Board Game Retro: The ‘Garfield’ Board Game Is Better Than You Might Think
The game is better than Monday, but not as good as kicking Odie off the table.
It might be hard to believe now, but there was a time when Garfield was a legitimate form of entertainment.
Very hard to believe
Back in the 80s and 90s, Garfield was huge! And not just because of all the lasagna. Comics, TV show, stuffed animals, toys and of course, board games.
Garfield is a competitive roll-to-move game with hand management mechanics that was release in 1981. The first player to complete 3 laps around the board wins. You’d expect a game with these qualities to be very standard. Well, good news, you’re right! But Garfield at least tries to mix it up a little.
While there is not much gameplay beyond rolling and movie, it’s not none gameplay. Each player is given 3 Player Cards which they will be able to use to direct gameplay somewhat.
At the start of their turn, players can play one of their 3 Player Cards, which can be used to distract or bribe Garfield.
Throughout the game, Garfield will be attempting to slow down the players from completing their laps. He does this in two different ways: the spaces on the board and the Garfield Cards.
At the start of the game, players reveal the top card of the Garfield deck. Whichever card is revealed affects all players until someone lands on a ‘Garfield changes his mind’ space, which make up about a third of the spaces on the board.
Some of the Player Cards just let you ignore the Garfield Cards, but some let you replace your die roll in some manner. The biggest change in these cards is the Pulling 1 Over On Garfield. For this card, the player holds the card above their head and drops it with a flip.
Sounds familiar
If successful, the card allows one of 3 effects: swap locations, move 10 spaces or roll twice. The swap is allowed no matter where they are on the board, even if they are 1 turn away from winning. That’s always fun.
The other Player Cards mostly let you ignore the Garfield Card or spaces on the board or are used as a counter to some effects.
The first player to make 3 laps around the board wins!
Final Thoughts
I wasn’t expecting much out of a Garfield board game, but actually this one isn’t so terrible. It’s got some level of counter-play and reactions. But still ultimately, there’s not a lot of choice to be made from the player.
With only a few minor tweaks, this one could be pretty solid. Some gameplay mechanic which would allow the players to choose where they land would be a big change for the better.
Ultimately, the Garfield game is pretty good. It’s geared towards kids but isn’t Candy Land, which is a big plus. If you’re looking for a good game for your kids who are also really into 40 year old cartoon cats, Garfield board game is for you!
Thanks for reading!
