Rigamarole, by Hidden Talents Games, is a variety party game for four or more players ages 16 and up. The premise of the game is much like other party games, such as Cranium, but this one is more broadly based, testing skill, knowledge and random facts. It's the perfect game for a getting-to-know-you get-together!

Players move around the board collecting cards from six different categories: Stage Fright, Think Tank, Sensory Perception, Double Whammy, Free to Be Me and Hidden Talents. Each category has several different types of activities which show up on the cards.

In Stage Fright, players might pick a "Tall Tales" card, where they must incorporate three random words into a 60-second story, and the other players must try to guess the three words. It's more difficult than it sounds... can you incorporate Gargantuan, Serendipity and Guano into a 60-second story without making them obvious? I found myself seriously lacking in ability at this type of challenge, having a hard time not giggling each time I said one of the 3 words.

In Think Tank, a sample challenge might be a "Who Do You Know", where players must simply describe three people (or occasionally other proper nouns) and get the other players to guess the name. This one can get a little bit harder than one might think, especially if you're not familiar with the names. One slightly confused game-player in our group got the name "Warren Buffet" on his card, and gave a perfect description of Jimmy Buffet. Oops.

The majority of the challenges in Sensory Perception involve putting a blindfold on one player (yes, a blindfold is included in the game box). Many of the challenges here are easier said than done, such as trying to stand on one leg for ten seconds while wearing a blindfold. The Double Whammy category involves double dares, such as trying to make a player on the other team laugh, without touching them. Better brush up on your jokes! Free to Be Me is the most random category, where, on most of the cards, three traits are listed, and if at least one player on your team possesses each of them, your team wins the challenge. A couple of times, no one on our team had any of the traits (such as "is color blind", "is a registered Republican" and "has gotten a speeding ticket"). Finally, we got one where among the whole team, we had a nearly perfect score ("has a birthmark", "has been on TV", "parts hair in the middle").

Once you've received cards from all of the categories, you move to the middle and do a "Hidden Talents" challenge. The very first card our team drew was "Say Good Night in Five Languages other than English". For most people, this would be super-tough! Even I, as a modern languages major, managed to get four quickly, but struggled for a bit with the fifth. Portuguese popped into my head at the last minute, though, and my team took the game. Interestingly, though, I was a bit disappointed to win, because I was having so much fun that I wanted the game to last even longer!

If Rigamarole doesn't sound exciting and fun to you by now, then it's probably not your type of game, but anyone who likes fun and silly party games where a variety of topics, knowledge and skill come into play will LOVE this one. I don't think I've ever played a game where I was disappointed to win because I didn't want the game to end! The problem is solved, of course, by simply playing another round.

RIGAMAROLE AT-A-GLANCE:

GAME BOX INCLUDES: Game Board, Rigamarole Cards, Die, 1-Minute Timer, Blindfold

YOU'LL NEED: A playing piece for each team (use something small and fun like an earring, a thimble, a bottlecap, or harvest playing pieces from another game), 10 each of two types of "tokens" (beans, coins, paper clips, etc.), sometimes you'll need to find random objects from around your house to use during the challenges.

SUGGESTED RETAIL PRICE: $34.99

TRY IF YOU LIKE: Cranium, Taboo, Charades

PERFECT FOR: A game to play with a half-dozen of your closest friends over pizza, wings and beer.

RATING: Five hidden talents out of five