One of the things that we’ve loved about some of the best toys of 2011 is the fact that many of them not only entertain children and adults but that they also help to teach things as well. ThinkFun has manufactured some of the best brainy puzzle games in the past few years, including Tilt and Rush Hour. While most people can stay entertained by these games for hours, there are some people who like to manipulate words. If you or your children are linguistically inclined, for example, you’re the type who likes to do a word search or a crossword puzzle, then PathWords may be the perfect solution for your household.
What It Is
PathWords is a game that combines words with spatial puzzle solving skills. It is created to be a single player game, making it a great way to keep yourself entertained without doing something mindlessly, and it is designed for children over the age of 12. We feel, however, that children ages 10 and up who enjoy reading shouldn’t have too much of a problem with the game, at least until they get to the expert stage. At that point, even adults may begin to have a tough time!
How to Play
The game begins when you select a puzzle from the book that comes with the set. The spiral bound notebook filled with puzzles makes it easy to select on. Then simply slide the top onto the case and you’re ready to go. The puzzle itself looks like a bunch of letters with absolutely no meaning to them, but that’s where the jeweled toned pieces that are included with the set come into play. On the top of the puzzle, you will see a list of puzzle pieces that you should use with this specific puzzle. Your task is to put the jewel toned puzzle pieces onto the words so that each puzzle piece makes a word and so that there are no empty spaces or unclaimed letters.
One thing that makes this a tricky game is that the words can be forward or backward, and they aren’t always in a row. Often they’re made like a staircase with a few letters on one level and then a few on the next. And many times they’re backward, which definitely makes it tricky. The puzzle pieces can often fit into the puzzle without the solution being accurate, so you have to double check yourself once you believe you’ve found the solution, as we found that we hadn’t always discovered the solution we were actually looking for.
What We Like
• It’s a challenging, unique concept.
• There’s a help book included.
• It’s designed with word-lovers in mind.
We can’t lie, we love everything about PathWords. We love that there are challenges for those who are just starting as well as for those who are experts. We love that both children and parents can challenge their brains in this fun game. We also love that while it uses spatial challenging, as many of the ThinkFun games do, it brings words into play as well, which is something that many parents and children enjoy manipulating. The game comes not only with a solution book but that book also has some hints in it to help you keep going if you’re struggling.
What People are Saying
Most people feel that PathWords should definitely be considered one of the best board games of 2011 for a number of different reasons. One of the most prominent is because it is small and easy to bring with you wherever you go. Another one, though, is that it’s also a great game to challenge your mind and to get those creative juices flowing. One aspect many have commented on is that it comes with everything you’ll need, making it a complete package of fun. Others love the fact that everything can be packed together, so it’s easy to keep it organized. One person even found it so inspiring, he suggested that if you run out of cards, you could try making your own word challenge for other people in your family, a challenge that could definitely bring the game to a whole new level and make it last a lot longer.
Buy PathWords from Amazon
