I’ve been called an old soul on occasion, and I’m not even mad about it. From books to music to movies, I will pick “classic” over “modern” 9 times out of 10. Apparently, enjoying really old games is wrapped up in my old soul vibe. Today’s featured game is Pit, and it’s probably the “oldest” game we own. It was first published 120 years ago!

I remember playing Pit often as a kid. I’ll always have a soft spot for the 1973 edition my family owned, complete with its mustard-colored artwork and bright orange bell. I imagine I drove my parents batty dinging that bell every chance I’d get.

Scott and I have tried to be intentional this year about making Thursday game nights a priority for the fam. While I wouldn’t characterize my children as old souls, they do enjoy a good game of Pit. To up the ante last Thursday, I offered them an added incentive: whipped cream! Whoever won each round got a shot of whipped cream straight from the can. Yes, I bribe my children with sweets and junk food.

Back to the game. Pit is a set-collection game that relies heavily on your ability to negotiate in a chaotic, real-time environment. Think Wall Street. In my opinion, the more people that play, the better the game. Generally, I enjoy peace and quiet, but tranquility is not the name of this game. If you’ve got young kids you put to bed early, I’d advise choosing something else to play, because this.gets.loud.

You can check out some more Pit details below. Prepare to embrace the chaos, and enjoy some time with your friends and family!

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Number of Players: 3-8

Age: 7+

Playing Time: 30-60 minutes

Object: Be the first person to “corner the market”: collect all 9 cards of the commodity of your choosing.

Rules Rundown: Here’s a link to a digital copy of the rules.

Deal out the deck to the players. Use only the number of commodities as there are players. (If 4 people play, choose 4 commodities. If 7 people play, use all 7 commodities.) Players’ hands will not be even if you choose to play with the “Bull” card and the “Bear” card. After organizing your cards, decide which commodity you will attempt to collect. (You can change your mind at any point during play and choose to go for a different commodity.)

When the dealer strikes the bell, the exchange is open. Players can simultaneously begin trading anywhere between 1 and 4 commodities – just make sure that all cards in that trade are of the same commodity. Once you have all 9 cards, you ring the bell, and you’ve won! Easy peasy!

Count up your points. If you collected all 9 oats cards, for example, you’ve gained 60 points; if you win with wheat, you’ve gained 100 points. The first player to 500 wins the game.

The Bull and Bear are special cards that add a bit of extra fun to the madness. The Bull acts as a Wild of sorts. If you have 8 cards of one commodity plus the Bull, you can still corner the market (i.e., a “Bull corner”). If you have all 9 cards of a commodity plus the Bull, you can call a “Double Bull corner” and double the score of the commodity collected.

The Bear is never helpful. Get rid of that thing as quickly as possible! However, if you have the Bear OR the Bull in hand when someone else calls “Corner,” you must subtract 20 points from your score.

Ratings:
Ang – 7/10
Noah – 7/10
Leyton – 8/10
Caleigh – 10/10