Unleash smell!
Location: at home
Date Played: January 8, 2019
Team size: 2-6; we recommend 2-6
Duration: 10 – 15 minutes
Price: $13.00
Publisher: WowWee
REA Reaction
An ever-so-slightly-used copy of What’s That Smell? The Party Game That Stinks was handed to me by my dear friends Amanda Harris and Drew Nelson in an oversized Ziploc bag. It was in the bag because they were smart. They gave it to me because it’s clear that they harbor some hidden ill will towards me. It was only slightly used because it was not that fun.
We managed a couple of rounds and found a few laughs before we stuffed everything back into the bag… and had more fun and more laughs making a gif.
When I was finished, my nose felt angry, like my smell receptors had just been subjected to an olfactory DDoS attack.
Who is this for?
- Masochists
- Sadomasochists
- Drunk people
- Children
Why play?
- A shared and harmless yet mediocre experience among friends can be pretty funny.
- Bad smells, like poop jokes, are funny.
Gameplay
WowWee’s What’s That Smell? was a scent mystery game where players competed to guess smells.
Core gameplay revolved around scratching, sniffing, guessing, writing funny memories, and questioning your life decisions that led to playing What’s That Smell?.
Setup
The box contained 48 scratch & sniff scent cards. Everyone drew a card, scratched, and sniffed.
Then everyone proceeded to fill out three questions on a form:
- Smell category? (chemical, floral, fruity, sweet, etc.)
- Smell guess?
- Smell association: Your funniest memory?
At the end of the round, points were scored based on getting the answers right/ wrong… and whoever had the funniest memory associated with the scent.
We repeated this until it grew old.
At the end of the game, the person with the lowest score had to pull from 1 of 4 extra terrible punishment smells (old toe cheese, diaper blowout, hot chunky vomit, or smothered in B.O).
Analysis
➕ For better or for worse, What’s That Smell? was easy to set up, learn, and play.
➕ What’s That Smell? included little cardboard pieces for you to scratch the smells. This prevented the scents from getting on and under your fingernails.
➕ The inclusion of a free-form, “What’s the funniest memory you associate with this smell?” added an element of creativity.
➖ A lot of these scents were unpleasant. Most weren’t vile… but as my nose was bombarded with more and more scents, the entire experience soured.
➖ It was really difficult to tell most of these scents apart. There wasn’t a lot of definition.
➖ After playing for about 10 minutes, my nose became utterly confused.
➖ I cannot see myself opening the box in my home. It reeks.
If you made it this far, here’s a nifty TED Ed video explaining how your sense of smell works (or at least a basic overview of what humans currently understand on the subject).
Tips For Players
- Space Requirements: a small table
- Play in a room that you can easily air out and will not be eating in
Buy your copy of WowWee’s What’s That Smell? The Party Game That Stinks, and tell them that the Room Escape Artist sent you.
(If you purchase via our Amazon links, you will help support Room Escape Artist as we will receive a very small percentage of the sale. We appreciate the support.)
