Gullible Review
Advert: this game was gifted by Gamely Games, this has not affected our opinion.
I thought it was a lovely gesture by Gamely Games to name their latest party game after a word that had been taken out of the dictionary to help stop it falling into obscurity. Chambers, Oxford and Collins had unanimously voted to remove the word Gullible as it had been written on too many schoolroom ceilings over the last few decades.
Okay, so I don’t take readers of my reviews to be gullible at all. Nor would I want to hoodwink you with anything other than my true and honest opinion. I am therefore happy to share that when this game arrived unannounced through my door I was concerned. While the box art tart in me was delighted with the cheeky chip-thieving seagull on the cover, I was worried the gameplay would be a pastiche of other games. However, the quizzical seagull on the lid persuaded me to get it to the table. Read on to find out what I think now I’ve played it…
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Setup
Lift the lid of the box. Take out your current question deck from the box and issue both teams a stash of betting chips, a pad of paper and a pencil. When lifting the lid of the box is the most complex thing of a setup you know it’s relatively idiot-proof!
Gameplay
In this team game you will take a question card. This will state one question and the correct answer. As a team all you need to do is think up two other possible plausible answers. Although sometimes the unplausible is equally as good!
Once both teams have done this. Teams take it in turns to read the question and possible answers to their opponents. The opposing team then has to decide how many chips they wish to bet on which answer or answers. Any chips on incorrect answers are lost and any on the correct answer can be carried forward to the next round. The idea is to be the team that doesn’t run out of chips first.
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What it’s like
Those that have played Balderdash will be thinking this sounds familiar. In its purest form of course, there are similarities. However, unlike Balderdash, Gullible is quick to play and the betting element adds to the game in a really clever way.
You will either love thinking up the answers or you may get flustered. While everyone I have played it with has enjoyed this imaginative challenge, I can imagine it vexing others. Almost all the games of Gullible that I’ve played have had stand out moments, usually when a team are dissecting the answers, however, one of my gaming moments of recent times involved my eldest son knowing the answer. I think it may have put John (aka @trywingames on Instagram) off platypuses for life!
Gullible can be very quick to play so you will usually play a handful of games back-to-back. I would advocate a best of three or five and treat each game as a round. Equally though, as one quick end of the night filler Gullible excels.
I have to balance how much I enjoy this game by saying, it is probably as good as the players. I’m fortunate that I have played it with fantastic people that get into the spirit of it, that may not be the case for all.
My only real gripe, is discussing your potential answers as a team. It is all too easy for your opponents to overhear your thoughts. To get round this we play a song through our smart speaker, which we also use as a time limit to scribble down the answers. In that regard I wouldn’t want to play in teams of more than three members. However, head-to-head or 2 vs 2 is definitely my preference.
Table Presence
Oodles of cards are revealed when you lift the lid off the box. About 330 in six decks, each with a paper wrapper (rather than single use plastic – bravo!). One of these is a Seagull card that helps identify which deck you are using and where you have got to in the deck. Don’t shuffle them! The questions are all family friendly.
The betting chips illustrated with potato chips put a smile on my face in a dad joke kinda way. They also fit the seagull seaside theme, and is more apt for an independent game company from Brighton than the original French game Pigeon Pigeon. Also in the box are two pads of paper and some pencils. You will probably run out of paper in the pads before you complete all the cards but fortunately paper is not a difficult thing to replace!
The game can also be condensed down to fit in a jean pocket with just a deck of cards, chips pencils and pads. Which makes it a fantastic travel game option.
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What the kids thought
Max (8): I really like it, I think its funny! Some cards are easy to think of answers for, others are a bit tricky to think of fake answers. The guessing of the real answers and putting your chips down is fun. It’s quite exciting when you put all your chips on one answer and might lose!
George (11): I like Gullible. I enjoy how you have to make up two answers, particularly when they are silly. I think I lose a lot, but that hasn’t stopped me enjoying playing the game.
Harrison (14): Gullible is one of my top three favourite games. It is brilliant and everything about it is great. The questions are really fun and I enjoy coming up with the answers to the questions. I like to create a lot of pub quizzes and this game reminds me of that. It really appeals to me. The art is fun and I really like the chips being chips!
Final thoughts on Gullible
All my initial concerns about this game were washed away with my very first play. In the first two weeks of owning it I chalked up a whooping 17 plays. I played it at home, in the pub, and at Costa. Everyone I introduced it too, including a random barmaid in Worcester, had a great time playing it! Many have gone on to buy it too.
Gullible is silly, simple fun and ultimately that’s what you want from a party game. It may not be for everyone, nothing ever is! However, Gullible has been a surprise hit with me and my family and friends.
Key Facts
Number of players: 2 to 10
Board Game Review Recommended Age: 8+
Publisher’s Recommended Age: 12+
Playing Time: 15 minutes
Setting Up and Take Down Time: 1 minute
Designers: Rémy Wannebroucq
Publisher: Gamely Games
RRP: £19.99
Summary
Easy to learn and quick to play; Gullible excels at being a great party game. Fun and laughter will prevail if you are with the right group of people. If you think you and your chums will be creative enough with the answers, this game will be a winner!
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Artwork and Components
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Complexity
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Instructions
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Interaction
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Value for Money
Overall
Pros
- Quick to play
- Requires creativity
- Travels well outside the box
- Fun watching your opponents react to the answers
- Family friendly party game
- Good party game for lower player counts
Cons
- Having to be creative
- Betting may not be for everyone
- May run out of paper included in the box
Need more games?
If you already own Gullible and enjoy it, or are looking for other inspiration, you might also like these similar games:
- Herd Mentality
- Balderdash
- Shoot for the Stars
- Half Truth
Buy Gullible
If you want to buy Gullible after reading our review click on one of our affiliate links below (note there has been no affiliate links until this point)
Reviewer’s Note
For clarity: we don’t get paid for our reviews. However, we were kindly gifted this game by Gamely Games. We have tried not to let this affect our review in any way.
We may however earn a tincy wincy commission if you buy a game having clicked one of our affiliate links like the one above… this hopefully gives us a bit of pocket money towards hosting costs and new games to review!
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