Winning in Marriage is Entirely a Matter of Chance
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Source: Backed on Kickstarter!
Awhile back I met Erika Svanoe on Twitter and I saw that she was running a Kickstarter campaign for her new game, Marrying Mr. Darcy. As a Janeite who loves to play games (especially Jane Austen related games) I knew I had to support her campaign and obtain a copy of this new game for myself!
Several months later (because the Kickstarter was super successful!) I became the happy owner of this new and unique card game. I decided to coerce my family to play it with me! I thought it would be fun to share our experience playing the game with you all, so I wrote up a review!
THE PLAYERS:
- The Janeite: Yours truly, avid reader of Austenesque literature and die-hard Janeite.
- The Mother: Although not into Jane Austen, my dear mom has always been there to watch Jane Austen movies with me, buy Jane Austen books off my amazon wishlist, and even celebrate the Bicentennial of Pride and Prejudice with me
- The Hubby: Affectionately known here as Mr. Bingley. My darling husband is so supportive of my blog and my love for everything Jane Austen. He is a fan of The Lizzie Bennet Diaries and took me to the Jane Austen House and Museum, but so far, hasn’t read any of the books or seen the movies (and I’m not one to force it on him!)
- The Gamer: My younger brother is as geeky about boardgames as I am about Jane Austen and the Regency Era. A collector and reviewer of games, he was willing to participate in our inaugural game of Marrying Mr. Darcy!
OUR THOUGHTS BEFORE THE GAME DIRECTIONS WERE READ:
- The Hubby: Somebody is getting’ hitched!
- The Mother: Hopefully I’ll know how to play this!
- The Gamer: I need a decade before I get married, I’m ain’t ready for that kind of commitment!
- The Janeite: This is awesome…I’m about to play a Jane Austen game with my family!
OUR THOUGHTS AFTER THE GAME DIRECTIONS WERE READ:
- The Gamer: I’m scared…
- The Hubby: It’s a lot of rules, not sure if I’ll be able to keep up.
- The Mother: I’m excited and I can’t wait to start
- The Janeite: Seems a little daunting, but I think I understand what it’s all about. Should be fun!
- The Witty Father: (who happened to walk by at this point, no idea what we were doing) What is this, Old Maid? (Thought that was hilarious!)
THE GAME OVERVIEW:
A card game with elegantly designed cards, full of heroines, suitors, events, and character cards. The object of the game is to accumulate the most points. There are two stages of the game in which to collect points – The Courtship Stage and The Proposal Stage.
During The Courtship Stage points are earned by collecting Character cards – there are 4 types of Character cards highlighting various attributes – Wit, Beauty, Reputation, and Friendliness. Event cards determine when each player receives, steals, or loses Character cards.
The Proposal Stage is very brief, it is when all the players attempt to match their heroine with 1 of the 6 possible suitors. Each suitor has different requirements (i.e. you must have 5 Wit points to be eligible for Mr. Darcy). Rolling the dice determines if a suitor proposes or not, leaving the possibility of winning the suitor you want totally up to chance. If you are unlucky with the die, you may end up an Old Maid!
OUR EXPERIENCE:
We played one game and it last a little over an hour. Here are the heroines we “played as.”
|
The Gamer |
The Hubby |
The Mother |
The Janeite |
|
Elizabeth |
Georgiana |
Charlotte |
Jane |
The event cards were full of fun and entertaining tasks. As a Janeite I loved catching all the references and nods to scenes and gatherings that take place in Pride and Prejudice. All of us players, found the cards to be interesting, varied, and great inducements for laughter and merriment. (especially from the men!)
There were one or two Event cards, that left us a little confused as to what we should do and the strategy of using Cunning Points and cards was a little overwhelming at first. In our game, it was perhaps unique that the Mr. Darcy proposal card came up in the first round. (Mr. Darcy becomes engaged in the first round…game over.) Since I wanted to experience real gameplay, I declined Mr. Darcy’s proposal (how shocking, I know!)
At the Proposal Stage, it was quite interesting to see who we each ended up with. Can’t believe that no one married Darcy!!!
|
The Gamer |
The Hubby |
The Mother |
The Janeite |
|
Elizabeth |
Georgiana |
Charlotte |
Jane |
|
Bingley |
Wickham |
Col. Fitzwilliam |
Denny |
Such different couplings, right? And the scorings surprised us too. Poor hubby had no choice but to elope with Wickham mid-game and loose all his Characters Cards! (Such a sad state of affairs.)
OUR VERDICTS:
The Hubby: 7/10 A fun game, but sometimes the amount of rules felt a little overwhelming. I really enjoyed the attractive graphics and overall card designs.
The Gamer: 7/10 I like how each heroine had different strengths and how some of the event cards were specifically beneficial for them. That made the gameplay interesting.
The Mother: 7/10 It took awhile to understand, but once we got going it was easy to get the hang of it. I liked how there was more than one option of suitor for each heroine.
The Janeite: 9/10 I love how this game was still fun and playable even if you had no knowledge of Pride and Prejudice and Jane Austen! A perfect game for Janeites who want to share their love for Jane Austen with their significant others, family members, and friends (without them feeling tortured or bored!) The game is elegant and the artwork stunning. Literary-based games are the best!
~~~
GIVEAWAY TIME!!!
Because she is awesome, Erika has kindly allowed me to host a giveaway for her new game, Marrying Mr. Darcy in conjunction with my review! One copy of Marrying Mr. Darcy will be given away to one lucky winner!
To enter this giveaway, leave a comment about my review of Marrying Mr. Darcy!
- This giveaway is open to US residents. Thank you, Erika!
- This giveaway ends October 15th!
Sounds a brilliant game Meredith and I loved the photographs of you and your family playing the game too but I have no-one to play with – none of my friends or family love JA like I do and not sure they would indulge me either as they always laugh when they come to my house and I have my JA quotes from P & P on the walls and pictures etc., and even have some on my desk at work – never mind – good luck to whoever wins!!!
Thank you, Michelle! I’m glad you enjoyed our collective review – it definitely is hard to find like-minded fans of JA in our real lives, isn’t it? To bad we can’t play this game virtually together online! 🙂 Not sure I’d be brave enough to coerce any friends I have to play this game, I knew I could get away with it amongst my family! 🙂
Meredith, you are right. Although this was my Christmas present from my son-in-law, I didn’t actually receive the game until the Sping, like you did. Mea Culpa. I do wish I had a group to play with. I ended up an Old Maid as I refused to accept Mr. Collins, when I played with my son-in-law.
Oh no! I would have done the same! I was the last person to role and the only one I was eligible for was Mr. Denny – all eggs in one basket! 😉 A big group would be fun!
DO NOT INCLUDE ME IN THE GIVEAWAY
Really loved the photos you included of your family playing. I know enough true Janeites to make up a foursome and
have tea and enjoy this game! Thank you
for the giveaway.
Lucky you! I’m sure you will have a blast! As you can see, it is a lot of fun, whether you are into Jane Austen or not!
My family knows that in general, I just DON’T do board games and card games. A few exceptions are chess, Star Wars Trivial Pursuit and Othello, but even the times I do play those are rare. My interest just isn’t there. They would be shocked to know that I’d love to have this game, but not surprised when they see that it’s Austenesque!
LOL! Hopefully they would play it with you, too! Games have always been a part of our family games – we are a fans of unique games – while we do play Monopoly, Scrabble, and UNo – we love old games like Pit, Milles Bornes, and Dutch Blitz. 🙂
Oh how much fun I could have making my family play this game with me. They all know how obsessed with anything Jane Austen they would humor me for sure. Thanks so much for the chance to win!
That’s awesome that your family would be willing to play with you! 🙂 I’m sure it would be a lot of fun!
Looks like game night in the Bingley household is a lot of fun! Thank you for including pictures. I’m curious, would you say that someone (like us) with a lot of knowledge about Jane Austen has any sort of advantage over those unfortunate souls we force to play with us who can barely make it through an Austen costume drama? And how many people can play?
I’m going to remind hubby about how many times I played Magic the Gathering with him and his friends … and then give him laser-stare-of-death until he plays this with me.Until he happily plays this with me. As many times as I want.
Thanks for the giveaway, Meredith and Erika!
Yes, Heather! We love our game nights! 🙂 I only wish I capture more pictures – was busy with playing the game, writing down our comments.
To answer your question, I don’t think there would be an advantage in the game play – we might understand the events on the cards – Meryton Assembly, playing cards at Mrs. Phillip’s house, but that understanding doesn’t benefit any strategy or advantage over others. Up to 6 people can play.
Love your plan! Hope it works! 🙂 It will definitely be fun for any group to play.
What a fun review! I had a big smile and chuckle over reading it and the pictures just added to it! I will let my sisters in the States know what I want for Christmas!!!!
Yes, this would definitely make a great Christmas gift for any Janeite!
I liked very much the way you used to “explain” this post. I had fun reading it and seeing your faces while playing the game!. It´s a pity I can´t participate in the giveaway for not being in the US but, I don´t mind because, thinking it better, maybe I could have some troubles understanding these special rules and, in my case, in english that is not my mother language! hahaha.
I’m glad you enjoyed this different type of review, Teresa – I’d love to do it again sometime. 🙂 If you ever decide you’d like to have the game, there is a pdf version of it available on the creator’s website – marryingmrdarcy.com
Your review and delight of this game makes me envious. What an ideal evening filled with fun and a unique game that would be special. Great photos and description of all.
I’m pretty sure playing this with any group will be fun! I’m glad you enjoyed our review!
This looks like fun! I could probably rope my mom into playing it with me after she’s had a glass or two of Disaronno first. lol
I love that you reviewed this and included all your family’s input, and photos. Would you say it’s more fun with 4 players vs 2, or it doesn’t really matter?
LOL Monica! I bet you’d have a lot of laughs together. It might be more fun with a bigger group, but I think it would fun with 2 as well.
I’m a board game geek AND a Jane Austen fan, so this sounds perfect. In fact, I’m putting it on my holiday wish list right now. Thanks for your in-depth review, especially with insights from such a varied group of players. I’ve seen great concepts me buried under too-convoluted rules, or simple games get too boring or predictable to play more than a handful of times. This one sounds like something new each time, and great for parties!
This game does sound perfect for you, Beth! I love how we all had different things to say, I’m glad that you found everyones’ viewpoints helpful. Yes, I think it will feel new each time we play. Can’t wait to play again!
Oh man, this sounds like so much fun! I love the way you set up the review with everyone’s thoughts … I’d love to use this game to introduce some of my non-Janeite friends to the awesomeness 😉
::fingers crossed::
Thanks, Rebecca! It would be a great way to introduce Jane Austen to new people! 🙂
Sounds like great fun, Meredith. The thought of your Mr. Bingley eloping with Wickham did make me chuckle! Sadly, I can’t enter as I’m over the pond from you but as I’d have great difficulty getting anyone, that’s anyone AT ALL, to play it with me, I won’t be too sad about it.
If I ever make it to your area of the world I will bring my game (yes, I have it in my possession) and we will have tea and play until we drop. How’s that, Anji?
Ooo, yes please, Joy! You’re more than welcome if you ever make it to our part of the world, as are any of my Janeite friends from overseas.
I know! It was quite funny when he got that card! Poor “Georgiana.” If I come back to England, I’ll be sure to bring it with me! 🙂 Can’t imagine how fun it will be to play with a roomful of Janeites!
I’m not a gamer so please don’t enter me, but I had to say what a delightful way you chose to review it, with the different players and the pictures! It was a hoot.
I’m glad you enjoyed the review! I love talking about my family and I’m so happy they were willing to help me out with this!
What a fun way to review a game! I like your methods. This sounds very fun. Thanks for the giveaway opportunity. I love the chance to win this.
Thank you, Sophia Rose! It was a fun review to write! 🙂
Sounds like a fun game I would love to play with some of my online fellow Austen fans!
Absolutely! 🙂
I’m so glad that you reviewed this game. It sounds as if you and family had a great time; at least it looks like you did from the pictures. Unfortunately, board and card games have lost their popularity with families. However, since my daughter and two granddaughters (ages 16 and 12) moved in with me, we started playing board games and have shared more laughs that any electronic game!! I would really love to win this game and make my family play it, since they do give me a bad time (in fun) about being a Janeite.
Thank you, Catherine! 🙂 I love board and card games, wish we had more time to play them! That’s great that you started to play more games together, it definitely a fun past-time! 🙂 Hope you get to play this with your family soon!
Meredith,
I love the way you categorize things but you surpassed my expectations. Very creative way of explaining the challenge of the game buy using your family, their photos, scores, etc. I had a lot of fun reading this review and will be sharing it on my page. I am getting close to 10,000 likes and I was wondering if you would like to participate in anyway. Suggestions are welcome, after all you are the queen of the giveaways!!!!
Sincerely your fan always,
Rita L. Watts
Thank you, Rita! You are so sweet! 🙂 Thank you for all your kind words and for sharing this on your page! 🙂 Congrats on getting close to 10,000 likes! I would love to participate in any way – just let me know!
It looks and sounds like so much fun. What a great game to play with my friends.
For sure! 😉
it sounds like a fun game. hopefully I can play it with a few friends and maybe my hubby and son will join in.
They should definitely join in and play with you! 🙂 It probably be a lot of fun!
Thank you for the generous give away Meredith and Erika.
Loved this fun review, especially the pictures & the participants’ commentary! Very funny! 🙂 I love board & card games, so this is definitely intriguing. Thanks for sharing the fun & for the giveaway chance!
Hi Amy! Thank you! I’m glad you enjoyed the review!
Loved the way you involved the family without being over “Austenesque” about it! Looks like good fun was had by all. I have driven my family (2 boys and 1 girl) crazy over the years with card and board games. Even when they were little on holiday at the beach, I insisted on candles only, no tv and games each night! I’m looking forward to giving this card game a “whirl”!
I’m glad my family was able to enjoy it! Howe lovely that you would play games by candle light! That sounds like fun!
Poor Mr. Bingley! I guess someone had to run away with Wickham though. I loved his expert review of the graphics! Great post!
LOL! Yes, unfortunately Wickham will find someone to ensnare, won’t he? 🙂
I became so excited at the thought of playing and owning this game. I am cracking up that Mr. Bingly had to elope with Mr. Wickham. Beautiful cards and presentation.
Thanks for the great review.
Becky
I know how you feel! That’s what I felt when I first saw this game. LOL! Yes, that was an unexpected twist! 🙂
Meredith, what a lovely, lovely review and great photos. I had forgotten that I ordered this months ago so was surprised when I got back to the US and it was waiting for me. Once we get settled in to our new house I will corral some Jane Austen loving friends and play. You are saving us hours of rule reading by posting as you did. Muchas gracias!!! Please do not enter me in the giveaway as I already have it. Thanks also to the delightful soul that created this.
Aww! Thank you, Joy! That’s great that you are a happy owner too! You must tell me how you like playing it! 🙂
I found myself smiling and seriously “lol”-ing. I can only imagine attemptimg to play this with my mother and brother. It wouldn’t have such a good outcome as your game did, but it’d be a family moment to put in the scrap book.
LOL! Yes, I’m glad I got some photos! Wish I video-taped it, there were many funny lol moments.
I just loved the review and the pics of family playing the game. Made me laugh hysterically. I especially loved your brothers head on the table. The different pairings were fun. Georgiana with wickham are you nuts….yikes. Darcy not married how sad. Sounds like a lot of fun.
LOL! Thank you, Suzan! I’m so glad we made you laugh! The boys were having wayyyyy to much fun with this! Yes, “Georgiana” was so unlucky! Her reputation is ruined!
Clearly you need more Janeites playing this game!! Wonderful review. Wish I could have been there, especially with the gents playing.
I do! Would love to have you play with us!
This is great ! Thank you for this review which was very funny to read and made me want to play this game.
Happy to entertain! 🙂 Hope you get the chance to play this game someday!
Thanks for a great overview. My daughter loves the movies so I’m sure she’d play with me.
Awesome! She would understand a lot of the cards then, for sure!
Awesome review. I can’t wait to play it. Thanks for including pics of the gameplay.
Thank you! I’m only sorry I didn’t take more photos! 🙂 Glad you enjoyed the review!
I am somewhat envious of your family being up for the challenge. Mine would laugh hysterically should I approach them. =D So much fun, I just love the idea of this!! If I do not win, I will have to search for the game for no other reason than I want it because it’s (obviously) Jane! Thanks for sharing your game night, that looks like a blast!
They did laugh, but they obliged me anyway. 😉 As you saw they made it fun. You so should get this game!
It sounds awesome! I really enjoyed the review and that you had non-Janeites and men playing, plus were thoughtful to include their thoughts. Hopefully I’ll be able to check the game out sometime. Great review and I hope Erika’s is a success for her.
Thank you, Colleen! I’m so glad you enjoyed our experience and review! Erika did a marvelous job, I hope she continues to make more games like this and has a lot of success!
Oh, my goodness! What a fantastic review. I loved how you had your family play. Thank you for the giveaway – the game sounds like such fun for everyone. Card games were a popular evening entertainment during the Regency period and was promient in Pride and Prejudice.
Thank you, Eva! 🙂 It comes with the territory of living with Janeite! Very true – playing this game is a new way to channel Jane and live life as her characters did! 🙂
Oh, that’s so neat! I want to play. I don’t think I would get my family to play with me either… Well, my husband might play once to please me, but that’s where it would end. Thanks for letting us know about the game, I hadn’t heard about it yet.
Happy to share, Amanda! That’s great that your husband would play. It can be played with 2 people, I might do that soon, since I’ve been eager to play it again. 🙂
This game sounds fun, and you are so lucky to such open and considerate people to share it with you! Thanks again!
Yes, I am! Love those guys!
Wow!! Such a fun game!! How do you pick your winner??
Your review was excellent, I cannot wait to play it myself 🙂
Blessings!
The winner is the person who has the most points after totaling all the courtship and marriage points together.
This would be a kick for girls’ night!
Absolutely! So much fun!
My fRiend bought this game and me and a few other girls have played it multiple times and it’s still fun. We get really into tea time.
I’ve played this recently with a few friends that own the game. I completely agree with your reviews – the different strengths each character has makes the game entertaining and the outcomes varied.
I love this game! I was given it as a gift from my husband and two young boys last year…I’m a lover of Jane Austen. My husband has watched P & P, Sense & Sensibility and Emma but just being accommodating. He enjoys this game well enough but my 8 yr old son has really got into it! We had long discussions afterwards about the different characters and who marries whom etc. It has really surprised me how much he enjoys it all and is interested in it. He’s such a boyish boy but does love a good game and a good story, and he loves to read. I’m yet to play it with my sister or other friend who also love Jane Austen. I can only imagine it’s even more fun!!