My friend told me to never play a heavy game with new people, but I tried it anyway

My buddy Mark, who's been in the hobby for a long time, gave me this hard rule: 'Never, ever bring a complex game like Brass: Birmingham to a casual game night with new players.' He said it would scare them off for good. So last month, I had some coworkers over who had only played stuff like Codenames. I decided to ignore Mark and set up Brass anyway. I spent about 20 minutes on the rules, kept it light, and just focused on the basic moves. We played for two hours, and they were totally into it by the end. One of them even asked when we could play again. Mark's advice came from a good place, but I think it assumes new people can't handle a deep game if you teach it right. Has anyone else had a good experience throwing a heavy game at total newbies?

3 comments

3 Comments

reese_thompson7425d ago

I read a blog post where someone taught their mom Twilight Imperium as a first game and she loved it. It really comes down to how you explain things and the group's mood. What other heavy games have you tried with new players?

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valgibson25d ago

Did that blog mention how many hours they spent teaching it?

luna_jackson284d ago

Quote that blog said "it really comes down to how you explain things and the group's mood." Okay but what if the mom just happened to be into that kind of thing? Like I tried introducing Terra Mystica to my cousin who loves Settlers of Catan and she looked at me like I was speaking a different language. So how do you tell the difference between someone who just needs a good explanation and someone who would never touch a heavy game no matter how clear the rules are?