One of the hot games from a few years ago now was MicroMacro. It’s been on my radar to check the game out. And when I showed it to my wife, she was excited for it, so I got it. MicroMacro is basically Where is Waldo? with a few directions on what you’re looking for. So does that make a good game? Or is it even a game technically? We’ll talk about that as we look at MicroMacro.

How to Play MicroMacro

In Micro Macro you want to solve cases. To solve these cases you need to find particular things on a giant map of Crime City, yes, the first box is called MicroMacro: Crime City. But there is a ton going on. So the game gives you clues as to where things might be on the map and then you need to identify the ones that go with your case.

The person in charge of the clues then verifies that you found the right thing. If you did, you go to the clue. If not, the other players, since the person who verified now knows where and what it is, continue to look for it. When they find the right thing, you progress to the next bit of story or question for the case. You continue that pattern until you’ve found everything for the case.

Then you can play a new case. Each box of MicroMacro comes with a number of cases that you can play. And you even can get an expansion that combines all the maps into a giant map for a larger experience.

What Doesn’t Work

Firstly, is this a game? I think that is going to be something that people struggle with when they talk about it. Not whether or not it’s fun, though some will maybe not find it fun, we’ll talk about that, but is it a game. There is no real lose condition. The clue reader stops playing possibly if you don’t identify the clue on the map. But it’s more of an activity than a game.

This is also a game where you need to like the idea of Where is Waldo. MicroMacro is a big one of that with some story that ties things together in a given case. But it’s really Where is Waldo, so you know if you like the sound of that or not.

Finally, the map is huge. Now, this is a good thing, because there is a ton of detail. But it’s a bad thing because it’s a table hog of a game. So you need to know that and you need space.

What Works

Firstly, the artwork works in the game. And it’s actually pretty awesome how much detail they fit into the huge map. And it’s black and white, so you can color in elements of cases if you want to create kind of your own map. I put it as a negative with how large the map is, but it’s also a positive because with a giant map, you also get so much detail which is awesome.

It is a game that works well for a good medium group of people. This is not a six person game, but it’s a good 3-4 person game. Why, so everyone can see the map. And that’s a positive in my book. It’s something to keep in your head though, as you play. But it makes it a really good collaborative experience as you search around the map.

It is also pretty fast, even the long cases with ten cards don’t take too long. And the short ones can just fly by. So it’s great for playing a few cases. And when it’s something like Where is Waldo, you generally don’t want to do just one. I also like that it is faster the more you play. Why, because you just see things on the map. You spot someone crushed by a piano in case two, good for you, that is going to come back in a later case. And it’s fun when those elements come back around.

Who is MicroMacro For?

This is a great activity/game for people who maybe don’t play as many board games. Or for those who do, it’s great to play when you want a little filler. To me, this is an end of the night game when you want to play a little more, but learning a new game or thinking a lot isn’t in the cards. So if you play like that in your game group, MicroMacro might be great for it.

All of that said, if you dislike Where is Waldo, MicroMacro is not going to be for you. It’s as simple as that, because that is what the game is. And you need to be fine with that as will the people you play with, otherwise it’ll go over like a lead balloon.

Final Grade on MicroMacro

I enjoy this experience. And I think it’s important to talk about it as an experience. Because it isn’t so much of a game as a cooperative Where is Waldo that tells little stories. But that is a concept that for me is fun. So I enjoy it quite well.

Now, I don’t love it. I don’t think it really has major flaws. It is exactly what it looks like. But it’s one of those things where will I want to play it all the time? The answer is going to be no. But some game nights where it’s maybe three or four total of us, sure, it’s going to be great to pull out and play again with the cases we haven’t done yet. And what’s what it should be, it shouldn’t be the greatest game of all time, but it is something that is a lot of fun.

My Grade: B-

I’m only giving my grade here. No casual or gamer grade. I think this is something that everyone knows if they like or not. So I’m just going to keep it simple and say how much I enjoyed it. And luck or strategy make no sense, this is a game of persistence.

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