I'm So Good at Games That I Hardly Ever Win

Many people who are "alpha-gamers", i.e. the people who buy and teach and suggest games will recognise the following phenomenon: because you're assumed to be good at games, people pick on you and you hardly ever win. Certainly when I play with my family I'm regarded as the biggest threat, and that's probably true in that group. As a consequence, a lot of ganging-up happens and if the game has elimination it will often happen to me. Is it any wonder I choose games that don't have elimination? When was the last time I played Bang! with the family?

Even with the various game groups I play in I'm assumed to be a threat. To be fair to CyberKev, he knows that if he doesn't deal with me as a threat then I will be dealing with him (as will everybody else). That is unless the Evil Count von Walduck doesn't come up with some plan that defeats both of us. The evil count has complained that he isn't as cunning as we make out, spending rather more time being confused than plotting, but there's just something about the man that worries me... and for that he must die early in the game.

The advantage of this form of positive discrimination is that people who wouldn't normally be able to win a game do have their chances enhanced - kids and stupid people, for example. But I wonder whether the people who are regarded as threats in different game groups are regarded as such for any good reason, or just due to superstition and/or respect. Feedback is welcomed.

The Adventures of Harley

As the kid's name is Harley, I included a copy of The Adventures of Harley in a recent game order as a bit of a joke. It's a game for kids about 4 years old, and sadly that's the extent of it. It is a cooperative game, which should stretch the mind of a kid growing up with Snakes and Ladders or Sorry or something. And you have to make decisions. However for the kid and me, the decisions were trivial and we finished the game in a few minutes. I will have to find some 4yos to experiment on, but as the last one I had (my nephew, the Elsom Horror) has now turned 5 and was playing Bang! when he was 4, it might take a while. Hmm... Melissa and Fraser, how old is Otto?