Thrift Treasure: Moose in the House
Eighty-eight seems to be our magic number lately. This week’s Thrift Treasure falls into this same price category, one low enough to take a chance on regardless of age or online reviews. There’s a Moose in the House by Gamewright Games is a silly card game that should appeal to both young and old.
Unless you’re a resident of our 49th state, seeing a moose anywhere near your house is probably not very likely. This game has you fending off your residence from invasion by these over-sized reindeer. The 58-card deck includes 20 Empty Room cards, 20 matching Moose in the Room cards, 10 There’s a Moose in the House cards, 5 Door cards and 3 Moose Trap cards.
Each player has a hand of five cards and plays by the “play one, draw one” ruleset. You play cards from your hand onto your opponents board, trying to stick them with as many moose as you can. You build their house by playing Empty Room cards (kitchen, bathroom, etc.), and in this case bigger is not better. It just means more rooms that a Moose can rampage through!
But first, a moose must enter. If you have one of the ten There’s a Moose in the House cards, play it on one of your opponent’s boards, exclaiming “There’s a moose in your house!” That player’s house is now ripe for invasion and other players can place matching Moose in the Room cards on appropriate empty rooms (also shouting “There’s a moose in your bathroom/kitchen/etc.!”)
But there are other cards that alter the play. A Moose Trap will prevent a moose from entering a room (played when another player tries to place a card on your empty room – yell “Moose Trap” when this happens). You can also use one of the Door cards (“SLAM”) on an empty room to close it permanently from moose invasion (moose don’t have thumbs to turn doorknobs).
Play continues clockwise until all cards in the deck are used and all cards are played from everyone’s hands (if playable). The player with the fewest number of moose in their house wins!
There’s a Moose in the House was well worth the dollar we paid and has been a focus of game night on a couple occasions. Advertised for ages 8+, this could easily be enjoyed by children as young as 4 or 5 if they have an adult present to explain the rules. New copies are available on Amazon for under $10 and come in a small box perfect for taking on your next vacation. Because when you’re gone from your house, you don’t want any moose in it!
Would you want a moose in your house?
What a fun game to play with young kids. Reminds me of if you feed a mouse a cookie…
So cute! I love great finds on games. We recently found a similar game called Mille Bornes at a yard sale. I loved playing it as a kid and now I get to pass it onto my kids. Instead of building a house, this is about going on a trip and don’t want your car to break down game. I am going to have to check out the Moose game. Even living in Vermont where there are plenty of Moose, we very rarely see them. Thanks!
This sounds like a cute and fun game to play. I could definitely see playing it with younger children who would be gleeful when they put a moose in your house.
My son has that same moose from Build A Bear! This looks like a fun game for the kiddies!
Nope, no moose around here! But the game sounds like it could be great to play with the kids.
my husband and son love card games
Looks like a fun game… and that Moose is super cute!!
This looks so cute, I love the Moose plush as well; what a nice game!
This sounds like a perfect game for me and my kids! We love games! It’s cold and snowy about 8 months of the year here, so we do a lot of inside fun stuff. Thanks for the recommendation!
What a fun game to play with the kids!! I love the twist of the moose in it to keep it fun for the kids!
We love card games, so I will have to check this out. It sounds perfect for a family game night.
What a fun idea for a card game. Definitely sounds like something I’d enjoy playing!
I have never heard of this game before, but seems like a lot of fun. Cards games are fun for the whole family.
This whole game cost only $1?? That’s a steal! Plus, I love the idea that it’s so unique.. a game about a moose, who would have thought?
You are correct!! I have never seen a moose in the wild. I have even been to Canada, but still haven’t seen a moose. Sounds like a fun game.
By the way. I like your wagon wheel table. I have been looking for something unique to put in my room that looks out over our back yard.
Yep, I can see how it’s definitely worth the dollar paid. It sounds fun, and I like that round table too. 🙂
As an aside, 88 is lucky for us too…that’s when our oldest son was born. 😉
Looks like a great game for the kids mine would enjoy it,I think my daughter would want the stuffed moose more :).
Wow this is cool. Never heard of this one.