Your next family game night could include Amazon Alexa.
Game manufacturer Sensible Objects has released When in Rome, the first board game to incorporate Alexa.
Through your Amazon Echo device, Alexa teaches you the rules, keeps track of the score, and guides you through the game.
The game is pretty simple. Players sit around a world map, and each places their marker on a “home city” to start.
Players then travel around the map to various major cities. As your marker enters each city, Alexa asks you questions about that city’s weather, customs, food, culture, and more. The questions range from easy (“Is San Francisco foggy?”) to difficult (“Which of these is not a real pub?”).
Players earn points by answering questions correctly. The player with the most points at the end wins. You can also forgo points in favor of action cards, which you can deploy to sabotage other players in various ways.
For example, one card enables you to “Trash Talk.” If you read Alexa the phrase on the card, she’ll humorously insult the other players.
When in Rome is the first installment of Voice Originals, the company’s upcoming series of voice-augmented tabletop games.
The game launches in summer for $29.95. The accompanying Alexa skill, of course, is free.
Sensible Objects recommends it for ages “5 to 99.” It’s possible for young kids to play, but since it’s a game about world trivia, older kids and adults will likely be the biggest fans.
