Games Built for Two - A Love Story

KRISTEN MCCARTY: "I have a wonderful husband; he is my best friend, my gaming partner, and travel companion. We have been together for 13 years and married six this April. Since our first day we have always enjoyed doing things together. We spent many a weekend on mini-adventures and day trips to historical sites like Washington D.C., Gettysburg, and Harpers Ferry. We love to hike or ride our bikes at the numerous state parks and national forests in our area but weeknights were a different story. After dinner we found ourselves drifting apart to separate areas and doing our own thing. We wanted something we would both enjoy as a couple. We pulled out our long forgotten board games and starting playing together at least one night a week. This was fun for awhile but we both became bored with the repetitive games of Life, Axis and Allies, and Boggle that we remembered from our youth."

"Around this time, I visited a friend and fellow teacher whose husband is very into board games. We wanted to play some games together and he brought out this cute little game called Carcassonne where you used wooden men to claim cities, roads and farms to gain points. I really enjoyed it and told my husband about it when I came home. So we went to our local hobby store, which has sadly closed since this time, to look for it and also check out the newer versions of Axis and Allies. But, instead of another version of Axis and Allies, I discovered these really cool planes that I thought were models but I was surprised were to learn they were actually part of a fun and simple game called Wings of War."

"Excited by the idea of us being able to spend more time together, my husband started doing research to find out more about the games we had discovered in the store. He found the BoardGameGeek website, bought Ticket to Ride and taught me the game. He even discovered a few game-related podcasts like The Dice Tower and Game On. I really credit the podcasts with opening my eyes and helping me enjoy my new hobby."

"We soon expanded our one night a week game night to almost every day and our collection soon skyrocketed. Luckily we had just moved into our first home and had more space. We took our first trip to the Origins Game Fair and were amazed and pleased to meet some of the people who make this hobby so great. We came home with a carload of games and a desire to go again the next year. We have gone almost every year since and last year I was able to visit as part of the press because of my reviews."

"I started writing reviews for a few reasons. Mostly, I wanted to introduce my friends and family to the new hobby I so enjoyed. I also remembered how intimidating games seemed to be when we first played. I wanted to write reviews that focused on explaining the games and helping people understand why I enjoyed them so much. I named my blog “A Game Built for Two” as a play on the phrase “A Bicycle Built for Two.” My husband is my favorite gaming partner and we rarely buy games that don’t work with two players. The bicycle part comes from another favorite hobby we both share, cycling. Most recently I have been writing for www.geekcastradio.com where my brother does movie reviews for the site and a few podcasts. He asked me to join as the Table Top Enthusiast, so I guess reviewing runs in the family."

"My husband may not be the one writing the reviews but he is heavily involved in the process. After playing a game we always have a discussion about what we like, don’t like, what is unique about the game, and so forth. I’ve gotten to the point that I don’t even want to write a review until I have bounced ideas off of him. I think we both enjoy this back and forth discussion and it has helped us refine our tastes for games. He is much more analytical than I am and he helps me see things I may have missed. He also is always ready with a camera whenever I want pictures of games. I use a lot of pictures from BoardGameGeek but there isn’t always enough for my reviews. He has spent a lot of time with my list of pictures so I can get just want I want."

"I really feel that board games have deepened my relationship with my husband. We really enjoy the time we spend playing, discussing, organizing, writing and listening to podcasts. I'm amazed by the people I’ve meet and opportunities that have opened up since I discovered this world. Games have become a fun and important part of our life together."