Sunday, November 15, 2015

Our Intergalactic Star Wars Family Game Night

With school back in session and fall in full effect, I’ve been thinking about the just-passed summer and the unexpected adventure my family shared. It happened by accident, as the Little Dude wanted to attend a one-week Jedi Training camp nearby, which understandably piqued his interest in what occurred a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away. Now I will admit it publically for the first time: we became a group of Star Wars nuts.

And I don’t mean nuts like my boys watched Episode I and liked Jar-Jar Binks. I mean nuts like we watched all six movies and they are both fully consumed with what happened on Tatooine, Hoth, Endor, Naboo, Kamino and assorted other intergalactic locales. Did I mention that this was just before they recently turned 3 and 6 respectively?

Having spent considerable time in July and August in front of the tube while escaping the triple-digits outside, I wanted to find a way to extend my boys’ interest in Star Wars beyond just the movies. So I’ve bought books about the mythology, and there’s been toys, snacks and a variety of other SW-wares floating around our place. So when a box arrived with a few brand-new Star Wars games from my friends at Hasbro, my family was more excited than an unfrozen Han in Episode VI. 

So on a recent weekend afternoon, we shut off the tube and went to dig into our new box of treasures. There was Loopin’ Chewie, a Wookie-esque spin on a classic board game suitable for all ages, which first appealed to my gang. We laid on the floor and slapped our boosters, trying to get Chewbacca to knock each others’ coins loose. This was easily doable for all ages, even the just-3 Littler Dude. 

Mrs. Dude was partial to “Bop It”, a handheld portable R2-D2 which is a great memory and timing game. It was a bit too tricky for my boys after the first round, but it’s a fun little stress reliever which can double as a cool R2 statue on your desk.
The one I was most curious about was Catch Phrase, which is like a mix of charades without the drawing and hot potato, with a Millenium Falcon subbing for said potato. It’s listed for ages 12+, but I wanted to see if my boys could keep up, and I can proudly say that they appear like Anakin in Episode I, to be the Chosen Ones. I won’t say they aced the game, but this fun little game is a fantastic creative tool, forcing my 6-year-old to use your brain to create clues about the phrases I had to guess He guessed some of mine, I guessed some of his, and we all had a great time. So much so, in fact, that he refused to put Catch Phrase down for about an hour. Just to be clear, this is definitely a more advanced game, but my boys enjoyed making their brains work to solve the puzzles. This is really a great game for Star Wars enthusiasts and obsessives at the same time, plus it even features info about the upcoming Episode VII: The Force Awakens for the super hardcore fan.

Loopin’ Chewie and Star Wars Catch Phrase are available at most major retailers and also on HasbroToyShop.com. Bop It Star Wars R2-D2 is exclusively at Walmart. Even better: thanks to Influence Central you can have the chance to win one of 5 Hasbro Star Wars Prize Packs, valued at $65, containing these great games. Contest ends on November 23, 2015, so don’t wait to enter or you’ll feel left out like Luke when his friends all went to the Academy. How can you enter? See the handy box below: 

Hasbro Star Wars Giveaway

*I-C will randomly select 5 winners from all program entries and will handle fulfillment of the winning prizes.


Like a good Jedi, I participated in an Influencer Activation on behalf of Influence Central for Hasbro. I received samples of all three games to play and was compensated for my participation. All opinions and ideas contained above are solely from my mind, for better or worse.

Want to see the Little Dude play Star Wars Bop It? Here's your chance: