Stipulations Party Game = Dream Squashing Fun

We’ll cut right to the chase – Stipulations is a great family game and party game!

And it’s also such a simple game.

As the box says, it’s all about “stifling superpowers, crushing careers, limiting lifetime supplies, and destroying dreams. Your imagination and creativity are the only limits on how you can ruin friends’ announcements.”

Or as we like to simply say – “Creatively squashing each others’ dreams.”

Ok, so that may not sound like such a family-friendly or friend-friendly thing to do. But don’t take that too seriously. It’s not really a negative game. It’s a lot of fun being as creative as possible.

Watch Brooke’s short video review of Stipulations to see how simple and fun this party game is.

Can the whole family enjoy Stipulations?

While the game box says “Ages 13+”, we think kids younger than 13 will enjoy it just as much as teenagers and adults.

We’d suggest ages 8+ for a few reasons. First, players need to be able to read the cards. Second, players need to have an understanding of some of the items on the cards. And third, players shouldn’t take their crushed hopes and dreams too seriously.

Of course, that second item shouldn’t really be a limiting factor anyway because there are still 3 other options on the card to choose from. If you don’t know the Occupation (like young kids not knowing what a CEO is), just pick from the others (Superpower, Fulfilled Dream, or Lifetime Supply).

Does Stipulations foster negativity?
We don’t think so at all.

Sure this world can seem like a negative place some times. So playing a game that rewards people for dashing dreams doesn’t sound very encouraging.

As regular readers will surely know, we’re all about fostering uplifting, fun times as a family.

And we’ve had a blast playing Stipulations.

After we played it the first time, Brooke was quickly begging to be the one to do the video review. We had such a fun time, that we played again and again – getting more creative with each round.

We didn’t leave the game talking down to each other. Instead we were laughing at how creative some of the stipulations were – sharing in how miserable it would be to have the superpower of being able to turn invisible, but it only happening during job interviews. Or having a lifetime supply of bacon, but it’s all stuffed in brussels sprouts.

How does Stipulations score on our “Let’s Play Again” game meter?
As you may have already guessed, Stipulations scores very high on our “let’s play again” game meter. First, of all it’s hard to end a game because the kids keep wanting to do “one more round”.

Stipulations is a great game to play in so many different situations. And it’s nice and compact, so it’s easy to take wherever you go.

We’ve enjoyed it as a family sitting around the table, but we’ve also enjoyed it just kicking back on our couch and bean bags.

I’ll be taking it to Guys Game Night tonight and would also take it to work for a lunch break games with coworkers (if I didn’t work from home).

And you can bet we’ll take Stipulations with us when we visit extended family for Thanksgiving weekend.
Where to get Stipulations
Stipulations isn’t a game that’s readily available in games stores or online merchants quite yet.

The game creators are planning a Kickstarter campaign for the full Stipulations game. However, it won’t go live until January 2015. But if you’re thinking this would be the perfect stocking stuffer or a great game to play for the holidays, you can get prototype copies of Stipulations (like the one shown in Brooke’s video review) at www.thegamecrafter.com/games/stipulations.

To get a reminder when the Kickstarter campaign begins, “Like” Stipulations on their Facebook Page at: www.facebook.com/Stipulations.

Or do both – grab a copy now and then get an new version once the Kickstarter campaign hits its mark.

For such a simple game, it’s a lot of fun.