Played a couple of rounds of Codenames last night. As expected, it's really good.
The game is so simple you can teach someone in 1 minute. There are 25 word tiles laid out in a 5x5 grid. 8 or so are each designated to two opposing teams, with the 'spymasters' of those teams able to see which ones are theirs via a tile map only they can see. Over the course of the game, the two spymasters must lead their teammate(s) to correctly guess their designated word tiles by using a one word clue per turn. Strictly no other Charades-like clues, encouragement or guidance are allowed.
However, spymasters are free to make their clue applicable to multiple words with the addition of a number. Wracking your brain to find a clever link between apparently unrelated words, and thereby getting your teammate to correctly guess multiple words on a single turn is highly satisfying and makes you feel an almost psychic connection with them, with high fives all round. However, doing so comes with risks, because the more tenuous the clue, the more chance your teammate will totally misinterpret it and pick one of the words designated to the opposing team (giving them a free point) or - even worse - pick the single 'assassin' word tile, resulting in an instant loss for your team.
It sounds a bit dry, but the focus on lateral thinking and creative clue-giving - and potential for catastrophic misunderstanding frequently results in tension and hilarity.
If you're wondering what to get family members for Christmas this year, look no further. This really is one of those games that everyone will enjoy:
