I adore games- it’s such a great way to get together with friends without having to go out. It’s always relaxing, fun, and usually hilarious (I particularly like Catchphrase and Settlers of Catan). The makers of Knit Wit asked me if I’d be interested in trying out a new game they developed, which features different categories being  “knitted” together to form all sorts of interesting combinations (if you love Scattergories, then this is right up your alley). It’s been a while since I tried a new game, so I was definitely willing to give it a try.  I assembled a small team of precise game scientists to play with me- otherwise known as my husband Guy, and my cousin and her husband, Chantal and Mike. We got together at their house one night to try it out.

Knit Wit does not disappoint.  You can see it in action in this 1 minute video, it’s very accurate to how it feels to play the game. It’s pretty quick to learn, and the rules are not so lengthy that you have to have the booklet by you the whole time to check everything. You can have 2-8 players, but the more people you have the more fun it is.  I like that it isn’t a board game in the exact sense, but involves colourful cords on spools that each player arranges differently, so that you ‘knit’ together overlapping colours. That’s about as much knitting reference as the game has. Each round is totally unique- a player draws a different word and then attaches it to their chosen colour of cord, and how the spools are arranged can have one or more words associated with it.  There is a huge array of words that can be chosen at random from the deck. Your job is to race against your opponents to think of creative (and often ridiculous) ideas for things that would fit those categories.

Each round goes very quickly- the sooner you finish, the better. Then you get to grab a button that, depending on the holes in the center of the button, gives you bonus points for finishing quickly. Once the final button has been grabbed, the game is over and everyone shares their answers. You then compare answers, crossing out any that are the same as someone else. Points are scored for the remaining answers; plus any bonus button points. Highest score wins!

So in the above configuration, Spool #1 is in all 4 of the coloured loops, so it needed to be something that was stinky, gray, yellow, and smooth. Guy came up with the best answer- ‘a deviled egg having a bad day’. If you challenge a player’s answer, the rest of the players get to vote on whether or not their answer should count for a point- thumbs up or thumbs down. I can’t remember exactly which answer Chantal gave that we didn’t think met the criteria, but the photo below shows we voted it down.

This is a game that is as silly or as serious as you want it to be- but I think the real fun is when you let the answers be a bit silly, like Guy’s answer. And I strongly suspect that the more alcohol that is involved, the sillier the answers get! The game also feels like you are really exercising your creativity in terms of combining different attributes to think of something that no one else will- if you like thinking creatively, you will absolutely love playing it.  Like most games, the more you play, the better you get at it. By the end of the night we were all doing really well and fairly evenly matched in scores. But unsurprisingly, Guy won.

The game itself is beautifully made- I particularly liked the chalkboard-style pad of score cards that it comes with, along with 8 little white pencils. The spools and the clothespins that attach the words are all real wood, giving them a nice weight in the hand. Nothing about it feels cheaply produced (I’m looking at you, Candyland).

Wouldn’t this something fun and a different to try one night? Fortunately Z-Man Games is sponsoring a giveaway! One lucky person will win a Knit Wit game for themselves (open only in Canada and the U.S. Sorry international friends!). Leave me a comment letting me know why you would love this game and who you would play it with.  Contest closes midnight on April 17th. A winner will be announced on Monday, April 18th!