”, but other times it was more tactical like “Place one of your cards in an opponent’s hand whenever you play a Seven”. This was my favorite part of the game, the initial rules negotiation. It seems that creativity like this is generally discouraged nowadays, which is a real shame.
We used to have a game called Billionare. It was another monopoly knock-off with a few simple economic mechanisms added on. It was boring, but it did have casinos, so we just kept making up rules to make the casinos more fun. We ended up with a great game where the main focus was gambling and running the casinos. I wish we would have written down all those rules. There are many better games like this now but there weren’t 35 years ago when we were playing Billionare.
I have just recently discovered the vast world of modern board-games in the last couple of years. The selection of games is amazing, and you’re almost guaranteed to find something you really like. However, I still can’t resist tweaking a game to add a little spice. I guess that I’m just funny that way.
The following are some house rules that you might find fun. I would love to hear about any house rules that you have implemented.
Chicago Express – Loan Chips
The economy of Chicago Express is very tight and unforgiving, especially in the first few rounds. A couple mistakes in the beginning can easily lead to a lost game. I decided to add the ability to borrow money with” Loan Chips”. This gives players a little more flexibility in the beginning, but can be punishing if you don’t manage your debt properly. Each chip is worth $25.00. You can pay it off any time for $30.00. Each dividend round, if you decide to keep the chip, you have to pay $5.00 per chip you possess. When the game ends, you subtract $30.00 for each chip you still have, from your total. I will always prefer to play this game with the Loan Chips.
Monopolitis.
Got an old monopoly game around collecting dust? I came up with a rule set utilizing the existing components. I haven’t tried it yet but it might be fun. Let me know if you tried it and how it went.
Feel free to comment with any of your own house rules.
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