Getting the kids excited about learning is tough. Getting them away from a screen can seem impossible. Let’s not lie to ourselves, it has been a long time since we have seen a toy that can combine educational desire with no screen. Go Genius World Game is a board game that combines good old-fashioned fun with learning about the world around you.
What is it?
Go Genius World is a board game that has a focus on geography. The game is designed for 2 to 4 players and requires no screens. You read that right. There is no app to download, no subscription service you need to use. Everything that you need to play the game is in the box. The aim of the game is to make your way around the board and get as many questions right as you can to collect points. You have different question difficulties to answer. The one point questions are the easiest, the three point questions are the hardest. At the end of the game, the person with the most points wins the game.
Did the kids enjoy it?
When I saw this, I thought it would be a tough one to sell to my kids. And even though I consider my kids to be smart, there was a possibility that the knowledge gap would be off-putting to them. The premise of the game is simple, and (thankfully) the kids understood it. The first go at the game was tense. The kids were unsure, they found it hard to read the questions to each other, and they couldn’t remember who had scored what. Halfway through, I took over completely as the “Games Master”, and read the questions out for them. Do you know what they said after the game was over? “Can we play that again?”
The second attempt at playing was much smoother. I took my seat as Games Master to read the questions out loud for them. If they got a question right, they got to keep the card. If they got it wrong, it went to the bottom of the pile. They were more confident in answering the questions, and sometimes provided facts to back-up their answers. When my daughter got a question wrong about Paris, her brother shouted at her because she watches Ladybird and Cat Noir 24/7. At the end end of the game, they counted up the points from the cards they got to keep and found it easier to accept the winner. Honestly, if they could have played this game over and over again, they would have. But the Games Master needed to stop to load the dishwasher.
Would I recommend it?
Absolutely. Geography can be a complicated subject and a lot of kids are unsure of the world around them. This game is a great way to get your kids away from a screen and interact with the family. The premise is simple, the rules are uncomplicated, and it’s a great way to teach them something about the world around them. What I would like to see is some add-on card packs so the same questions aren’t getting asked over and over again. I only say this because my kids got kind of addicted to playing this throughout the week after school. This meant that they went through all of the question cards and I would hate to have them become bored of this board game.
Overall, I’m really happy with the Go Genius World Game. It’s simple, it’s fun, and we all learnt something as we were playing it. I took the game into school for the geography department to have a go with it and they loved it. As the holidays are coming, and classes are winding down because the kids are getting restless on the run up to the Christmas holidays, they plan on using it as a way to keep the kids amused but still learning. I hope that they bring out some expansion packs to boost the card count, and I would love to see if this game could be adapted for other subjects. This would make a great family gift for those wet days when you can’t leave the house. 10/10.
Because we live in a world where money is needed to survive, Latte Lindsay runs a number of affiliate programmes and offers contributed or partnered content. If you choose to click the links and read the posts, the site may earn a commission or receive a payment. All of the opinions are my own. Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any partner brands/company(s), beauty & lifestyle brands, airlines or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities unless specified.