Eye Know

Eye Know - Trivia for the Eyes

Eye Know is billed as trivia for your eyes because the trivia cards have images on them. Eye Know offers two ways to play - with betting and without betting. I always like games that offer options for play, so let's check it out.

What you see in the image above is what you get - a game board, trivia cards and two dice. The game board holds 12 cards. One die has the numbers 1, 2 and 3, and the other die has four different colored sides and two sides with the word WILD.

Each trivia card has a solid stripe across the top that will correspond to one of the colors on the color die. The cards fall into a number of different categories including fictional characters, U.S. landmarks, ad characters, actor, symbol, politician, flag, plant, instrument, world landmark, singer, author, toy and animal. 

Each trivia card has an image on one side and three questions on the other side. The first question on the back is a true/false question, the second question is a multiple choice question and the third question is open ended. The open ended question will have a very specific answer, but no clues to what it might be. That's not my idea of an open-ended question, but that is how they describe it. Here are a couple examples of the questions:

• Image on the front: Scrabble tiles
• Yes/No - In the English version of Scrabble the Q is worth 8 points. False - Q is worth 10 points.
• Multiple Choice - Which of these statements is true?
• The letter J is worth 6 points
• There are no Qs in the German language edition.
• There is a Scrabble edition based on The Hobbit.
• Open ended - How many bonus points are awarded for using all 7 of your letters at one time? 50 points
• Image on the front: Uncle Sam
• Yes/No - Uncle Sam was first pictured on the fuselage of an airplane? False. First depicted on a recruitment poster
• Multiple Choice - During which war was the term Uncle Sam first used to depict the U.S. government?
• Revolutionary War
• War of 1812
• World War 1
• Open ended - What words appear on the famous First World War recruitment poster featuring Uncle Sam? "I want you for the U.S. Army."

On each turn you will pick one of the cards on the game board that you want to answer a trivia question about. Now before you think this sounds way too easy, the dice may throw you a curve. The color die will tell you which cards you can choose from and the number die will tell you which type of question on the back you will be asked. 

ORIGINAL RULES

Object:
Be the first to collect five cards.

Set up:
Place the board between the players. Mix the trivia cards. Place 12 on the individual spaces on the board, image side up, and place the rest of the deck on the board (see image above). Place the dice near the board.

Play:
Players take turns. Roll the dice. Look over the cards on the board that have a stripe of the same color that you threw. Choose a card, point to it and name the image. The individual on the player's right picks up the card and checks to see if you are correct. If no, your turn is over. Discard it and replace it with a new card. If you are correct, the individual will look at the number die and ask you the question that corresponds to that number. If you are correct, you get to keep the card and your turn is over. Add a new card to the board in it's place. If you are wrong, discard the card and replace it on the board with a new card. 

If there are no card colors on the board that match what you threw, or you throw a wild, you get to choose any card you want. 
 
Continue playing until someone collects five cards and wins the game.  

BETTING RULES

Give each player five chips. Play as in the instructions above until it is time to answer a question. Based on how well you know the topic you will choose which type of question you will answer and you will bet from one to five chips. The harder the question and the more chips you bet, the bigger the payout if you are correct. Play until everyone has played five rounds. Each player counts their chips. You can also make extra chips if you have sets of cards. A set will be either three of a color, four of a color, five of a color or one of each color. The person with the most chips is the winner.
In the box: Game board, color die, number die, 400 image cards (each with 3 trivia questions)

If you are interested in purchasing this game or just want more information, click on the image below.

Invasion of the Cow Snatchers

Invasion of the Cow Snatchers

I'm going to blog about this game while I have it. However, I must tell you that I bought this game once and the magnet was not strong enough to pick up the pieces. I asked for a replacement and it was the same, unplayable. So I don't know if I just got unlucky twice, or if it is a flaw with the game. I'll let you decide.

You are an alien who has been sent to earth to study the most bizarre of all earth creatures - the cow. Invasion of the Cow Snatchers is a 1-person logic game with 60 challenges that fall into categories from easy to genius (think of the bragging rights - "I'm a genius!"). Using your magnetic UFO, hover over the farm and beam up unsuspecting cows while dodging obstacles. Grab the red bull last and exit the field to complete each challenge and head for home.

Above is an image of the game. It will be easier to describe if you have something to look at. The green base, the pasture, measures about 8.75" square. There is a clear plastic, removable cover that sits on top. The colored discs you see are the cows. Each disc has a cow head embossed on the top. There are five different color discs - 4 cows and a red bull. Each of the cows has a metal disc inside and the spaceship is a magnet. There are numerous other pieces of different heights that will be placed in your field before you begin each challenge. They include red barns, green crop rows, white fences, yellow hay bales, 1 silo and 5 crop circles.

After placing your cows and obstacles in the field, per the the challenge card, place the clear plastic on top. Then move your silver spaceship over the clear top and as you pass above cows they will jump up to meet your spaceship. The order that you pick up the cows will be important. As they jump up to meet your spaceship, the stack you will be carrying around will get taller. You will have to consider how many cows you can be holding to clear the different obstacles of different heights.

No cows can be carried over the red barn, only 1 cow can be carried over the green crop row, two can be carried over the white fences and three over the hay bales. At no time may you ever pass over the silo, even if you are not carrying any cows. You cannot move diagonally.

Each challenge card will show one challenge on the front and the solution on the back. There are 10 each in the first four levels and 20 in the last level, genius. At the genius level you will always pick up the cows in a certain color order. At the genius level you will be using the crop circles in your field. You will end up needing to pick up a cow(s), drop it onto a crop circle, and then come back later for it to get the right color order. Here are the first and last challenges and solutions, plus one from medium and one from super hard.

Challenges

Solutions

If you are interested in reading more about games like these, check out my post on logic games.  

Try this:

• Stress that this can be a process of trial and error. Model thoughtful perseverance.
• Complete a challenge as the player looks on. Talk out loud as your solve the puzzle so the player can see how to apply logic and solve problems that arise. Set the game up again and ask the player to complete the challenge.
• Work the first few by giving the player the color order. Then let them repeat the games on their own.
• Set up a challenge and then complete it by following the directions on the solution side for an easier game. 
• Set up a challenge card and give the instructions verbally, one step at a time, for completing the challenge. Use directional terms consistently. 
• Work on logic, problem solving, visualization, spatial relations, planning, process skills, executive functioning skills, play and leisure exploration and participation
  

If you are interested in purchasing this game or just want more information, click on the image below.