In one of the Shrek movies, Donkey says to Shrek, “You cut me deep, Shrek. You cut me real deep just now.” Now, Donkey was reacting to a comment Shrek said to him, but in this game, Shrek gets cut deep, real deep.
Shrek Operation is an updated and Shrek themed version of the classic game, Operation. Some the pieces you need to remove are Slugs, Toe Jams, Frog in the Throat, and other gross things that end up in Shrek’s body.
Setup
The setup of this game is super easy. Anyone can do it. The instructions are well written (as are most of the Operation games). The only thing to keep in mind is that AA batteries are required. Make sure you have those, or the buzzing won’t work. Luckily, in our house, we keep a ton on hand.
Game Play
The game feels almost exactly like the original Operation game. Every player receives the specialist cards and the doctor cards are placed in a pile faced down in the middle. As each player takes a turn, they pull a card from the doctor pile and attempts to remove the piece from Shrek. If they successfully get the piece, they get the fee listed on the card. If the player gets buzzed, then the person with that specialist card gets to try. Of course (much like real life) the specialist demands a higher fee. It’s possible to have both cards and get to try twice. However, if both fail, then the doctor card is returned to the stack and saved for a later turn.
The game continues until all of the pieces have been removed. At the end, the player with the most money wins the game. Let’s hope Shrek doesn’t get into this situation again, doctor operations can definitely take a toll ;-p.
How It Went Over
The game itself is pretty exciting. It’s one of those games where as each player is taking a turn, everyone involved gets really really quiet and tense. Relief only comes when the piece is in the player’s hand. Otherwise, everyone jumps when the buzzer goes off. Most of the time, the jumps are followed by laughter.
Younger players might have a harder time considering it requires steady hand, but if they keep at it, they will eventually get it. If not, you could always play without the batteries for a bit while they acquire the fine motor skills required.
For the fifteen bucks that it costs right now on Amazon.com, I’d totally buy the game. That being said, it’s very true to the Operation game, so if you’re not a Shrek fan, the regular Operation game will do just fine. Our little family had an awesome time playing game. 
The author of this post was provided with a complimentary review copy of Shrek Operation, but the opinions expressed are his own.
Anhtuan Doventry is a dorky dad to four of the greatest kids and a silly husband to the most wonderful wife. He lives in Kingwood, TX, and does IT management work for his day job. Otherwise, he spends his time reading, writing, and coaching as many sports as he can. He also spends a little bit of time researching and reading about tech items (although I think others in the family would argue that it’s a tad bit more than a “little bit of time”).
Anhtuan is excited about contributing to The Father Life. To find out more about Anhtuan, go to http://www.aquickremark.com or follow him at http://twitter.com/aquickremark.
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