The Resistance vs Arimaa

While there is little variation game-to-game (for example, there will always be two spies when five or six people play the game, and the mission sizes are always based on group size), it's the circumstances, such as which missions are chosen and who participates in them, that change each time. This allows it to be played over and over and over again without losing any excitement.

Even though logic is very useful when determining whose a spy, The Resistance is more about being able to bluff, trick, and sway others. As such, players are always actively engaged in discussions and trying to outplay and outsmart each other. This creates a very social environment which allows the game to thrive.

Players are often very loud and active during gameplay. When everyone gets into the game and starts trying to figure out who the spies are, things can get really fun with theories and accusations flying everywhere. Overall, The Resistance creates a very exciting and entertaining atmosphere full of suspense and bluffing.

It's designed to be played in three to five rounds, with the entire session lasting about 30 minutes.

There are zero complex rules or systems weighing this game down. It's incredibly easy to pick up and play, and new players will understand it immediately. This makes it an excellent game for everyone.

All players remain active and get to participate until the game ends. This is great since there's no way to mess up or have to sit out and watch your friends play.

While The Resistance is flexible and able to be played with as little as five people, the best results are achieved when played with six or more players. Each and every player is engaged and working together to determine who the spies are, which means all members of the group will be able to participate from start to finish. This makes it an excellent game for parties when you want to include everyone.

Arimaa is a game suitable for both young and old, it was made to be intuitively simple but with a lot of depth. Even the setup follows this premise - you set up the figures in two rows like in chess, but you can place them in any way you like.

The rules are simple – in your turn you have four actions. You can either move a figure four times, move four figures one time, or do any combination in between. All figures can move forwards, backwards, and sideways apart from rabbits who can’t go backwards.

You can use two actions on a stronger piece to push or pull your opponents’ weaker figures. These stronger figures also “freeze” adjacent weaker pieces, preventing them from moving unless there’s a friendly piece next to them. If a figure happens to walk into one of the four trap squares or get pushed/pulled into one without a friendly piece next to it, then it is removed from the game. The first player to get a rabbit to reach the opposing side wins. The game can also be won by removing or immobilizing all your opponent’s rabbits.

The official site of Arimaa is quite lively and features reviews, downloads, the latest news, an active public forum, and much more. There’s even an online gameroom, so you can play Arimaa against computers or other people in either turn-based or real-time games. There are many people online, so it shouldn’t be a problem to find a game.

In case you don't want to purchase the gameboard made by Z-Man Games, you can use the components of a regular chess set. It also helps if you have four coins to mark the trap squares. You probably already have the equipment you need.

The 4 moves per turn gives Arimaa's tree of possible moves a very high branching factor. (It was invented for AI programmers as a game more difficult to program for than chess, but easier than Go). You can't think several turns ahead like chess (the space of possibilities is too big), instead you have to think in terms of distances and capabilities, giving Arimaa a very fluid feel.