Timeline: Events
JFK’s assassination, the 1st step on the moon, the last crusade ... Can you put all these events correctly on the timeline?
Each player is dealt the same number of cards. At the start of the game, a card is drawn at random from the stack and is placed at the center of the table with the date showing. This is the starting point for a timeline that will be gradually completed by the players.
The first player then chooses one of his cards and places it before or after the card on the initial map. The player's card is then turned over to show the date of the historical event. If it is correct, it stays in place. Otherwise, the card is discarded and the player must draw another to replace it.
The more cards placed in the timeline, the harder it is to ask new without making a mistake! The first player who has no more cards wins!
Features
- 110 Event-related cards
- Option to play with other Timeline versions for added challenge
- Convenient size
User Reviews (3)
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Gameplay
In timeline you start with a hand of cards each naming and depicting an historical event. The object of the game is to get rid of all of your cards. One side of the card is the name of the event and a picture, the other side is the same picture and name but it also has the date the event occurred. To start the game, turn over one card so the date is face up, that’s the starting point of the timeline. On a turn, you try to place one of your cards (date side down) in chronological order, relative to other events. Once you decide on a point in time, you turn the card over to see if you were correct. If you play a card correctly, then the next person goes. If you put a card in the wrong sequence, you discard that card and draw a new one and then the next person takes their turn.
Pros:
-Very Simple.
-Events are varied, some are more common knowledge and some are obscure making it so that even history buffs may have some challenge. (Yeah, you know when WW2 ended, but do you know when the Turkey was discovered by Europeans?)
-Very fast playing.
-Creates great conversation.
-You learn while you play.
-GREAT for history lovers.
-Cards are well made with nice (and helpful) art.
Cons:
-Since you learn while you play, there is limited replay value without expansions.
-May not work for people who dislike history/dates.
-Mostly a test of knowledge, reasoning and some luck which some players may not enjoy. There is some strategy, but not a lot.
-Can get unlucky with starting cards and have a very hard game, or start the game with very easy cards and know you will win.
-Some minor translation issues from original French. (Ex: “First Train Accident” is actually referring to the first FRENCH train accident.)
The lowdown
Timeline is a little game with some big appeal for the right people. My dad loves history and doesn’t enjoy games of deduction, or strategy. He doesn’t like the type of pressure those games can create. This game was amazing for him. He loved testing himself against the game. Everyone else who I have played it with were casual players and they enjoyed it. What was fun was hearing people trying to think aloud their placement based on what had been played. It can take a lot of effort to not help or just resist adding your 2 cents (even if they end up being worth less than that.) People who refused to play still had fun listening in and talking about how cards were played. I think that’s part of the beauty of this game, you can play competitively and add some house rules to make it more competitive and gamey. Or it can be a conversation piece that gets people talking, interacting and sharing what they know.
If you buy one and like it, you will need to buy at least another for there to be much lasting replay value. While 110 cards is a lot of events, this game is an effective education tool and you learn when things happen pretty quickly. The approximate dates stick with you because of the meaningful conversations and social learning that occurs. So, the things that make this a great game, also hurt it’s replay value. All in all, a great gift, and a fun game for my friends and family that I will bring out occasionally.
Timeline is a fun little game that can be played in five minutes or so, depending on how many people you have playing and how well they know history. The aim of the game is to get rid of all your cards before anyone else. You do that by placing them to the left (before) or to the right (after) of any card on the table. If you get the date right then you have gotten rid of one card, if not, then you discard that card and draw a new one.
Pros
– very quick and easy to learn
– can be played with two people
– the art is quite nice
– you learn something
– each of the versions is a stand alone game
Cons
– gets very easy if playing with only two people
– after a while, you memorize all the dates and the game stops being as fun
– needs space to play so you can’t do it a small surface
All in all, Timeline is a pretty good series if you want to play a quick and easy game to pass a bit of time. The more players you have, especially those who don’t know history too well, the more fun and difficult it is. The pros outweigh the cons and it is definitely worth the price, which is pretty low. Finally, if you get bored of one version just add another and let the fun continue.
Timelines is super easy to learn.
I bought it because I knew my family would like it and it is one of the simplest games ive ever taught anyone to play.
If you or anyone you play with has a mind for history this is the right game.
The cards are much smaller than normal, but if they were bigger the table would fill up with cards way too quickly.
There are a lot if cards in thr game, but eventually if you know enough history or play the game enough you might end up knowing a lot of thr cards.
you’ll learn lots though!
super fun!