I Spy Eagle Eye

I Spy Eagle Eye is a game of quick observation for ages 5 and up.

We have had I Spy Eagle Eye for a lot of years. It was a top favorite game when our kids were younger and one that has never been on the chopping block.

The Object

The Object of I Spy Eagle Eye is simple: match the item on the card to your board and be the player with the most matches at the end of the game.

Components

I Spy Eagle Eye comes with four double sided boards that are filled to the brim with item pictures. It comes with 30 cards that are also double sided. Lastly is comes with the kids; favorite: a bell.

Playing

First, before you play, you need to agree to what number of cards you are going to play to. Five cards makes a good length of game.

Next, each player chooses a board. Then each player takes a card. To make it fairer we wait until everyone is read then we flip over the card and being looking.

There are eight pictures on each card—one from each board. The picture has to match exactly. For example, if you can see the school bus tires on the card then finding a top view of the bus on the board is not a match.

When a player finds the match, she rings the bell and wins the card. The player who did not get the match puts her card at the bottom of the stack and play continues.

Winning

The first player to win the agreed upon umber of cards wins.

Alternatives

Playing 3 – 4 players

In this version of I Spy Eagle Eye, players need to agree on a set number of points to play to. The game play is the same except the first player to find the match, calls out “first” and rings the bell. The second player to find the match calls out “second” and rings the bell. And the third will call out “third”.  For a 4 player game, first place scores 4 points, second 3 points, third 2 points and fourth 1 point. Similarly, for a 3 player game first scores 3 pints, second 2 points and third 1 point. The player to reach the chosen amount of pints wins.

Tournament

This variation is very different as players pass the boards around. One item on one card is chosen and plyers race to be the first to find that item on any board. If a player wishes to switch boards, he dings the bell and everyone passes their board to the left. A player can only hold a board once in a round. When a plyer finds the object, she hits the bell three times. The winning player scores 4 points for a 4 players game and three points for a 3 player game. The overall winner is the plyer with the most amount of points after an agreed upon number of rounds.

What we Like

Although I Spy Eagle Eye seems like a simple game, it can be very challenging. We also like that there is a good variety of items and the boards are very different from each other. The next thing we like is that you set how long the game play is—only have a few minutes? Just play to three cards. Have a lot of time with an enthusiast? Go through the whole stack of cards.

What we Don’t like

After you’ve played I Spy Eagle Eye a lot of times, you get so that you remember where the items are on the boards. Also, it can be very discouraging if you either get stuck on a card or your opponent gets a string of wins.

Conclusion

Overall, I Spy Eagle Eye is a good game. The quality is good, there are lots of variety and the bell is not too noisy. It isn’t a personal favorite of mine but both girls have had it on their favorites list. I would recommend I Spy Eagle Eye for your Family Game Shelf, especially if you have kids in early elementary grades.

Pros: variations, quality, flexible game play
Cons: repetitive, can be memorized, can be discouraging
Mom: attention to detail, speed

You can get your copy of I Spy Eagle Eye here.
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