Chore Wars: A New Way to Do Housework

by Mary Ann Romans | More from this Blogger

23 Jul 2008 01:54 PM

Is there a way to making cleaning more fun? When I first heard of Chore Wars, I admit that I was a little skeptical. Sure, it might be effective for a day or two, but would it really have any long-term effect on the housework? In this blog post, I'll share information about Chore Wars.

What is Chore Wars?

Chore Wars is an online "game" that keeps track of chores that you do around the house and rewards you in a very simplified manner. It uses a sort of Dungeons and Dragons type model in that you form a party of characters and then go on adventures to collect treasures and battle monsters. If you aren't a fan of these type of games because of the magic involved, you can still keep reading. Chore Wars lets you set up your own treasures and monsters, so if you would rather find a gold bible instead of a magic sword, you can do just that.

The "Dungeon Master" is in charge of setting up the adventures, which relate to household tasks. An adventurer can claim a task. On that adventure, experience points are earned, along with any gold coins or treasures. Defeating a monster can earn you more.

Tasks can be rated on the amount of strength, dexterity, charisma, intelligence, wisdom, etc., that they need to be completed. For example, making a bed is a lot easier to do when compared to scrubbing a floor or repairing a hole in the wall.

Players choose a graphic of a character to represent them. They range from a pretty woman to a skeleton face. Parents can set up the characters ahead of time.

For example, one of the tasks I have set up for my part is sorting single socks. One of my kids could complete the task and claim the adventure. They may come up against a sock monster or linty man in a battle. Monsters are tame and don't kill but only "defeat" you or are defeated by you. Your life points are restored after each defeat.

Once a certain number of experience points are met, the adventurer moves up a rank in the party. This can serve as motivation to complete more tasks, as can the fun of defeating a monster or finding treasures.

You can check out Chore Wars at chorewars.com

Would you like to hear more?

Mary Ann Romans writes about everything related to saving money in the Frugal Blog, technology in the Computing Blog, and creating a home in the Home Blog. Starting June 1st, don't miss her articles in the Baby Blog. You can read more of her articles by clicking here.

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Learn more about Mary Ann Romans

Mary Ann Romans is a freelance writer, wife and mother of three children. She lives in Pennsylvania with her husband, the kids and a 16-pound cat.

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