In Snake oil, players step into the spurs of zany salespeople peddling the wackiest inventions ever conceived. Picture this: I, the brilliantly absurd “Dingleberry Whisperer”, attempted to convince my fellow cowpokes to invest in my revolutionary product—the “Llama-Powered Toothbrush.” With an earnest pitch and a straight face (mostly), I spun tales of how the gentle hum of a llama’s chewing could exfoliate teeth to a blinding sparkle.
Meanwhile, my rival, the “Socks Sniper”, tried to sell the crowd on his “Banana-Peel Armor” designed to protect against the perilous onslaught of rogue fruit peels. As the laughter and absurdity reached a crescendo, we realized that in Snake Oil, the wackier the pitch, the greater the glory!
Snake Oil isn’t just a game; it’s a riotous adventure where the laws of logic and sanity are left at the saloon door, and where laughter flows as freely as sarsaparilla in a dusty frontier town.
What’s included in Snake Oil?
- Word Cards: These cards contain various nouns and adjectives (e.g., “banana,” “laser,” “robotic”).
- Customer Cards: These cards represent potential customers and their roles (e.g., “Caveman,” “Pirate,” “Supermodel”).
- Rulebook: Contains instructions and sample pitches.
How to play Snake Oil
The goal of Snake Oil is to craft the most convincing and humorous sales pitches using a combination of word cards. Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to play in detail:
Setup
- Shuffle the word cards and customer cards separately to create two face-down decks.
- Deal one customer card to each player. The customer card indicates their role for the round.
- Players take six word cards from the deck. These cards form their hand.
Gameplay
“Snake Oil” is played over a series of rounds, with each round consisting of the following phases:
1. Word Card Selection
- Each player looks at their hand of word cards and selects two of them to combine into a product. These two words become the product’s name (e.g., “laser banana”).
- Players place their chosen word cards face down in front of them to keep their product a secret.
2. Sales Pitch
- In clockwise order, each player takes a turn being the “customer” for that round.
- The customer draws a customer card and announces their role (e.g., “Caveman”).
- All other players (the salespeople) have 30 seconds to create a sales pitch for their product (e.g., “Why, hello there, Mr. Caveman! Are you tired of peeling bananas with your primitive tools? Introducing the ‘laser banana’! It slices and dices your fruit with the power of light! Just point, zap, and enjoy!”).
3. Customer’s Decision
- After hearing all the pitches, the customer secretly selects their favorite product and awards the corresponding salesperson the customer card (worth one point).
- If playing with more than one customer card, repeat the pitch and decision process for each customer card.
4. Card Replenishment
- All players discard their used word cards and draw back up to six cards from the deck.
Winning the Game: The game continues for a predetermined number of rounds or until players decide to end it. The player with the most customer cards (points) at the end wins. In case of a tie, players can have a tie-breaker round.
Variations
- Snake Oil” is highly flexible and encourages creativity. Players can introduce house rules or variations to make the game even more entertaining.
- Some players like to add a timer to the pitch phase to keep the game moving quickly.
Snake Oil is a game that thrives on creativity, humor, and the ability to think on your feet. It’s all about crafting the most entertaining and ridiculous sales pitches imaginable, and it’s guaranteed to generate laughter and memorable moments.
For the official rules, see the link below:
Strategies for Snake Oil
Snake Oil is a creative and humorous game where the strategies aren’t about winning or losing but rather about having a great time and making people laugh. Here are some tips to enhance your gameplay:
- Embrace Creativity: The essence of Snake Oil is creativity. Don’t be afraid to think outside the box and come up with unique and hilarious product pitches. The more imaginative and unexpected your pitches are, the more fun the game will be.
- Tailor Your Pitch: Consider your target customer’s role and preferences when crafting your pitch. Tailor your product to suit their needs or whims. For example, if your customer is a “Pirate,” you might want to pitch a “Sword Parrot” or a “Rum Cannon”.
- Use Word Combinations: Experiment with different word combinations from your hand. Sometimes, the funniest and most memorable products come from unlikely pairings of words. Don’t feel restricted by conventional logic.
- Timing Is Key: In Snake Oil, timing your pitch is crucial. You have a limited amount of time to make your pitch, so practice delivering it within the allotted time while still being entertaining.
- React and Adapt: Be ready to react to the pitches of your fellow players. Listen to their pitches, and if you see an opportunity for a funny response or callback to a previous pitch, seize it. This adds to the humor and camaraderie of the game.
- Role-Playing: Get into character when you’re the customer. Respond to the pitches as if you were the role on your customer card. This can make the game even more entertaining and interactive.
- Laugh and Enjoy: Snake Oil is all about laughter and fun. Don’t take it too seriously. Enjoy the absurdity of the pitches, even if they’re not your own, and encourage humor and creativity among all players.
- Variety Is the Spice of Life: Try not to repeat the same types of products or pitches too often. Variety keeps the game fresh and ensures everyone gets a chance to shine with their creativity.
- House Rules: Consider adding house rules or additional challenges to the game to keep things interesting. For example, you could introduce a rule where each pitch must include a rhyme or a jingle.
- Know Your Audience: Tailor your humor to the group you’re playing with. Some groups might appreciate more absurd or risqué humor, while others prefer cleaner and more family-friendly pitches. Respect the group’s preferences.
Remember that Snake Oil is primarily about having a good time and sharing laughs with friends and family. The most successful strategy is to let your creativity run wild and enjoy the humorous chaos that ensues.