Con talks Board Games and Christmas with Radio 1 DJ and Format Games Co-Founder Matt Edmondson!!!
(Con and Bex with Format Games Founders Matt Edmondson and Laurence Emmett)
Tea or Coffee and Why? (Con age 14)
It has to be tea! I’ve never actually had coffee – I don’t like the smell! I didn’t try tea properly until I was in my mid twenties as my Mum drank Earl Grey, which is pretty awful tasting, and so we never had ‘proper’ tea in the house. I love it now though, and mainly use it as an excuse to eat a LOT of biscuits.
What were your favourite games to play while growing up and why did you like them? (Con age 14)
I loved playing all sorts of games with my family- the one I really remember from being a kid is Donkey- the idea is that you collect pairs of animals, and the player left with the lone donkey is the loser. The tension and secrecy of knowing you had it in your hand and the satisfaction of getting someone else to take it from you was brilliant.
Does being a Radio DJ ever inspire the games you create and what normally triggers a new idea? (Con age 14)
Well, I do think up lots of games to play on the radio, and coming up with board games uses a similar part of my brain. On the radio I’m always trying to find little games that are funny, quick and immediately easy to understand and play along with, and all the board games I’ve invented have a similar vibe. I like really simple ideas that get you straight to the fun.
Colour is an important part of your new game Egg Slam – What’s your favourite colour and why? (Con age 14)
My favourite colour is blue. It’s a peaceful colour- the sky, the sea, smurfs. We’ve just moved house and every time my wife Bryony asks what colour we should paint a room, I always say blue. Dark blue, light blue, grey-blue. I just love blue.
If you’re Colourblind, can you still play Egg Slam? (Con age 14)
What a great question – I’ve not tested it with a colour blind player, but I think it could be tricky for them. If they REALLY wanted to play, I guess they could write the colours of the birds and background on the cards in permanent marker!
What’s been your favourite Christmas present you’ve ever been given and why did you like it? (Con age 14)
The best present I ever got was a remote control car with a pop up water pistol on top that was shaped like a python! It was incredibly good fun sneaking up on family members and squirting them with water!
What games do you normally play with your family at Christmas and who normally wins? (Con age 14)
At Christmas I always play the ‘celebrity name in a hat game’ with my friends. Lots of celebrity names go in a bowl (each player adds five names in) and then there are three rounds. In the first round you have to describe the celebrities to your team, 30 seconds at a time. Then all the names go back in the bowl and you have to describe them again but using only one word each time. Finally, all the names go back in the bowl and you have to mime them. It’s hilarious, and generally speaking my team always wins. With my family, it’s all about Banangrams, and this year we’ll be playing one of my new inventions, which is a game called Noggin. It’s coming out next year and is THE BEST GAME EVER.
Ansagrams, Egg Slam and So Wrong It’s Right Available now from all good retailers!!!
