What We’re Playing -
Shadows Over Camelot
Title: Shadows Over Camelot
Designer:
Serge Laget & Bruno Cathala
Publisher:
Days of Wonder
Price:
£27.99
Reviewer: Claudine McClean
It’s cold out, so it’s a perfect time to sit home and play a game. Shadows over Camelot pits the players against the game, meaning that to win, your fellow gamers need to win too.
To win a game of Shadows over Camelot players sometimes have to do things that aren’t much fun. A player who wants to go fight the Picts, or take on the glorious Lancelot & the Dragon quest may have to go and help stop the Holy Grail from being destroyed, or fight siege engines to defend Camelot. Dull but functional. Losing a life or two can help keep a fellow player in the game, but may not feel terribly fair.
This can prove difficult for people raised on games like Monopoly, Scrabble or even The Game Of Life, where winning as an individual is what matters and stuffing your opponent just makes the task of winning easier, and maybe just a little sweeter.
To win a game players need to be clear about the final goal and commit to doing what it takes to get there as a team. A concept perhaps easier to instil in a friendly group of game players than it is in a sales or operational team. The different reactions of people to playing co-operatively can be interesting, particularly the more competitive ones, who may be willing to risk everyone losing for the singular pleasure of capturing Excalibur.
Adding an edge of business realism to the game, you can always play with a traitor, who will only reveal their true identity when forced to do so after scuppering the teams chances for their own ends.
Try playing Shadows Over Camelot at home; take a new look at your colleagues, would they do what it takes to win for the team or are they stuck in the Really Nasty Horseracing Game mindset, winning for themselves, regardless of the cost to others?
Claudine McClean
t: +44 (0) 1789 734333
f: +44 (0) 1789 734401
e: claudinem@predaptive.com
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