Summary

• Necromolds combines Play-Doh monsters with satisfying battles.
• It's a board game suitable for various age groups.
• Make board games enjoyable by focusing on fun rather than strict rules, encouraging creativity and laughter.

I’ve always wondered when my daughter will start taking an interest in my hobbies. She m﷽ight want to try the things I love, she might shun them, believing them embarrassing and ‘for old people’ (which is true, but they’re fun anyway), she might take no interest in me whatsoღever and do her own thing. Any of the above are fine by me.

She’s nearly three now, but some hobbies naturally transcend generations. I love reading, and she loves listening to me read. Whether it’s Meg and Mog, Green Eggs and H🉐am, or a ‘Terry and Geri’ story plucked from memories of the stories my grandad told me as a child, she loves it all. The only time I’ve influenced my own tastes has been suggesting to read The Hobbit, which took six months of bedtimes to finish. I’m not sure how much of Tolkien’s prose she took in, but she asked for the next chapter each night, so I’m counting that as a win.

So far, she hasn’t seen me play many games. I don’t play video games during her waking hours, preferring instead to,💝 you know, spend quality time with my toddler, and the same goes for board games. She’s watched some football with me (stretching the definition of the word ‘watched’ to its extreme there), and we’ve played plenty together (her favourite game is just ‘nutmegs’), but I feel 🎶like she’s too young for video games.

However, Necromolds might be the game to change that. My daughter is a big fan of Play-Doh and I&♑rsquo;m a big f♐an of board games. Could this be the game to bridge our interests?

How Not To Get Your Kid Into Board Games

The core concept of Necromolds is simple: create monsters out of a Play-Doh-like substance using moulds disguised as spellbooks and arcane journals. Battle your way across the board to beat your opponent’s doughmonsters, and squish them🌌 when you defeat them. It’s a visceral, tangible, immensely satisfying mechanic that brings the wonderful world of Necromolds to life.

B🧸ut Necromolds has a surprising amount of depth. If you’re an adult playing with other adults, it’s a very simple game. Easy to understand, easy to master. If you’re around the minimum recommended age of ten, and if this is your first experience of board gaming, it might seem more complex. If you’re two, it’s unintelligible.

Whether your child is two or ten, the very worst thing to do would be🔯 to read them the rulebook aloud and play according to the letter of the law. Nobody wants to play against That Guy (or That Gal), and the same goes for your kids. Being a rules lawyer and expecting a fair, competitive match is a surefire way to ensure your kid never takes an interest in board games ever again. But there’s another way.

Make Board Games Fun Again

What was fun when you were a kid? Was it playing chess, or was it dramatically knocking over your brother&💟rsquo;s pawn with your knight? Yes, that’s a specific example. Maybe you liked making the king and queen smooch while your opponent planned their strategies. What I’m saying is, have some fun with it.

I still make loud MEOOOWM noises when playing wit🐈h my Stormraven Gunships.

For playing with my daughter, we just made the plasticine monsters✅ and spent our time squishing them again. And I had a great time. I didn’t even read the rulebook until after she went to bed, when I chanced a game with another adult. And, to be perfectly honest, the squishing was still the best part.

It all comes down to the fact that games need to be fun. Sure, they can be tactical and serious, but there’s an intellectual relief that comes with pulling off a strategic move – the challenge makes it fun. But sometimes you don’t need that. Sometimes you need to switch your brain off and have a la🌸ugh with the physical elements of a game. Sometimes you need to smush your chess pieces together and say “mwah”. Sometimes you need to crush a plasticine monster with your bare hands.