Miscellany: Family Friendly Game Night Double Feature

Over the holidays, I had some quality family time playing board and card games.  Here are a couple of my favorites from the winter break:

High Society, designed by Reiner Knizia

My family really enjoys Reiner Knizia's work (I played Lost Cities with my sister umpteen times as a kid), and High Society is no exception. It's a push-your-luck auction game that's great fun with 3 or 4 players. You bid on luxury items to flaunt your wealth, but if you're the biggest spender, you automatically lose. This edition of High Society is from Cool Osprey Games, with beautiful art nouveau illustrations from Medusa Dollmaker. 

Castle Panic, designed by Justin De Witt

Castle Panic is a cooperative tower defense boardgame suitable for everyone from smart elementary schoolers to grandparents. The players defend their castle from a rampaging horde of goblins, orcs, and trolls, who have some nasty surprises in store. The game is both more visceral and comprehensible than titles like Pandemic, and the second edition of Castle Panic has new, appealing artwork that looks like a children's cartoon.