Don thy armor and mount thy trusty stead. Thou art to prepare for battle. For thy challenge awaits in these Medieval Games!

Medieval Games is a lively, fun filled game full of all the charm of ye Ole Days. Play is much like Mario Party 8. There is a story mode in which you compete at 3 levels of games against other characters and a free play mode to play all the games unlocked through play in the story mode.

The Story is that the king's son needs a bride. The games have been put together to help select the judges for the contest in which the Prince's bride would be selected. Players, four in all with computer players filling in for any lack of live players, compete around a game board and at various competitions. Competitions include jousting and sword fighting between two players and other four player competitions like archery and catapult (well, catapult can be two or four players).

After the initial story, the story mode continues with a game board around a story visiting a neighboring kingdom and even a dragon quest. Games are challenging but not as much as the characters are entertaining. Remarks made, gestures from the jester, it all adds up to a fun experience.

Once the story mode is played, free game play is unlocked. This allows players to build their own challenges or play individual or random sets of games against other players and computer characters. This allows for play of favorite games or for mini challenges between players as singles or teams.

This game plays well and is familiar for those used to the Mario Party style game play. The only complaints are vague to confusing instructions (or lack thereof) when starting the games. Initial play was frustrating as we tried to figure out how to control and play each game. But, once we got the hang of it were were able to compete against the computer players much better. Even win a few times.

This game is entertaining and even a little educational. Questions arose during play from my 8 year old about the weapons and surroundings. Anytime you can make a game become a learning experience creates a win in my book. But above all, the game was fun and kept us engaged. It yearns for 4 players so be ready to set it up and play as a family. You won't regret the play time and more importantly, the time together.