I believe that children are the future.
You know, I've seen a lot of games like CASTLE PANIC come and go. These "easy to play" games designed to try to rope the mass market into hobby games that show up and fade into oblivion. Does anybody remember Uberplay?
It turns out though, that Fireside Games' CASTLE PANIC is actually a pretty good little game. It's not incredible, it's not going to change the way we play games, and it's really pretty minor but it's lightweight, appealing fun. And I think it would be an _especially_ great game for kids. It's very much a junior AT game in a lot of ways, and I for one support any attempt to steer the youth of today away from games about trading oregano or appeasing Sour Faced Euro Man. If you've got kids and you're looking for something that they can really get into and enjoy, this might be a good option unless you're like the notorious Will Kenyon and you've been reading TI3 cards to your kids as a bedtime story/advancing training exercise. If you're expecting this game to be a consim about the historical siege of Humptydink Castle in the War of Orcish Aggression or whatever, go somewhere else. Leave this one for the young'uns.
It's short, simple, but not stupid. I can stand behind those qualities when they're done right.