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To order games, go to the bottom of this page. New Den - A Strategic Family Game for 2 PlayersQuestion. New Dan is a game of strategy and planning ahead, but the playing field changes with every game. How did you develop this game?
Answer. What a great question! Wow! Where do I start? Okay, I live not too far from the Mississippi River around the Cape Girardeau, Missouri area. We had a huge, on going flood this year. And of course it was on the news - but you didn't have to go far in the area to see it for yourself. Someone set up one of those field cameras that's motion-activated, facing the entrance to an old, large, hollow tree. The floodwaters were quickly approaching the tree, which you could see from the camera. You also could see a mama wolf moving her puppies from the old den out, one at a time, to hopefully, a safer place - a New Den, if you will. They showed that video on the news. Question. So that was the beginning of this game? Answer. Yes, it was. I thought about how many obstacles this will mom had to go through to protect her puppies.With each puppy, she had to literally change routes because the flood waters just kept taking new territory! Question. How did you put that in this game? |
A Strategic Family Game for 2 Players
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Answer. I literally took some index cards and cut them into fourths, then I begin to write in one game piece at a time, starting with the mom leaving one with puppy at a time. Next came some of the obstacles - the rising water, food sources, and not infringing on someone else's territory.
Question. Amazing! Then you use the pieces of index cards to play the game?
Answer. Yes. My husband, Gary, and I played it several times, adding, taking away, rearranging, and writing down directions. Believe me, we found several ways that it would not play!
Question. You took that R&D (research and development) and designed the real cards?
Answer. Yes. And wrote out the directions. And then send it to the printers and ordered the proof copy.
Question. What happened when that copy came in?
Answer. It was exciting to get that box. But -
Question. But what happened when you tried to play it?
Answer. Well, the exciting game with the index cards lacked something in reality! Gary and I played it and it was, well, dull in part of it. And I wanted a high energy, strategy- wise game.
Question. Obviously, you just didn't toss it.
Answer. No, there was no need “to toss out the baby with the bathwater.”
Question. What did you do with it?
Answer. I asked Gary what it needed as we tried to play several, boring hands. 30 or more minutes later, he snapped his fingers, slammed the table with his hands, which started the dog in my lap, and said “it needs a dark cloud that is a penalty card!”
Question. Then what did you do?
Answer. I took the extra card that the printer puts on the very top with the order information in and my black magic marker and “fixed it”.
Question. You added a dark, stormy cloud?
Answer. And we played it again. That one dark cloud changed my boring game into a real fun game with all kinds of strategies developing with every hand that's played.
Question. So you immediately added the dark cloud to the real deck?
Answer. Yes and no. I added the cloud to the game but we played with the original deck over several days, just to make sure. And we altered the directions to accommodate the changes.
Question. Are you now happy with New Den?
Answer. Oh, yes! And everybody that's played it loves it!
Question. How many can play it?
Answer. It's a game for two, they need to be at least probably 10 or older to play it.
Question. One more question.
Answer. Go for it!
Question. Do you always win?
Answer. That's funny! I wish! Actually it doesn't matter which game I design nor who I play that game with from a small child to a Ph.D. and Department Chair at the university! I get beat a whole lot of the time, even with brand new decks and either one of us shuffling! But I still like to play and Nnew Den is one of my favorites.
Question. Amazing! Then you use the pieces of index cards to play the game?
Answer. Yes. My husband, Gary, and I played it several times, adding, taking away, rearranging, and writing down directions. Believe me, we found several ways that it would not play!
Question. You took that R&D (research and development) and designed the real cards?
Answer. Yes. And wrote out the directions. And then send it to the printers and ordered the proof copy.
Question. What happened when that copy came in?
Answer. It was exciting to get that box. But -
Question. But what happened when you tried to play it?
Answer. Well, the exciting game with the index cards lacked something in reality! Gary and I played it and it was, well, dull in part of it. And I wanted a high energy, strategy- wise game.
Question. Obviously, you just didn't toss it.
Answer. No, there was no need “to toss out the baby with the bathwater.”
Question. What did you do with it?
Answer. I asked Gary what it needed as we tried to play several, boring hands. 30 or more minutes later, he snapped his fingers, slammed the table with his hands, which started the dog in my lap, and said “it needs a dark cloud that is a penalty card!”
Question. Then what did you do?
Answer. I took the extra card that the printer puts on the very top with the order information in and my black magic marker and “fixed it”.
Question. You added a dark, stormy cloud?
Answer. And we played it again. That one dark cloud changed my boring game into a real fun game with all kinds of strategies developing with every hand that's played.
Question. So you immediately added the dark cloud to the real deck?
Answer. Yes and no. I added the cloud to the game but we played with the original deck over several days, just to make sure. And we altered the directions to accommodate the changes.
Question. Are you now happy with New Den?
Answer. Oh, yes! And everybody that's played it loves it!
Question. How many can play it?
Answer. It's a game for two, they need to be at least probably 10 or older to play it.
Question. One more question.
Answer. Go for it!
Question. Do you always win?
Answer. That's funny! I wish! Actually it doesn't matter which game I design nor who I play that game with from a small child to a Ph.D. and Department Chair at the university! I get beat a whole lot of the time, even with brand new decks and either one of us shuffling! But I still like to play and Nnew Den is one of my favorites.
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