My name is Eric, and I have 25 years gaming experience. That puts me around the age of seven that I start considering it “experience”. Let me explain. My earliest memories of gaming involves my great grandma. Every family get together, we’d gather around the table and play some card game. Be it Euchre, Spoons, or Screw Your Neighbor. We would play for pennies, often which Grandma would provide. Nothing was sweeter than wining the whole thing. I didn’t think much of this while growing up. It was just the norm.
While playing games with my great grandma, my siblings and I would fight between ourselves to see who HAD to sit next to great grandma. You had to be careful when playing cards with her. She had this competitive, sarcastic, vindictive side to her. If you played something that she didn’t like, it was often followed by a threat and what I could only imagine was swearing in Belgian. Besides that, I believe this has guided me to what kind of games I like and how I play them.
In middle school to high school, my friends and I got into Magic the Gathering and eventually Dungeons and Dragons. From there, we would spend a lot of weekends filled with video games, card games, and some board games picked up along the way. We played Apples to Apples, Curses, and Balderdash. This is where I really started to enjoy party games.
I met my loving, smart, beautiful wife in high school. She would come to my family outings, play cards, and even sit next to great grandma without fear. I would even go over to her parents house and play games there. The one game that sticks out the most was a game of Monopoly. It was long, grueling, and strenuous on our relationship. See, I got to a point where I had hotels on a couple of properties, and Ashley’s mom was fearful of landing on my spaces. A deal was made. I could continue to date her daughter, if I gave free rent on my properties. Ashley and I are happily married now, so needless to say I took the deal. This is where my banter back and forth while gaming started.
I got into miniature painting and war gaming in my early twenties. Between the miniatures and Magic the Gathering, this was the most expensive part of the hobby I have dove into. I didn’t dive lightley, as I’ve had armies for four different factions in Warhammer 40K. The games were fun, banter back and forth between friends were shared, and I found it relaxing and peaceful painting tiny miniatures with laser guns. I didn’t win any competitions, but always had some cool looking miniatures that made people stop and look. This is where I enjoyed meeting new people, talking strategies, and even getting some tips on painting.
Towards my late twenties, my friends and I were employed with full time jobs, conflicting schedules, and everyone starting their own families. I had less time to play games with friends and was starting a family myself. Ashley and I got married, and had two kids. Fast-forward 5 years after our oldest Kenzie was born, and I’m back into table top gaming. I’ve even got my daughter and son involved in gaming too. We don’t play Magic the Gathering or Warhammer 40k yet, but I’m starting them young with dice rolling. Currently they love to play King of Tokyo.
With a boom happening in board games, my family hosts a family friendly game night once a month. We have a babysitter ready to play with any kids that come who are too young to participate, and the adults can play games without many interruptions. Friends and family sitting around a table, laughing, and playing family friendly games. These are the memories I grew up experiencing and love to share these with others.
This is where I got the name for my blog. My grandma attends my game nights frequently and it speaks of the family friendly vibe I look towards sharing. I want family friendly reviews that speak about how easy games are to teach, how long it takes to play, and if my grandma enjoyed it. I’m a casual, family gamer.
Everyone and their Grandmother Games 