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When I was asked to review games from CQ kids, I did not know what to expect in the board game sent to me. Interestingly CQ stands for Creative Quotient of a child. All of us are aware of IQ(intelligent quotient) and EQ(emotional quotient), however, there is a creative quotient of a person which is a better measure of their creative intelligence.
The brand is known for its innovative, creative and thought provoking products. The products urge children to observe, think and imagine with no limits.
Foxed is a game that helps children learn to strategise and hone their skills of multiplication and factorization. The idea of the game and all CQ games is to constantly tease your brain so that it keeps thinking.
Contents:
12 foxes (each with 4 pcs)
75 foxed paying cards
64 tokens in four colors (16 per color)
First Reaction:
The ‘foxed’ box looks nice and bright. The instructions came printed on a computer sheet, we were expecting a booklet and maybe better quality.
What is it all about?
The game needed at least two players and then on 3,4,6 and maximum 8. For 6 and 8 players you need to form teams of 3 and 4 players respectively. Each player gets 6 cards, of which they multiply any 2 cards and if the number corresponds to the number on the fox part they have, they place their color token there and if all the numbers on the fox have their color tokens on the fox then, they can claim the fox part. You can set a time limit and the team with maximum number of fox parts in the stipulated time wins.
I joined Eeshan, my elder one who is 9 years to be the second player. Did I tell you we love board games? Eeshan and I can play board games for hours at a stretch. The instructions took us a little while to understand, but that made us concentrate more on the game. The game was pretty easy, but to make every move we had to use mental multiplication. While it was a breeze for me, I could see Eeshan, calculating for each move, and unconsciously revising his multiplication tables. The only thought that struck me here was that this is such a cool way of keeping him in touch with arithmetic. Eeshan is already nine and knows his tables well, but this game is meant for 7-year-olds too, that’s when they are just introducing multiplication tables and this could be a great tool for them to strengthen their abilities.
Finer Points;
Availability: CQ is available on http://www.cqkids.in/
Price : All their board games are very reasonably priced between 250- 470.
Presentation: The game comes in a brightly printed corrugated box with basic accessories and game parts. While the packaging is attractive the focus is clearly on the concept of the game.
Concept: I liked the thought process behind the game of involving multiplication for kids. It’s like doing mental maths without even realizing it.
What Could Be Better? I guess the game is value for money, but if the quality of the literature that comes along with the game more kid friendly in terms of graphics and not just a sheet of printed paper, the look, and feel of the game will be better. Even the plastic of the token was quite average.
Verdict: Overall a reasonably engaging game. It is like a mental gym at each stage of the game, as you need to constantly keep multiplying and not forced. Great tool if you are looking for something to hone their mathematical skills in a fun, non- assertive way.
