We are Horrible People

 A Review of Cards Against Humanity

When I was in my 20s the game Trivial Pursuit was all the rage. Now my kids are in their 20s. Recently they introduced a new game for family game night.

Cards Against Humanity is subtitled "A Party Game for Horrible People". On its website the game is described this way. "Cards Against Humanity is as despicable and awkward as you and your friends."

Cards Against Humanity is technically a competitive game. But the game is so darn funny that everyone who plays wins as long as they have a sense of humor.

I must insert a caveat here. While both generations of my family find this game oodles of fun, probably not every kid will want to play this with their parents, and not every parent will want to play it with their kids. Some people may not want to play it at all.

In a way Cards Against Humanity is like an R-rated version of the Mad Libs we played when we were kids. Although if I remember correctly sometimes our finished Mad Libs were pretty racy as well.

Cards Against Humanity and its booster packs are available for purchase. If you'd rather you can make your own starter game for free by downloading and printing the cards from the game's website.

The game consists of two decks of cards, one black and one white. The black cards each essentially ask a question. The white cards supply potential answers to the questions.

Each player has an opportunity to read a black card question. The other players (the more the merrier) each have a hand of seven white cards. From their white cards they each choose the card that they believe supplies the funniest or most appropriate answer.

The player who had read the black card then reads the answers. It's best when the player is able to read them with some showmanship. Much laughter then ensues. That player picks the entry he or she likes best. The person who entered the favored answer is the winner of that round.

Both black and white cards vary a great deal. Black cards can be as simple as "Why am I sticky?" or "What's there a ton of in heaven?" Some black cards require more than one answer, such as "_____ plus _____ equals _____."

White cards can be quite innocuous, but some are terribly politically incorrect, scatological or sexual. Some more G-rated examples of white cards include "Bees?", "A really cool hat," and "Michelle Obama's arms."

Surprisingly, cleverly used G-rated cards often beat out the more off-color ones.

Both white cards and black cards often contain references to celebrities and pop culture.

One of my kids points out a more psychological aspect of the game. If you know the person who will be choosing his or her favorite answer you can tailor yours according to your understanding of the person's tastes.

Cards Against Humanity is not the right game for every setting. It's definitely off-limits for the office Christmas party and the church social. My parents would have hated it.

My family loves Cards Against Humanity. I guess this means we are horrible people. But we love to laugh, we love absurdity and we love to play with words.