Calliope Hive Mind - Think Alike Party Game for Kids, Adults, and Families, 3+ Players, Ages 8 and Up

This is my new favorite party/casual game! It's basically reverse scattergories and it's been a huge hit with everyone I have played it with! I especially love that the question cards come in a separate box so you can just bring those along if you want want to deal with the board. Easy to learn, fun to play!

This is a great game to play! Fun for parties and family get togethers! Easy to learn and so funny to hear others responses! Good challenge too!

The original (first edition) of this game had a board that showed a beehive, and your meeples were bees - or beeples. This is a cheesier version with a smaller board, and no beeples. But to be honest, the game still plays the same, and is a fantastic party game.

We bought this because our family likes “Green Team Wins”. Everyone agrees that this was even better. We like that it is easy, and even though there is technically one loser, it is more of a way to get to know people than a competitive game.

I got a few of my siblings and friends to play this with me over Thanksgiving weekend and it was hilarious! The game is easy to learn and the questions are a good variety from "Name 3 animals you see at a zoo" to "What 4 places would you go during a zombie apocalypse for survival?' One of our friends was dragging my sister down with him so chaos was ensuing at 11 pm in my house as they battled to not get off the board. This also sparked some pretty good debates about what exactly is important for a survival kit and why Costco or outer space is the best place to go during the aforementioned zombie apocalypse. This game is now a staple on my game shelf and is so much fun!

I like everything about this game. Easy. Accommodates a lot of players. We had a lot of fun and laughs. Bought it for a friend as a gift after I played it.

Hive Mind is a fun party game that plays pretty fast (like Apples to Apples) and rewards you for doing a good job of guessing how the other players are thinking (like Dixit). ** HOW IT PLAYS ** During the game, one active player chooses a question from a box of 300 cards and reads it out loud. Typical questions are… - What are 3 foods that can be grilled? - What are 4 things in the glove box? - What 3 popular pizza toppings shouldn't be offered on the menu? - What are 5 foods that should not be ice cream flavors? - What are 3 things that, if broken, can't be fixed? Every player has 2 minutes to write down their answers in secret, and then you compare answers. You get 1 point for each answer you give to the question (e.g. up to 3 points just for naming 3 pizza toppings), whether your answers are popular or even reasonable. So, for example, if you said a pizza topping that should NOT be offered is pepperoni (or even "legos"!) then, good fo you, you get 1 point. However, the majority of points are earned if your answers match someone else's answers. For example, if you say "pineapple" should not be offered, and 4 other players said the same thing, then you're each going to get 4 more points. After each round played this way, the players who earned the fewest points will move farther to the outside of the “hive” on the game board. Once any player moves all the way off the board, the game is over and the remaining players are the winners. ** PROS ** The game is REALLY simple to explain and set up, which is perfect for a party game. It’s also really easy to pick up, even for non-gamers. I mentioned there are 300 cards in the box, but each card actually has 3 questions on each side. So it actually comes with about 1,800 questions! Plus, players are welcome to make up their own question on the fly, if they want. That means this game has tons of replay value. The board is double-sided — one side has 6 levels to the hive, the other side has 8 levels. So you can choose the 6-level side for a faster game or the 8-level side for a slightly longer game. It’s nice to have options depending on how much time you have to play. The game is 100% ready to play as soon as you open the lid. You don’t need to set anything up, connect any parts, or even sharpen the included pencils. Just go! ** CONS ** In this game there are many winners and one loser, and it can feel bad to be that loser. I’ve played games with a very positive vibe, where the “loser” is actually celebrated as the most unique thinker. But even so, there’s a risk of the one loser feeling a bit excluded from the group. ** OVERALL ** I think this adds something fun to the mix of party games I already own, so I’ll be glad to share it with my family and friends. Some party games are great for getting to know new people, but I think this one actually plays best with a group who are already friends. That way there’s a good chance you already know how they think, and the one loser won’t feel like they’re actually outside the group.

I picked this up so we’d have an alternative to Scattegories at family get togethers, and it was a huge hit! We had a great time and everyone is looking forward to getting it out again soon.