I was at a convention this weekend that has two major attractions.  Tabletop gaming and booze.

This leads to a lot of late night gaming with drunk people.  Because I don’t drink, I have the opportunity to observe the behaviors that make drunk gaming a great spectator sport.

Take, for instance, the game “Resistance.”  Players are either member of the resistance or spies trying to thwart the resistance.  Pretty much the entire game is spent fostering an atmosphere of fear and mistrust.  By the end of the game, everyone is basically shouting HE’S A SPY DON’T PICK HIM! I’M NOT SPY! THAT’S EXACTLY WHAT A SPY WOULD SAY!

It’s a great game to play with people you already don’t like.

Drunk “resistance” is about the same except the game starts with everyone shouting HE’S A SPY DON’T PICK HIM! I’M NOT SPY! THAT’S EXACTLY WHAT A SPY WOULD SAY!

That takes place before anyone even knows if they are Resistance or a Spy.

Once you deal the cards that identify the spies, you immediately prepare to re-deal the cards because someone is going to say “Cool! I’ve always wanted to play a spy!  Oops!  I meant Resistance.  I always wanted to play Resistance.  I’m not a spy.”

After this happens a third time, someone says fuck it and leaves to get another beer.  Someone else joins who has never played the game.

All eight players at the table loudly explain the game at the same time.  It sounds something like this:

THE RULES ARE SUPER EASY. WE’RE ALL SPIES ON A MISSION TO RESISTANCE A VOTE!  TEAM LEADERS DEAL CARDS TO THE SPIES AND THEN EVERYONE DOESN’T WANT ANYONE ELSE TO KNOW UNTIL THEY DEAL THEIR SUCCESS CARD FACE UP WHICH YOU CAN ONLY USE IF YOU ARE A SPY.  THE SPIES KNOW WHO EACH GUN MISSION DECIDES WHICH CARDS BUT WHATEVER YOU DO REJECT THE MISSION.  GOT IT?

New person drunkenly nods and the game begins again.

Eventually someone will say something like IF I PLAY THIS CARD WILL YOU BE ABLE TO TELL I’M A SPY?

Then everyone lets out a collective groan and they start over.  With another new player.

I’ve never seen a game of drunk “Resistance” played all the way to the finish.

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