There are board games and then there are Singaporean board games. While about anyone can enjoy a normal game of Monopoly, the engagement and entertainment factors simply skyrocket when the train stations become Tanjong Pagar or Tiong Bahru, and the road names take on monikers like Orchard Road, Geylang and Raffles Place.
The same is true for card games and party games too. Context is king, people, and these following games come packed with so much references, colloquialisms and the most down-to-earth Singlish there is that any true blue Singaporean will surely get a kick out of them.
Chope! The Card Game
Keep your love for chope-ing seats at the hawker centre alive and well with this one. In this test of dexterity and speed, players fight over tables using tissue packets. Get them before others do, or before the mynah birds foil your plans. Best played before or after a meal comprising chicken rice, laksa and biryani paired with a refreshing Michael Jackson.
Off Track
It’s like card game Saboteur, but the mine tunnels are MRT tracks and the dwarves are characters like office lady and school boy instead. Can you find your fellow CBD-going teammates and work together to reach the office before the sabo kias ruin your day with signal faults? S Iswaran and Baey Yam Keng can’t help you out here.
Say What? Singapore’s Shoik Food Card Game
A local card game all about local food sounds like the game to be playing right before lunch or dinner. In this guessing game, the winner is the one who can get the most number of correct guesses. If you start feeling hungry halfway through a round, you know you’re playing this right.
The Singaporean Dream
No self-respecting owner of local board games should be caught without this one. Whether your ultimate goal in life is to be a PSLE top scorer, SIA stewardess or (eeeks) an influencer, this game lets you live out those fantasies in jest. Fulfill enough dreams (from taking a selfie with PM Lee to paying off your HDB loan) and you win. Gahmen approved.
Stay the Fuck Inside
Crude, perhaps, but this game gets the message across as plainly as possible while letting folks have fun at the same time. It’s actually a virtual drinking card game, and is best played while on Zoom, Hangouts, or other video chat tools. The six different game modes—like Dare or Drink, Trivia and Most Likely To—will get you and your pals tipsy in no time. Just don’t be a CB.
