Description

Build me up! The Self-Esteem Game is a roll-and-move board game where players attempt to earn money by praising other players and building their self-esteem. Players roll a die to move on a track, landing on various letters along the way. When they land on a letter, they must use three (or four or five, depending on the level chosen) positive words describing the player to their left or right in sentences, within 30 seconds. If they are able to do so, they earn an amount of money that corresponds to the difficulty of the letter (for example Y and U earn $1000, A and S earn $300). One player is The Negotiator, a sort of gamemaster. Players who are unable to think of enough words can buy a word from the negotiator (who has a book of suggested words) for half the value of the letter space. The Negotiator also controls the money and the timer.

Players may not repeat words that have already been used. Other players may challenge a word used by a player as being incorrect or not positive. If the challenge is successful, the challenger gets double the value of the letter. If the challenge fails, the original player gets double value. The rules specify that a dictionary should be consulted by the Negotiator. There are also "self-esteem" space where players draw a card which describes an effect of high or low self-esteem. These cards either give extra money to the player or cause a penalty to be paid. If a player must pay a penalty and has too little money, he or she must get a loan from The Negotiator, which must be paid back plus 10% interest.

Game play continues for 30 minutes. At the end of the game, the player with the most money wins, and is awarded a Certificate of Merit.