Game Box Monthly Review: January 2015

Game Box Monthly is a very straightforward subscription box. Each month, you receive a game for those who love strategic deck building and tabletop games. The system in place is that you complete a checklist of all the games you already own, which you update monthly before the orders go out. That way, you won't get something you already have. Otherwise, it's a little up to what is available what you actually get.

We received a message earlier this month with a survey. There were two games under debate for the month. One was a strategic card game that could only be played by three players, and the other was a resource strategy game for 1-6 players. We were asked which we would prefer. Since my husband and I don't have people around us we can game with, I went for the 1-6 so we could both play and we didn't need to worry about forcing someone else to come over to play cards.

The game we received is called Gem Rush, and you can play either against your friends or cooperatively. Basically you are trying to gather gems before a mine collapses, so you can either try to go it alone and get all the gems or work with others to prevent the mine from collapsing too fast.

We haven't played the game yet, but when we do, I will post a review of it separately (as the reviews of the subscriptions aren't really based on our experience with the game as much as whether the subscription works). I love getting games and I love playing, so this is a great box for us. I will admit, though, that after Awesome Pack came a little earlier in the week, it was disappointing just to get one game. However, when combined, I essentially now have five new games to play and that's perfect.

I plan to keep this up for at least a little while, because I do truly love board games. It's also cheaper than Awesome Pack if you're looking for maybe only one game and not a whole family package. This is not a subscription for families really, but for people who truly love tabletop gaming. The games that have been sent in the past are not casual games or party games, and I do love that aspect.