Saturday night I went to a party.

I know, not really all that remarkable, unless you consider the fact that I wasn't participating in the traditional sense.

Which, when you think about it, presents you with about three options: 1) sign up to play beer pong, 2) stand around and watch everyone else standing around and watching, or 3) pick a spot, preferably near the keg, and drink as fast as possible.

I don't mean to come off sounding like a snob here. I mean I'm only 22, and Lord knows I love doing all three of those things like everyone else. But on this particular night I chose a fourth option; you might have noticed three of my friends and me hunched over in a corner.

I'm talking of course about "the great game" of Sorry!, the best board game ever converted into a highly competitive team sport.

In case you're not familiar with the basics, Sorry! is played by moving pieces out of Start and safely around the board into the Home base. Players move using cards rather than dice, and most cards represent the number of spaces you can move forward.

There are also special cards: "Ones" move a piece from Start. "Twos" do the same but give you an extra move. "Fours" move you backward. "Sevens" allow you to split the move between two pieces. "Tens" can move forward that number or backward one space. "Elevens" can either move you forward or allow you to switch positions with another piece.

Last but certainly not least is the game's namesake, the powerful Sorry! card, which lets you to take a piece from Start and hijack an opponent's spot on the board, sending him back to his own Start.

And after making this move, you must apologize to your opponent; but you don't have to mean it. After all, it's the game of sweet revenge.

Out of these fundamentals was born Team Sorry!, which I already said is the greatest team sport of all time. Essentially, it's always red and yellow versus blue and green, and you can move pieces for either color on your team.

This sounds pretty basic, but it effectively changes the entire strategy of the game. Table talk -- that is, discussing moves with your partner -- is strictly forbidden.

As one friend has said on many occasions, it's all about trust. Forging a bond with a partner is essential to success in Team Sorry! Otherwise, trust can never be achieved, and in turn neither can victory.

Another Team Sorry! rule concerns the board's sliding zones. Landing on the triangle space of a zone (which must be a different color from the piece you are moving) allows you to slide to the end. This is a traditional Sorry! rule also (hence "The Slide Pursuit Game" tag), but in Team Sorry! a slide must be accompanied by a sound effect.

You must move if you can, even if it is detrimental to your situation. Otherwise, you must discard. This includes playing backward cards to take yourself out of the Safety Zone if there is no other move you can make.

Also, you cannot end the game on a two. If you use a two to move into Home, you must still play a backward card if you have one.

However, if you have no other playable cards, the move counts.

Finally, all games of Team Sorry! must end with a four-way high five between the assembled players, regardless of the outcome. Players shall not carry grudges outside of the game, and only take revenge on the board.

Just be sure to get yourself a vintage version of the game on eBay or something, such as the Japanese one I got for my girlfriend as a housewarming gift (which isn't really Japanese -- it just exploits the culture in its design).

I'm so the man.

Don't get the crappy new Parker Brothers edition, with its translucent pieces and overall cheap construction. You'll be sorry if you do.