Cranium Wow Game

When we bought this game, the big question we wanted answered was how different was it from the original? We put off buying it, then when we found it on an inexpensive sale, we figured it was worth the risk.This game will be appreciated by anyone who enjoys the original Cranium and has exhausted the cards of their first game.The game is played largely the same way as the original. Up to 4 teams move around the board by successfully completing challenges in 4 categories: Data Head, Star Performer, Word Worm and Creative Cat. The board layout is the same, though it's slightly more decorative this time. If memory of the original serves me correctly, the board is also smaller this time around.All of the original activities from these 4 categories are present. However, they have also added new activities and changed one of the old activities, slightly.In Data Head, they've added an activity called "Odd Couple," wherein you choose the two items in a list that don't belong with the others.In Star Performer, they've added an activity called "Slideshow." In this activity one team member moves the arms and legs of another silent team member as you would a marionette. Think of it as charades with a twist. The goal is obviously to get the other players to guess what the puppeteer is trying to demonstrate with the puppet.In Word Worm, they've changed "Gnilleps" to be a team game, meaning every player on the team takes alternating turns, adding one letter at a time to spell the word in reverse. They've also added "Mindmeld," a word association game where two or more team mates are each given a topic and have to write down 3 words that immediately come to mind when considering the topic. If any of the words between team mates match, the activity is successfully completed.Club Cranium activities also still exist, but if I remember the original rules correctly, the way Club Craniums are played is slightly different. However, I could just be mistaken in my recollection of the way they were originally played.We did find in a few instances that we could not complete some of the activities in a 2 person per team game. For example in Slideshow, the puppeteer was someone from the team that drew the card, but the Marionnete was from a different team so that there would still be someone left on the original team to guess what was happening. We just could not play Club Cranium Slideshow.I found the Data Head questions were much easier than the first game. All of the other activities remained at relatively the same level of difficulty as before.The addition of character movers with interchangeable hats and hair was cute, though it does not change anything about game play.Overall, we enjoyed this as much as the original and like the new activities. If you have the original, you might still want to add this to your game collection, especially if you have exhausted all the cards from your first game like we did and especially at this great price of $15.99 (it retails for almost $30 and I'm not sure if I would pay $30 for a duplicate game). If you do not have a Cranium game yet, I would choose this one instead of the first one simply for the added variety.

Like all Cranium games, this is a great party game. If you have a group of people over, divide up into teams and have some laughs. I wouldn't recommend it for any less than six people though.

I got it as a birthday gift a little over a month ago, but I've played with other people's sets to so I've played it quite a bit. So what's different about this from the old Craniums? Well, a few rule changes, different die, new games, and movers. The rule changes are pretty minor: the soonest birthday rolls first and I think that's new. When you get to the middle of the board you do all 4 categories in clockwise order and then your opponents pick one more for you to do, which I believe is new. The die has 10 sides for the 4 colors plus purple to fast track to the brains. The new games are Side Show (move a team mate's body to get your team to guess whatever the card says), Team Gnilleps (spell the word backwards, except that the whole team has to participate now), and Mind Meld (everyone on the team writes down 3 things in a category and if 2 people match in 1 item then you win the roll). I think that's it, but I haven't played regular Cranium in a while so there's also Copycat (act like the person on the card) and Odd Couple (pick the 2 things on the list that don't belong) in case that wasn't in original Cranium. The movers are cute and the hair is changeable. There are 12 in all, and your box comes with 4 of them. Oh, and it has 600 cards which appear to be all new and has some more pop culture mixed into them.So how does it play? To be honest, it's faster and at times can be easier. There are a number of easy cards, and some hard ones. Then again, difficulty is subjective based on who you're playing with. But still, the purple color on the die makes the game a lot faster. You can finish a whole game with 2 teams in under an hour. If you have more teams though or if you get a lot of hard cards the game can take about 2 hours. Despite this though, it's still a lot of fun. I find my friends pining to play it whenever we have out get togethers. I think it really does revitalize the series with great presentation inside and on the outside of the box, and it's a lot better than getting a booster pack if you have an old Cranium set. It's pretty much what you've come to love, plus more. Yeah, it has quite a bit of easy cards, but that doesn't mean your team will get them. I don't regret getting this game at all, and I think it actually doesn't work too bad with small groups (though it's obviously best with larger groups).

Sorry I had to give a 1 star to value for money, giftable and overall rating. Because this product was used and resealed by either amazon or the manufacturer. And the game isn't getting the overall value. We bought this as a gift and we were totally embarrassed when they opened the game and play dough was dried up, the person who played with it papers were still in the game. So maybe check your returns before putting back out for purchase.

Cranium combines four different games into one: Pictionary, Trivial Pursuit, Charades, and... well, some type of word game. It's a lot of fun to play with larger groups of people and makes for hilarious situations. It also doesn't last for so long that you get tired of it, like Monopoly sometimes does. I think the age group is older than regular board games (may not be the best game for a family where the children are really young). Also, choose your team wisely because, in some cases, you may be caught in awkward situations. Awkward, but fun! This game is very enjoyable because it's simple, entertaining, and different each time you play. I would recommend getting this game for any regular or occasional game night. It's one of my favorites!