We just had to request this one for a review, with a name like "We the People Fight Tyranny", we knew it had to be interesting. So I sent note to the company, and Brenda at Constitution Games loaned their demo copy to us here at Learning Tangent in order for us to review the game! It seems that they are low on stock because the game is becoming popular. This sounds like a wonderful problem to have, and I hope it continues.
The game play and content are fairly advanced, and they recommend it for ages 15 and up. I think this is pretty accurate if your kids want to play it by themselves, if you are patient enough to explain things along the way, the 9-11 year old group should be fine with it too. Our resident guinea pigs 9 year old twins have had loads of fun learning how to play the game, and having me explain situations behind the satirical components of the game has made for an amazing educational experience for them.
I did have my reading cut out for me- there are many twists and turns that the game takes, and reading ahead is definitely preferable to "cookbooking" it. The game has two tracks, the inside "social justice" track, and the outside "Semi-capitalist" track. Players start on the outside, then when they run out of money that player jumps to the inside and continues along the social justice row until everyone is bankrupt.
On each turn, players answer questions from the different categories: Portraits in Time, Stubborn Facts, In God We Trust, Spoken Identity and We the People. I seemed to do the best with Portraits in Time and We the People, the other categories were not my friends! When the "Game Czar" picks the question category for you, having weak areas does not bode well for a win.
There is plenty of political satire to go around, and lots of laughs while learning. Just know that when you pull a card with a big pink pig gracing the face of the card - it's not good for anyone! Those porkulus bills make everyone pay. We're sad we have to send it back, but we will definitely be ordering our own. If you are looking for a fun, educational game for your family, this is definitely a winner.
Update: Brenda at Constitution Games generously offered to let us keep it for a very low price and we couldn't be happier!
Always free shipping to the U.S. & Canada!