Does your family enjoy playing games and spending time together? Our family loves playing board games. We try to have at least one night a week that is game night. I will admit that there are some weeks this doesn't happen. We get too busy. Even when times get too busy, I always keep my eye out for fun new games to add to our collection. We were thrilled to add the game
Commissioned from
Chara Games to our collection.
Chara Games is a Christian company started by Patrick and Katherine Lysaght. The company was started to offer families creative and fun games with a Christian theme. Chara is the biblical Greek word for unshakable joy. Chara Games want to help families find joy with each other while building those special relationships that grow when families spend quality time together. What better way to spend time together than to play a fun board game. Of course, building a close relationship with God will fill us with so much joy. A family that plays and prays together stays together.
So What is Commissioned?
For this review, we received the historical and biblical themed game Commissioned from Chara Games. Commissioned is the first game available from this wonderful company. You can purchase the game through amazon or at your local store! The game costs $44.00 and already has 5 stars on Amazon. They now have the game 3 Seed available too.
The game is a cooperative strategy board game that 2-6 players can play. It takes about one hour to play. The first couple of times the game is played will take a bit longer as you try to figure out what you are doing. Be sure to watch the instructional video online. Commissioned is recommend for ages 14 and up. Both my kids are under fourteen, they are 11 and 13. The did fine with the game once we understood what we were doing.
The game comes with the following pieces.....
1 Double Sided Game Board
5 Double Sided Scenario Cards
6 Apostle Player Boards
6 Wooden Player Pawns
96 Faith Cards
27 Trial Cards
4 Wood Missionary Meeples
75 Wood Church Member Cubes
1 Wood Elder Staff
30 Double Sided Stop Tokens
5 Double Sided Extinguished Tokens
1 Converted City Leaders Token
1 Roman Legion Token
1 Die
1 Rule Book
1 Theme Appendix Book
As players play the game Commissioned, they will be placed into the roles of the early Christians, the Apostles. Players will travel back in time 150 years. Players have to work together to build their faith decks, grow the early Christian church, collect the books of the New Testament, and overcome the trials and persecution the early Christians had to face.
So How Do You Play?
First off, this game it not very easy to understand when you first start playing. It has a lot of components that take some time to get a hang of. After reading the instructions, I will admit I was lost. Thankfully, there is an instructional video to watch.
Since the game is a cooperative game, players must work together. This is a little different from most games. Usually in games players are trying to win and beat their opponent. With Commissioned, players are learning to work together! This is great for working on teamwork and cooperation. The game is a little tricky to explain, but I'll try m best to briefly describe it.
The game is played in three rounds...Arm, Live, and Mature.
~Arm Round~
Players draw 6 faith cards to play with during the game
~Live~
This round has 5 actions
Trials
Pray
Share
Move
Grow
~Mature~
After completing the 5 actions during the Live round players use their faith cards to get more faith cards.
This may seem a little confusing, but if you watch the video it will all make since. I promise!
The first thing players do when they start playing is to choose a scenario card. This will determine what side of the board players will be using during the games. They do make recommendations for new players. Players then become one of the Apostles.
Players can choose from Peter, Paul, John, Andrew, Thomas, or Barnabas. Each Apostle has their own board, pawn piece, and faith cards. Once these things have been decided, players will start going through the rounds I mentioned above.
What Did We Think of Commissioned?
The game is extremely well made. The boards are thick and sturdy. They definitely seem like they would last a long time. The game is colorful and the drawings are very well done.
My biggest issue with the game is learning to play. It's very confusing. I didn't find the directions very helpful. I actually found them very confusing to follow. When I started reading the directions and trying to play with the kids, we all became a little frustrated. The kids were more so and were ready to quit within a few minutes. Thankfully, Chara Games has a video online that shows you how to play. It explains the game and makes it easy for players to understand what is expected. I highly recommend watching the video! I would suggest watching it and figuring out how to play before bringing the kids into the equation. Less stress for mom and the kids.
The first few rounds take longer than an hour. I'd say the first 4 times we played, no one was really enjoying it. I will say that Therese and I are not big fans of strategy games, so we may not be the best people to ask. However, by the 6th time playing everyone was getting the hang of it and was starting to have some fun.
If you have a strategy game lover in your family, they will thoroughly enjoy Commissioned from Chara Games. If you are not a fan of strategy games, this might not be as much fun for you. Out of all of us, Michael enjoyed the game the most. He loves these types of games. Therese didn't find the game all that exciting.
Just in time for Christmas, Chara Games has a new game available for families to play.
The new game is called
3 Seeds. 3 Seeds is a strategic card Christian theme game. The game is for 2-5 players and play lasts in between 30-45 minutes. Players use the 3 seed cards (time, money, & labor) to complete crops, use special event cards to earn bonuses, and find hidden harvest cards. Players need to remember that it's not just what you sow, but where you sow.
Some of the crew review members will be reviewing, so be sure to stop by and see how much they've enjoyed this new Christian game from Chara Games.
Find out more about Chara Games.....
Want to see what other families thought of Commissioned?
Click the link below and read the reviews!
Please Note~ This post may contain affiliate links. If you choose to click on a link, add it to your cart and complete your purchase, I will receive a small percentage. We are very grateful for this additional source of income. Thank you.
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