Games Blog

Mar 12, Battling Tops Retro cool

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 00:45:34 GMT

I love most of the old games still kicking about in closets and attics. And did you notice that most of those old addicting board games, such as battling tops from the 1960sare still around under a different name and a different look? You just get lucky sometimes finding a old copy, but if you cant and start doing a bit of research, youll find it under several different names, including:

Battling gladiators game
Beyblade Battle Tops
Boscaiola (would I lie)

But this game was around way, way before the 60s...whats that? How long ago you unwittingly ask? Try back as far as Ancient Egypt! Yes, spinning toys back then were made from wood, bone, stones and even ceramics! And Im betting that just as many adults tried them out as did kids. Theres just something about knocking your opponents out of the play area that is irresistible - no matter what age and...er...era...youre from. Thats because, as everyone knows, you just cant ever get enough of a good thing, can you, and whether theyre string powered, push powered, pull powered, or finger powered, these battling tops are irresistible and very addicting! (Tho I still like the original Battling Tops version best, even if theyre just a tad slower and lighter than some of the mechanical ones about...they fly better when hit!) But if you cant find this around, theres lots of addicting games to choose from.

Mar 10, The religious UnGame?

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 17:55:08 GMT

Are you feeling particularly humbleor perhaps more than a little repentant lately (especially in the aftermath of the drinking game from blogs past)? Perhaps its time for you and your friends/family to turn to a religious board game. Now I know that religion can be a little tricky, but this addicting board game comes in two different versions. Lets discuss the Catholic vs Christian versions:

The Christian Ungame this amazing ungame version is based on the Christian faith and it pretty much guarantees an improvement in your family relationships, communications, and helps you all get to know one another better through its thought provoking questions. Everyone is right in this non-competitive game, but I guess Im just more righteous and thus I get more brownie points with mine answers than thouand so me, I winnot that theres anything wrong with losing
The Catholic Ungame do you know your patron saint? (based on your name, dummy...er, I mean you wonderfully clueless person, you) Based, of course, on the Catholic faith, this fantastic ungame version is also non-competitive. Like the Christian version mentioned above (and remember, Catholicism was the original Christian faithit just prays not only to god but also to various saints just to be safe and cover all bases Im thinking. Anyhoo, this great (dare I say addicting?) board game, er, ungame, like its Christian counterpart also covers all the regular philosophical questions, but it includes a card deck with you guessed it - Catholic faith based questions

Now that Ive discussed the taboo subject of religion and blasphemed (pretty sure now) either or all faiths in my comments above (maybe even the atheists) and quite probably have some of you frothing at the mouthsgo grab yourself whichever version matches your faithor maybe a different Bible game will catch your fancy while youre browsing. Or better yet get both versions like I did so you can play both with friends and family members of both faiths. Anti-communicate and argue your little hearts out over the various questionscome onyou know you want to. Yeah. Im probably going to H-E-double hockey sticks (to visit relatives)but its so fun to argue and competeand laughright?

Mar 4, Beware the Red Dragon

Thu, 04 Mar 2010 18:25:20 GMT

OK, this one is for the college student in all of us. Or the boater. Now, Im talking the Red Dragon Inn board game (not the dizzyingly complicated Calculation program created specifically for the board game of Mahjong) Im not talking the strangely weird Red Dragon Freeform Roleplaying Community (that ones for the basement dwellers, I think). While game rules say you can get the party started without ever touching a drop.riiightthis addicting...er, let me rephrase thatthis ultra fun game comes complete with player mats, drink deck, fortitude markers, character decks, gold pieces, and of course, character decks so you can pretend youre not you for the next few hours. Btw, if youre giving it as a gift, you may want to tuck a free membership to AA inside. But I digress. This game has it all. Gambling, drinking, and.well, arent those to enough for a good time? You play, you gamble while trying to hang on to both your money and your consciousness. If you lose either, you lose and the others get to divide any of your loot. But if you manage to outlast all those other wimps, you get bragging rights (but possibly lose the next 24 hours or so). Not that anyone else will remember as theyve all staggered off to the stable or wherever to sleep it off. And if you get really good at this version, or gain more than the 4 players the first version is pretty much restricted to, you can go out and pick up the standalone expansion pack. Then you can attempt to outlast and out carouse up to 8 people while you all exercise your arms and staying power. Good times, no? So go ahead, grab one or both versions of the Red Dragon Inn, and dont waste any time thinking about all of the brain cells we (possibly permanently) picklejust playand Cheers, eh?!

Mar 2, Axis & Allies Got 2 to 10 hours?

Tue, 02 Mar 2010 01:26:13 GMT

OK, so maybe you can get away with completing a game in just a couple of hours, but truely, this one is for all you endurance players out there aged oh about teens and up. If you love strategy games, and World War II games, then youll not be able to resist Axis and Allies. Grab a few friends, a few dozen snacks and few more energizers to keep you all going for the duration...and get playing. You can buy the board games, or you can play online. You can also play recreated historical battles and skirmishes with authentically detailed miniatures on a table top with the double sided hexagonal battle maps. Very cool. This miniatures version is collectables, so be warned, buying them can become an addiction of their own. Yes, its oh so addicting, and uber fun, this WWII game has many versions, as previously mentioned, including:

text Axis & Allies: Pacific, Pacific 1940 (square off against the backdrop of the Pacific ocean)
Axis & Allies: Europe, Europe 1940 (destroyer and artillery strikes in the European Theater)
Axis & Allies: D-Day (storm Normandys beaches)
Axis & Allies: Guadalcanal (Second World War's Pacific Theater)
Axis & Allies: Battle of the Bulge (indulge in Hitler's Offensive in the West)
Axis & Allies Miniatures (collectibles warfare to help visualize your goal)

So definitely > get your hands on one or all addicting Axis & Allies gaming versions...but remember, you have been warned!

Feb 24, Would you survive in a Worst Case Scenario situation?

Wed, 24 Feb 2010 18:02:16 GMT

Live or Die? That is the question hereall 600 of them. If you like me and mine - are a fan of the worst Case survivor books, then you will really enjoy this addicting game too. I have to admit that I get more of a kick out of reading the cards, as does my spawn, so we often drift off into the land of what if hilarity and never finishing the current game, but then, isnt that the point of a game? I mean, communicating with your alien spawn and both of you actually enjoying and engaging? If you would like to experience that mindset, then these games are for you also. You can get the board game version, but dont forget to grab the Trivia Challenge version for the pc while youre at it. Youll find a combination of survival situations and trivia in two different gameplay modes: short or full, both of which includes a round of ten multiple-choice questions with 4 possible answers. (The full game has an extra challenge round but only if youve got the right answer more often than wrong in the previous round! Both have the same multiple choice answers to a question that knowing the answer to could be the difference between life and death. Both have a lot of interesting and thought (or laughter) provoking scenarios to put forth. And both will be sure to get you debating (arguing) over the provided answer. I mean, do you think you could escape from the trunk of your car? This game will tell you how. Do you know how to survive a shark attack? Im going to send a copy to my niece going to school in Australiabecause she just may find herself needing to know how insert deity here forbid! How great is your survival instinct? Mines pretty top notch let me tell youso why not put yours to the test with this addicting game. Silly. Fun. Addicting. Somewhat random. Yup.

Feb 23, Rule your own Dominion or someone else will

Tue, 23 Feb 2010 17:48:25 GMT

This addicting medieval board game was selected by Mensa for a reason! A bunch of reasons actuallyits fun, its fast, its a strategy game that makes you think, and its always a different game each time you play. What more can you ask for really? You, Mr. Monarch, start out with a ten card deck (which is your kingdom), and then build up your deck as you play. Now unlike other card games where you have to constantly buy and build new decks (think Yu-Gi-Oh, and Pokemon), Dominion is a standalone game where you use your decks cash cards to randomly purchase various cards from those available in the game piles and then reshuffle and discard as you attempt to build up your kingdom. Just remember your ABCs of Dominion and you cant loose, maybe:

Action cards are to there to be played wisely

Buy into victory as you put your treasure cards to good use

Cleanup by discarding the deadweight and exchanging for new and improved goodies

Although Dominion has only been around for a couple of years, its already won numerous awards. There are also numerous expansion packs available to boost the variety of playing scenarios available to you and make the game last a bit longer than the usual 30 minutes or so it normally takes. I am especially excited about the Alchemy add-on thats due out this year I have the feeling that its going to be really fun trashing my opponents with use of the cards it will provide! Lord over the minions, stock your treasury, fend off the competition, and above all, balance your deck! So dont forget to check out the Dominion board game, youll enjoy it!

Feb 19, Buy Games Online | Games To Buy | Buy Cheap Games

Fri, 19 Feb 2010 16:45:54 GMT

Buy games online from DirectSource-Games.com and save money on all your favorites!

Feb 19, Rummy The game of conquistadors

Fri, 19 Feb 2010 15:24:13 GMT

Now when I say Rummy, I am not specifically talking about the addicting game of Gin Rummyalthough now that Ive mentioned it Im itching to play! But before I forget, I just want to say thank you to the Conquistadors for bringing Rummy to the rest of the world. Note that there is of course, the obligatory arguments over the history of rummy, but suffice it to say, this addicting gamein any of its variants, has been around for a long, long time and will be around for another few hundred years or more. Gin rummy was a favourite growing up, but there was also different versions wed play, like Indian Rummy, dummy rummy, Mah Jong (yup, its a variant of rummy), Ten pennies, Unothere are so many different versions that I cant name them all. All you need to know is that theres sure to be a variation of the card game that youll love. You can play with 2, 4, or 6 people and just pick the version thats best with the number of people who want to be defeated by your awesome skills in Rummy. If you arent familiar with Rummy, pick up a deck of cards, or better yet, pick up a game copy, and just start playing it. The rules of Rummy are found everywhere, but you can make up your own if you dont like how its played. That way, youre always sure to win. Kidding. Althoughthere are so many different ways to play Rummy that you definitely could get away with it. Hola

Feb 17, Video Games The verdict is: Theyre good for you!

Wed, 17 Feb 2010 17:58:45 GMT

Thats right. Now when youre told that youre rotting your brain, you have the perfect argument against your accuser. Even the bad ones you ask? Yes. Because theyre more realistic in that you get to make either good or bad choices and just like real life, you have the consequences to deal with from either decision. Right But real scientifical studies by real scientists have proven that in fact, the exact opposite happens. Youre not rotting your brain, youre feeding your brain and training it with fantastic abilities. No really. The tests have shown and proven that video games stimulate, train, and even help regenerate brain cells.

Seniors have shown marked improval of cognitive skills and a slowing of damage caused by memory loss, age, and disease through the use of video games like Brain Age.

Young children show extra ability with visual attention, spatial skills, ability to focus and switch attention between tasks better than children who dont play them.

Autism is receiving attention when it comes to video games and their ability to help attention, cognitive and social skills.

So. Where does that leave us? Well, I dont know about you, but Im going to pick up some more video games and get playing! Addicting? Maybe. Fun? Definitely!

Feb 17, You sunk my Battleship!

Wed, 17 Feb 2010 02:37:58 GMT

If you and a fellow gamer is sitting around bored, why not grab your battleship game and have a friendly war! Throughout the not so long history of the game of battle ship, even the versions around before it became battleship, the game was plain addicting. Despite hints that the original original game was invented by Russian Soldiers back in 1917, its more widely believed that it was first devised in 1931 under the name of Salvo, as a pencil and paper version. Yup, it pre-dates World War 1! It became known under a multitude of different names around the world but it wasnt until Milton Bradley got involved in 1967 with its revamped plastic grids and hidden battleships, that it really took off. With its hidden grid where you hid your 5 battleships, and its target grid where you keep track of your hits and misses while seeking out and destroying your worthless opponents measly ships, you just wont be able to get enough. You can keep the rules simple using just the ships, or you can get downright evil with special weapons, radar, and even search planes that you use to target and destroy! But no matter what version you play,

Battleship

Electronic battleship

Electronic talking battleship

Online battleship

...or even the Naval Battle version which is still using paper and pencil or, try the Card game version, whatever - youll have to agree that it is an amazingly fun and addicting game.

Feb 16, valentine games, gifts, valentine party,

Tue, 16 Feb 2010 17:34:22 GMT

valentine games that will make your valentine party unforgettable.

Feb 12, Just in time for Valentines Day Murder and Mayhem!

Fri, 12 Feb 2010 18:36:28 GMT

I dont know what it is about Valentines Day that makes me want to break out that big handy kitchen knife and start carving (could be one of the 3 exes ) but I dont fight it. I just grab a bunch of like minded acquaintances and, not wanting to go to jail for real, break out on of the many addicting murder mystery games I keep around. Hey, dont judge mewhatever keeps me out of the trouble.right? Depending on how many people you know who want in on the action, these are my absolute favourite Valentines day murderous games:

"A Broken Heart Murder" Enjoy a nice simple evening of trivia and dancing with Rosie Valentine and about 18 of your favourite people as she celebrates her latest books success. Celebrates right up until a vengeful broken hearted murder joins the party. Was it you who dun it? I bet it was you.

A St Valentine's Day Murder Mystery Its Chicago, 1929 and you and your pal Tommy Gunn and about 8 others are celebrating Tommys 40th birthday. But wait a minute, hes acting pretty sinister dont you think? Gangsters and booze just dont mix well do they

Revenge Against a Ladies' Man Sorry all you creeps..er, men, out theretis ones for women only. They say that hell hath no fury like a woman scorned, so gather 8 of your closest and meanest sisters and have a hell of a time ganging up on that bastage John Lothario (come on, ya know ya wanna). But wait a minutewe didnt REALLY want to kill him, just ruin and humiliate himso who among us has let him off so easy with mere death? Hey, dont look at me like that

There are these and many more great murder mystery games for any age groups that, once you discover them, well keep you hooked. Great stress relievers and really addicting fun! Happy Valentines Day fellow murderers/esses!

Feb 10, Mega-value Explosive Icebreakers & Games Galore! Package

Wed, 10 Feb 2010 18:31:59 GMT

Theres a mouthful. Yeah, OK. So they call this a package for Trainers. I call it a fun package for getting a special party hopping! This is full of addicting mind games and puzzles that are wacky, and creative, and just plain fun for everyone! Adaptations of the icebreakers can be used at any get together anywhere you might find yourself. Plus there are indoor games and outdoor games to intrigue young and old alike and ensure everyone is involved rather than standing around in their little cliques and groups on or out of the classroom and boardrooms at any age. In the proper setting, complete strangers have wandered over and found themselves joining in on the games or just cheering on from the sidelines. And why not? I really enjoy impromptu parties. Who doesnt? At your next family get together youll find yourself in the middle of the teenagers with your scintillating and addictive brainteasers. Visual puzzles will have your aunties reaching for their pencils to scribble on the tablecloth! Little spawns will be hopping around trying to keep up with the indoor and outdoor games that you deviously start to keep them out of everyones hair. Wacky? Sure, but I tell you, youll be adored and applauded! Try it. Im always right.

Feb 8, Ker plunk and - The Rolling Stones and games?

Mon, 08 Feb 2010 12:13:12 GMT

Thats right. Supposedly, during the 1960s, Rolling Stones drummer, Charlie Watts, was so bored during the bands many many hours spent in buses and hotels that he started paying about with toothpicks and olives to keep from losing his own. Thanks to Mick Jagger spurring him on, he approached the Ideal Toy company who was instantly intrigued. Of course, being a toy company, they had to ensure it would last a bit longer and be less deadly than olives and toothpicks would be, so they revised it to use plastic rods and marbles and a plastic tube instead of a whiskey glass. Voila! Ker Plunk was born! How cool is that? And this addicting game remains so popular that there are always new versions being copied and devised. From Honey Bee Tree to Tumblin Monkeys. A multitude of other toy companies like Milton Bradley and Mattel have gotten into the act, and the some of the newer versions have flashing lights and an bunch of different sounds and noise. Dont get me wrong theyre fun - but none of them have that great onomatopoeic sound going on for which the game was originally named. So go on and get yourself a copy of this addicting game. Youll rediscover the unrepentant rockist fogeyism of the Rolling Stones favouritism...oh wait, that was the magazines, not the bands criticism... Carry on. Cause playing and losing at Ker Plunk is pretty much a rite of passage...sort of like Jenga is too.

Feb 6, Khet can you control the lasers?

Sat, 06 Feb 2010 13:31:42 GMT

What an awesome board game this is. If you or your school age kids are into light refraction in school this addicting board game will teach all about how light bounces around. It is so cool! Use strategy to move and rotate your Egyptian game pieces around the game board, then, at the end of your turn, you push your laser button, which sends the laser beam built into the board bouncing around the board game field. The game pieces have some mirrored sides which will help to send the beam onto your opponents game piece. If youve set it up right, it will hit a non-mirrored side and take the piece out of play. Another cool thing about this laser beam bouncing around is that the beam of light will always travel along the different rows and columns of the game board and it will always turn 90 degrees when it hits one of the mirrors on the game pieces or on the columns. First known as Deflexion, this addicting board game was designed by a a professor and two of his students as a class project at the Tulane University in Louisiana. It is the best game for those of us who love fun and yet interesting and strategic board games. An expansion in 2008 has even added a second level to the board game where you can move up now and rotate the tower! Dang! Want to play anyone?

Feb 4, How do you build a better mouse trap?

Thu, 04 Feb 2010 12:34:12 GMT

By playing the game, of course! Mouse trap is a great game that has been around since the early 1960s. It was fun back then and its still lots of fun to this day. Think this game is too young for you? I beg to differ. Just pull this addicting board game out some evening when youve all been celebrating for any or no reason...the results can be quite hilarious! The game requires a bit of fine motor skills and the ability to count. What? Thats right, whenever you land on a build space, you can build a piece of the mousetrap but only if the number on the space matches or is a smaller number than the total number of people playing the game! Hey, thats the rules, dont argue with me over them unless you like to of course. Plus, you have to build the mouse trap in the numbered order of the pieces of the mouse trap! There are cheese cards to lure other mice players to the trap and a turn crank to capture them. In the 80s the game was revamped to include cheese pieces for extra luring ability. In 2006 it was revamped totally to include 3 mousetraps and...a toilet? Thats right (cause you never know when those pesky mice might have to go? Hmmm...)

Feb 2, Ra Ra Sis Bom Ba

Tue, 02 Feb 2010 10:57:01 GMT

I realized that I had gone and done it last time. I couldnt mention that the author, Reiner Knizia, of a great trilogy of auction games was a Quantitative analyst without mentioning the third game in the trilogy, Ra (the first two being Medici and Modern Art). Yes, Ra is indeed another one of those addicting auction games, this one about ancient Egypt. You go about collect power (and therefore the win) as you collect the game tiles. There game tiles are, of course, that are bid for in auctions, and you attempt to collect sets of them economics, spiritual, and technological growth. How do you buy them? Why with the tokens awarded you by the sun god Ra! Better yet, there are a few different versions of this game

Ra This is the original board game of the series and is described above. The tokens given by Ra, the Egyptian sun god (Amun-Ra), and are limited so you must be sneaky and frugal in deciding when and how you are going to bid to get those power inducing tiles.
Ra: The Dice Game Take all the good stuff from the original board game (the Pharaohs, the Nile, Civilization, and of course, the ancient monuments) and put them onto cubes and you have this addicting game to play!
Priests of Ra Spanning some 1500 years of Egypts great history, the priests of Ra are attempting to gain great fame and therefore power. This cant be done without telling everyone else what to do, of course, so you must direct everyone from farmers, to warriors, to merchants to scribes. You force others build up the economy and defences by building granaries, fortresses, markets and libraries to dump the scribes in. Better yet, you get to erect a great pyramid to the Sun God Ra!

These are all fun and all addicting. I love ancient Egypt and this game, in any of its forms, is not a disappointment. Its easy for all yet involved enough to want to play again and again.

Jan 30, Fish Eat Fish yes they do

Sat, 30 Jan 2010 14:08:50 GMT

This uber addicting card game is maybe too abstract for some people, but its as easy as go fish and yet as involving as Checkers or Chess, with the added bonus of being able to bluff your way to winnerdom. Thats right. Winnerdom...and the loser must go directly to Loserdom! Hey, if a published author can use those words, so can I! Why is Fish Eat Fish so good? Face it, any game designed by Reiner Knizia (like Medici vs Strozzi) is going to be good. And thats because anybody with a PhD in Math thinks weird enough to come up with some interesting ways of looking at and playing things like involving card and board games! Place your fish on the board and then attack or move to a better attack position. If you have the winning fish, you put it on top of your opponents punier weakling fish. When there are 5 fish in a pile, the fifth winner gets to keep them all. You play until only one player has a fish left on the board, but the one with the most piles of fish actually wins the game! You can bluff during the challenges, but remember when youve used a challenge card, it has to be put aside and cant be used again during the game, so you really have to time and choose your strategy well. Keep those best cards - if you can til the piles are ready to be won! And good luck with that. This turns out to be a very fun and addicting and fast - game. So go ahead, Reiner Knizia push your luck and try it out!

Jan 29, Chess Books

Fri, 29 Jan 2010 17:48:08 GMT

Chess Books

Jan 29, Medici vs Strozzi: let the feuding er...gaming begin!

Fri, 29 Jan 2010 12:31:29 GMT

Medici is another auction game (like Modern Art) that is a lot of fun to play with 3 to 6 players. There is another version, Strozzi that is made for 2 players. So you can play with a bunch of suckers or just one and completely satisfy your lust for wrangling and winning! The interesting thing about both of these games is at theyre based on 2 great Florentine families you guessed it, the Medicis and the Strozzis. These infamously feuding families of commerce fought and feuded against each other for hundreds of years in Italy (actually Renaissance Florence). With their ships laden with valuable art and other goods, their fine precedence for wrangling for economic gain follows us into todays great Medici and Medici vs Strozzi board games. As all their advertising says (or close enough): Compete to buy the best goods you can afford, load em up on your ships, and bugger off to sail them for great profit (or just to ensure you have the best and most expensive) so that you win the game. Theres so much fun involved and there really is a strategy as to how you can win. You have to use your best judgement when pricing the investment risk when buying or not buying the cards. The German designer of this great trilogy of auction games was a Quantitative analyst and the risks inherent in his job fits perfectly with the great tradition of commerce throughout history. So to play a game that is both fun and rewarding, come on down come on down!

Jan 26, Modern Art Bid your highest or lose it all

Tue, 26 Jan 2010 01:34:56 GMT

Do you like art? If you answer yes, youll like this game. D o you also like games where your main objective is buying and selling things? Yes? Well then youll really like this game. Which is great, but if you really like bargaining and scrounging and negotiating til the grimace of pain on your unworthy foes face makes you smile with glee...then youre going to LOVE this ultra addicting auction and bidding game! Yeah, I know, it sounds like its all about the art and it is but really its about bidding and auctioning and a heck of a lot of luck and strategizing. Each player gets to own their own gallery and then buys art up for auction from the other galleries. But watch out for those clever con artists because theyll try to sell you a Picasso thats not really a Picasso but is instead a clever piece that looks like a Picasso and youll likely end up losing your shirt to the thief! If youre really smart, and of course you are, youll be able to make money both buying AND selling paintings. Can you say laugh all the way to the bank? Cause of course if youre the broker with the most cash at the end of the game - youre the winner - but better yet, everyone else is the loser! Going once, Going twice - Oh no! Quick! Bid higher!

Jan 23, Quo Vadis? Gesundheit!

Sat, 23 Jan 2010 14:15:04 GMT

Nowadays, when Quo Vadis is mentioned its usually when asking someone to play it rather than read it. So we are not talking about the book of the same name published way back in 1895 that vivified one rather brutal Roman officer in the time of Neros reign. Although that really is a great must read book about a particularly brutal era - and it even won its author a literary Nobel Peace Prize! Talking about being brutal, thats just the quality you need to win this addicting board game. What. Brutality, Negotiating skills...Tomato, Tomahto. I mean, were talking influencing the Roman senate here and with that lot, what else ever worked to win the game? Which is the whole point, of course. From committee structures you have to manoeuvre your politicians through, to helping other player just because you need them indebted to you and to win prestige points. Because to get one of the 5 available Senate seats is the only way to win this addicting game, but the prestige points earned from sucking up to your opponents is what will win you the game and earn you the power and the glory of victory! So, to game board, says I and "Honi soit qui mal y pense ("Shame be to him who thinks evil of it") Oh sorry, my bad. Wrong version.

Jan 21, Werewolf or Mafiaits a great party game!

Thu, 21 Jan 2010 12:17:27 GMT

Werewolf, or Mafia as its otherwise known, is a great large party game, perfect for 8 or even way more people! Two people are secretly assigned as werewolves (or Hitmen if youre playing the Mafia version), and the rest are (secretly assigned as reqular Joes/ the Mafia). Everyone is desperately trying to kill the werewolves. Sounds simple? Ha! In playing this addictingly fun game, you have the fun inducing elements of team work and role playing and social skills involved (which makes this a great party game for work rather than one of those more lame ones that always seem to be picked no I wont name them, you know what they are thats rightevery one but this one!) Or, if you happen to be camping or at the boat, try playing this late at night with anyone you find around the campsite or marina adults, kids, teenagers...the more you find to play, the merrier! Lots of laughs and fast friendships happen over a weekend or over a boating season with this type of party game ready to be pulled out and played by friends and strangers alike!

Jan 19, Scotland Yard Mr. X strikes again

Tue, 19 Jan 2010 23:22:49 GMT

This addictingly symmetric board game, based on the Historical Scotland Yard, will get your evil genes flowing (If youre the lucky one who gets to be the bad guy), and has you pitted against the obviously inferior minds of all the rest of the dicks playing. Although this game can be fun with 5 players, its at its best when its just you and your opponent. If youre the detective, you can more easily coordinate your capture strategy for getting Mr. X (by landing on the same board space). If youre Mr. X, however; its way easier to elude a bunch of police, rather than just onego figurejust watch out for the one in the tan raincoat if hes wearing a fedora ! I have to say, though, it's not easy to capture the mega elusive Mr. X. Hes only got to resist being captured long enough for the detectives looking for them to run out of tokens. However, the detectives get to use taxis tokens, bus tokens, and London Underground tokens to get around. However, once theyve used them they have to give them to Mr. X. So Mr. X then has use of all of those, plus he has exclusive use of the water routes. And Mr. X gets to remain hidden throughout the game, writing down his moves in a log book and covering them with a token, which is then the only hint as to where he might be on the game board. Good luck to the detectivesbecause unless youre perhaps Sir Arthur Conan Doyles infamous Sherlock Holmes, youll probably find yourself out of tokens, out of luck, and out of the game within the hour. So go ahead, try this great addicting game on for size. Youll love it too!

Jan 16, The Mansion of happiness

Sat, 16 Jan 2010 14:37:43 GMT

First published in the mid 1800s, this addicting game (yes game, not the wonderful book of Poetry by the same name) was advertised as the first ever board commercially produced game published in America. The riveting box the game was sold in was captivating with its bright colors and exquisite details courtesy that newfangled thing called Chromolithography! And the fact that it is still around and happily played attests to just how fun it is! The Mansion of Happiness was designed by a clergymans daughter (Anne Wales Abbott) and the game board reflects this. As you race around the inward spiralling track to be the first to reach the promised land (Heaven) and thus redeem your wicked wicked soul kidding in order to reach eternal happiness, you must pray for a safe landing on the virtuous spaces while trying to avoid those damned spaces containing the miserable vices of cruelty or ingratitude or *gasp* immodesty - because you will promptly be sent to the whipping post to repent and then heal somewhat while you await your next turn. Believe it or not, this game is quite fun and is pretty fast paced so it can be played multiple times in one sitting without getting old. The Mansion of Happiness is a hilarious racing game to the finish! And you can be sure that false modesty will abound when you beat down your miserable and thus estimably less Puritan opponents.

Jan 14, Balderdash weird and wacky words win the day!

Thu, 14 Jan 2010 03:16:11 GMT

The 80s give us another great word definition (or parlor) game, Balderdash. Created along the lines of Fictionary, Balderdash is definitely the most popular and commercialized of them all. And trust me, with this addicting game that is definitely a good thing! To play, you first gather a whole group of people to play and the more the merrier. Then, you pick a card and read the obscure word written on it. Everyone then writes down an explanation or definition of what the word means (or what they think it means). And this is where the more people playing the better, because once they hand the definitions back to you and youve read them aloud, the player then have to decide which definition is most plausible. The players get one point for every player who chooses their definition and get another point if youve actually written the correct definition. Simple and fun, yes? Balderdash is a word that comes out of the 1800s but no one really knows from where or whom...although people sure love to debate it. and everyone seems to agree that it means to obscurify or bastardize something from its original state or meaning to something else usually something unappealing. But I have to say that theres nothing unappealing about this great addicting game in any of its many versions:

Paradisian Parody
Peculiar People
Marvelous Movies
Laughable Laws
Incredible Initials
Weird Words
Beyond Balderdash, referencing movies, people, and acronyms!

So if you like huffing and puffing and bluffing (i.e. lying with style) and useless trivia as much as I do, youll definitely want to try Balderdash out at your next get together. Im pretty sure youll find you love it as much as I do.

Jan 13, Sequence get your game on!

Wed, 13 Jan 2010 02:52:36 GMT

If you believe that the best kind of board game is also a card game, then Sequence is for you! This addicting game has been around for quite a while (early 80s), although you might know it as Tom Foolery, or Double Series here in Canada, eh?! Theres even a version using dice instead of cards for those of you who like to play craps! The game board is a 10x10 square on which shows the images of all the cards contained in 2 decks of cards (except the jacks). It looks like a large bingo card or scrabble board, except its grid images are made up of the cards in the decks. The four corners are the Jokers and act like wild cards or free spaces and are for the use of all players no, not just you, sorry As a bonus, you get to pick your color of red green or blue marker chips to play on the board. The goal is for you or your team to place chips on the board and form one or two rows of 5 chips, something like Connect 4, before the other team does. And this is where those missing Jacks come in. If you play a 2-eyed Jack (Clubs or Diamonds) then you get to place a chip anywhere on the board. If you play a 1-eyed Jack (the other two) then you get to take one of your opponents chips off the board. But watch out, theres no table talk allowed and certain rules have to be followed. Hey! If this addicting game is sounding confusing with too many rules, no worries, its not. Its just me describing it wrong. Really. Its surprisingly simple and easy enough that kids can play and enjoy, yet has enough strategy involved that parents or older siblings will steal it to play at their next get together. And it only takes about 10 minutes a game, so no worries about boredom with this addicting and fast paced board game.

Jan 10, Thingamajig the best darn game since you know when

Sun, 10 Jan 2010 04:43:52 GMT

With its really great electronic thingamajig, this board game is the slickest game since Apples to Apples or Cranium. And, because it was designed by Wolfgang Kramer (who has has designed over 100 games many of them award winning) you know itll be fun! Thingamajig is a great group party game that you can play at work gatherings (you knowinstead of those lame group assignments that drive everybody insane). The thingamajig that displays your secret word has thousands of them stuck in its miniscule brain, so by the time it gets around to repeating a word, it will be long forgotten. Great for longevity and repeat playability! The rules are simple and the play is fast and fun! On your turn, press the thingamajig and it displays your word. You then define the word and hope that not everyone can figure out what it is. Why dont you want everyone to be able to figure it out? Because then you wont get any chips! If only some players guess your word from the definition you give, then each player who has written it down correctly gets a chip and so do you one for each player who gets it right (unless of course all of them have got it right, then you get none. And, of course you want to collect as many chips as possible because the player at the end of the game (when the chips are all gone) with the most chips wins! Simple. Fun. Addicting. So if you like word games, pick up your own Thingamajig and introduce your friends and family to yet another great addicting board game.

Jan 7, Jenga always there for a great time

Thu, 07 Jan 2010 12:21:59 GMT

Jenga has always been one of my favorite games and now that Im a bigger kid, I like to play with the smaller kids because I usually can win. Kidding. But not really. Ok, truthfully? Those rotten kids usually beat me and I STILL have to rebuild the tower! Its Not fair, I tell you! Jenga is a great manual dexterity game and a great thinking game. Not only do you have to try to pull a block out of an increasingly unstable tower, you have to put it on top where hopefully it will re-stabilize the structure enough so you can pull the next one out from somewhere without the bloody thing crashing down on your turn anyway! For more than 20 years weve been pulling em out and stacking em up, and I see this addicting game crashing down around us for the near and distant future. And while you cant believe everything you read about Jenga (except I think maybe the bit about Osama beating Bush at it might be true), it is actually of Swahili background. Its British creator Leslie Scott grew up in Africa, and the meaning of the word Jenga in Swahili is to build (go figure). And now theyve come out with a Jenga Max version that is really cool. You have blocks, but you have to hook em and hang em on a tall freestanding ring without unbalancing and toppling it. Plus, there is a Jenga version for wii! No more rebuilding the tower is a bonus after the first couple of falls for sure! If you have Jenga in your games closet, you have a sure winner.

Jan 5, Asshole - No, not you, the card game! Right?

Tue, 05 Jan 2010 10:50:15 GMT

Unlike Rummy , which is undoubtedly the most acceptable of card games, the mere name of the addicting game of Asshole tends to put people off. But if you call it by one of its many other names, perhaps it would be less so? Asshole is known by so many different names, most offensive: Scum, Arsehole by the Brits, President, Bum, Emperors and Scum or Warlords and Scumbags in Australia, Butthead, Capitalism, Sluitspieron in the Netherlands, Pimps and Hoes noting a trend here? Many variations of Asshole have evolved over time, but, of course, we have the Chinese to thank for the original addicting card game, known as Zheng Shangyou (which means most closely, Swimming upstream). Or perhaps the Japanese with their version: Dai Hin Min or, Very Rich Man, Very Poor Man. Our version is known mainly as a college drinking game but is really fun on a boat too! Get 4 to 6 of your favorite friends, team up, decide on the rules beforehand to minimize the fighting, and youll spend a really fun evening with no one being thrown in the drink before the end of the game! Add a twist by creating your own social status (common with such climbing games), ranging from king asshole to mere flatulence the ranks are decided by how well players do on any given hand in the game, of course, and then make the losers stink more by enforcing the giving up of their best cards to the winners, plus whatever other abuse you decide to dump on themno pun intended. Of course, theyre especially good for fetching fresh beverages!

Jan 2, The Mystery of the Abbey is how fun it is!

Sat, 02 Jan 2010 01:19:47 GMT

There is a burning question to be answered with the addicting board game called Mystery of the Abbey: Who threw Brother Adelmo (No, nothing to do with the Sci Fi movie of the 80s, The Name of the Rose which featured the equally untimely death of Brother Adelmoalthough that was pretty good) off the cliff to his untimely death? You have 24 fresh prospects, each with 5 characteristics that are uniquely their own, to choose from. You roam the halls and grounds of the Monastery and Abby to figure it out. Hooked yet? You will be. For in the darkest corners of the darkest halls you must sneakily deduce who-dunnit without giving away your suspicions to your fellow nosy monks. Visit the scriptorium and read its pages, question your fellow players, er, monks you meet along the way with confidence knowing that they must answer your allotted one question honestly. Unless, of course, they have taken a vow of silencebut thats ok, because then you too can take a vow of silence and dont have to answer their question either! This is simply a really fun and addicting mystery game. And when you grab some friends to play, dont forget to attend Mass or youll find yourself doing penance in purgatory while everyone else figures out your clues!

Jan 1, Can't Stop

Fri, 01 Jan 2010 02:00:45 GMT

Heres another addicting game that youll find you just cant stop playing. Around for about 30 years, Cant Stop (also known as Cant StopBasta) is a great dice game. Mostly because its a little bit strategy, a little bit skill, and a whole lot of luck. The game that came before this game was a pen and paper version from the early 1970s (The Great Races), but this board game version is really much cooler! With its great stop sign look and feel game board (from whence it gets its name), and its fast play, youll be hooked in no time too. Why? Because the game board is arranged in columns, matching all possibilities of a dice roll, from 2 to 12. You use four dice and temporary markers, and you can continue rolling until none of the dice match. But by that point, if you didnt make a move to the top of the column to win it, youve given up any possible progress you made or could have made during you turn. So watch out! And make it a point to study dice rolling and probabilities. Again you ask why? because youll need more sevens than twelves, and if you have markers on all even or all on odd columns rather than on mixed even and uneven columns, youll find that you have a better chance when rolling and combining totals to win that column, and the next column, and the next. Sound complicated? Its not at all. Pick up a copy of Cant Stop or any other great dice game, and try it out with your friends. Just be ready for a fun time. The goal of the game is to "claim" (get to the top of) three of the columns before any of the other players can. But the more that the player risks rolling the dice during a turn, the greater the risk of losing the advances made during that turn. And you have to claim 3 columns to win the game. Games get pretty exciting and fast let me tell you!

Dec 30, Poker Dice

Wed, 30 Dec 2009 00:45:32 GMT

For those of us addicted to gambling games, Poker Dice is a must have in your gaming closet. The fact that my gaming closet is a spare room is really not relevant. Right? Except that I get to buy and store way more games (and have my very own copies of Poker Dice, and other dice games., than most people can dream about). True gamers, who I actually let walk in there, walk out drooling in envy! Santa Clause makes night raidsok, maybe an exaggerationbut not by much! *insert gloating grin* look at the rules. Poker dice is a nice, viciously fun, simple game you play with 5 dice with the goal of rolling the best poker hand. with the usual 3 turns and winningwhateveras long as you win, who really cares what it is that you are winning, am I right?! And remember, If you have horseshoes up where the sun dont shine and get an awesome poker hand in just 1 or 2 turns, you can stop there. You earn bragging rights and one of your opponents can cry in there beer when it takes all 3 turns to get that crappy hand that you beat them with anyway! So grab 2 to 5 people, off the street if you have to, and get bettingI mean rollingmaybe youll win back that awesome present you just gave away but really really wanted to keep for yourself. Or get your dinner free if youre feeling lucky and just happen to have the Poker dice in your pocket when youre out and about with friends this holiday season, it just might save you quite a bit of moneyunless youre not the lucky type Helpful tip and disclaimer: just dont try it with your girl/boy friend or they may soon be exes. Not that Im speaking from personal experience of course.

Dec 24, Pit the game that will rock the room

Thu, 24 Dec 2009 16:09:30 GMT

If you like really fast paced and loud games (ones almost as much fun as a great mosh pit), then Pit is definitely for you! Now, although Pit has been around and originally invented as a board game over a hundred years ago (1903) by a dude named Harry E Gavitt (had to give him his due here), the more famously fun version by far was re-invented by Edgar Cayce, a famously kooky psychic the very next year. Both are played simultaneously and real-time by all players (having 6 to 10 players is best). With Pit, there are 54 to 74 cards and the deck has 4 to as many suits as there are players. There are of course, just like with real trading, the requisite Bull and Bear (cards, of course) to use as wild or penalty cards respectively. And if you need any further reasons to play Pit, just take a look at the rules. The best is that you get to de-stress as you yell real loud (your neighbours will love you), and you trade furiously, and if youre the first to corner the market with your commodity, you win! Pit has been around for over 100 years and with the addicting fun to be had grabbing and playing your very own PIT version, it will surely for around for at least another hundred more!

Dec 23, Crokinole Watch that one-cheek rule!

Wed, 23 Dec 2009 19:46:55 GMT

Crokinole is another great board game that has been around since the 1870s. This addicting game is played on a round gaming board and is somewhat like marbles...so theres more strategy and skill involved than first meets the eye! Yes, it was and is so innocuous a game that its still played to this day by many Mennonite and Amish groups, but No, its not originally invented by them. Rather, it seems to have been invented in Perth County, Ontario, by a Lutheran craftsman named Eckhardt Wettlaufer if it really matters, other than to give the guy his due for bring us such a great game to while away our long cold Canadian evenings with. Crokinole rules are simple. You flick and bounce your 6 to 12 discs onto the game board while trying to take out your opponents discsbut watch out, because if you bounce your guy out of play either off the board or into the ditch surrounding the playing area of the boardyoure out of luck. Even if it bounces back onto the board its outta there! Sure, the game play gets really tense and exciting and even addicting, and the urge to get out of your chair to help your aim is excruciatingly sobut if you do again - youre outta there (at least your disc is, and your turn, and whatever evil punishment has been thought up by your opponents and brought forward as game rules is your next punishment. OK, so I made that part up. But it could be if you all decide on something before the game and its assented into the game rules for that game, or the next game, or the evening of games (because you just cant play only one). And it adds to the spice and competition, because, believe mesomeone will violate it! Crokinole is a nice social gamereallyso what if its a little addictive and you might get carried awayits all good. So get yourself a copy of this or some other equally addicting board game and get playing! You know that over two hundred years of family players cant be wrong. Right?

Dec 22, Rook A Tribute To Rooke Perhaps?

Tue, 22 Dec 2009 16:10:28 GMT

I feel I must warn you that the addicting game of Rook is so fun, that once you start playing, it will quickly become an annual tradition during the holidaysor any day really Also, although it has absolutely NOTHING to do with Admiral George Rooke it really should so I have nominated it to be for-ever forward played in his fine memory. I mean anyone who has burnt an entire Franco-Spanish fleet in the battle of Vigo and has also commanded the capture of Gibraltar; well, he deserves to have a fiercely fun competitive card game like Rook named after him. Am I right? Now Rook, even though it took another 200 years after our greatly esteemed Admiral Rook, it is one of the first of the proprietary trick-taking card games to be published and that is still around and enjoyed to this very day (Im playing later this evening). Check out the rules (easily played) and pick up a copy of Rook to ensure full enjoyment. You could use a regular deck of cards, but its not as fun because you only have 52 cards rather than the standard 57 specialized cards in a Rook set. Also, you wouldnt want to be associated with those filthy evils, gambling and / or cartomancy... So deal em up hotshot! But be ready to cry when I take all the tricks!

Dec 18, Kriegspiel wargame or chessits all good!

Fri, 18 Dec 2009 16:14:55 GMT

With Kriegspiel (or Kriegsspile which is the German word for wargame), either version is addictinglywell, addicting! And totally complexI mean, who ever heard of a chess game where you need an impartial 3rd party to judge it because you cant see your opponents game pieces. Thats right. You cannot see your opponents game pieces thats what youre up against with Kriegspiel, the Chess version! In a crazy twist, probably because it came about because of the wargame version, you and the ref can see your pieces, and when you or your opponent tries to move, the ref will tell you if the move is legal or illegal and if you have then try again with another move. And the only thing you can ask that pesky ref is if there are any legal captures you can make with your pawnso good luck with that. Its really quite an addicting game. And thenKriegspiel, the wargame version. Talk about your involved and complex game! You need to really like wargames and to get totally involved in them because Kriegspiel the wargame needs exactly that from you! It was developed in 1824 for the purpose of training officers in the Prussian army. These guys all played and quickly became obsessed too (mainly, Im thinking, because it was sent out to every regiment and got possibly totally undeserved credit at the time for helping them to achieve various military victories). This obsession, of course, then spread to other countries but by the time WW1 Germany was defeated it kind of proved that the complex strategies involved in Kriegspiel didnt necessarily translate to victories in the real worldbut thats probably me just being mean anyway This undeniably great game, the granddaddy of all other wargames, has definitely set the bar for all others to follow. From its gaming map, use of opposing color codes, and umpires, and uniformsnot to mention the complex rules you have to follow for the military movement and combat theme that will allow you to annihilate your most unworthy of opponents. Im hooked, I tell youhooked! And once you get your own copy of either or both versions and start playing, youll be hooked too!

Dec 17, Get in the holiday spirit with a quick game of Liars dice

Thu, 17 Dec 2009 20:52:12 GMT

This is a really fun and easily played game (takes only about 20 minutes each game) that anyone old enough to be fleeced can enjoy. No really. So go ahead and pick up your very own set for this addicting dice game and get playing! Coming to you all the way from Spain by the Spanish conqueror Francisco Pizarro during the 16th century, this game has its own unique place in pirate historyI wonder how many pirates were made to walk the plank over this juicy little game, eh?! In South America, Liars dice is still popular, although known as Dudo and Cachito (no not the popular song of the same name by South Americas favourite band Mno) in where else South America; or as Mxchen or Little Max in Germany; and the popular drinking game Mexicali or Mexican in the United States. Its just fun, ok? The three most popular versions of this great dice game and its your guess as to which is the original one. The poker dice are rolled undercover and bids are made raised and challenged as to who may have the better poker hand. But you dont have to tell the truth about what your saying your poker hand is. Its totally up to the other players have to decide if youre telling the truth or notyou may even have a better hand than you say you do just to get the pot sweetened. Especially if youre playing for M&Ms! So put on your liarsahempoker face and roll em too fun!

Dec 15, Five of The Best Christmas Movies You Should Watch...or not

Tue, 15 Dec 2009 12:18:40 GMT

At this time of year especially, we look for stuff to keep the kids busy so we don't go crazy counting down the days until they're back in school and everything returns to normal again. What. Don't tell me you don't calendar watch. Even the kids seem to be doing it near the end. So we go out and pick up movies that are designed to make us feel good and restore our faith in humanity and all that heartwarming talk. 5: The Polar Express - ok, so I have this in my Christmas library. But its a great movie about a little boy who is trying hard to believe in Santa despite his kill-joy's family insisting its all bogus. And when the train's conductor comes on the scene, I'm sold...I love anything with Tom Hanks in it! 4: Gremlins - The stars of these films kind of look like my ex...especially in the Cristmas hats...tee hee...they eat everything but the burgers in the McDonalds - go figure. Yeah, its gory, but what kid doesn't like to cheer on a little destructive monster with their Christmas cheer? 3: Bad Santa - definitely not a movie for the younger ones, this dark comedy stars Billy Bob Thornton, begins in a bar and ends after his and his friends (little person Tony Cox) annual mall robbery. That about says it all for you to decide if you'll love it or hate it. Love it! 2. Scrooge - This is a great old movie, and if you find the original 1951 black and white version with Alistair Sim you'll be as enthralled as I am when I dig it out every year and curl up with popcorn to watch it. Even the kids will watch this one with me...whereas I run screaming when "It's a wonderful life" is mentioned...yeah, yeah, but even James Stewart isn't enough to make me watch it. 1. A Christmas Story - The classic story of home town anywhere and a little boy who wants just one thing for Christmas - his own Red Ryder BB gun! But how is an eight year old kid to overcome everyones assertions that he would "Shoot his eye out" if he got one. The whole family will laugh their way through this one, and just maybe that Christmas spirit will leak out a bit. So, maybe you disagree with my picks. And that's ok with me. Just pick out a few great - or nor so great - Christmas movies for yourself and watch them with your family. You'll all feel better after laughing your way through them together this Christmas season...and the many to come.

Dec 12, Foosball - the babyfoot that kicks butt

Sat, 12 Dec 2009 12:38:17 GMT

Foosball is another great indoor table game. This one is also another with a somewhat murky history. Although patented and supposedly invented in 1923 by Harold S. Thornton, yet there are US patents that go back to around 1890. And an earlier US patent for a foosball table exists from 1901. Even with that, Foosball is still thought to have generated in wester Europe. Yet another source wrote that the inventer was a French employee of Citroen in the late 1800s, Lucien Rosengart. This fine fellow invented enough stuff to garner himself a ridiculous fortune (the minicar, frontwheel drive, the seat belt, and babyfoot - the original name for foosball). It is even possible that Foosball developed in a bunch of different countries over time and converged to become today's addicting game that we all know and love. Its even said that this was another game that was developed to help post war soldiers with their recovery and that stories of US soldiers getting thoroughly whomped by their german captors, and in fact, they were soo good that they just couldn't be beaten. Needless to say, this didn't go over well... But, again, as always when it comes to games, although its a nice distraction when you're playing and trying to win to be able to start spouting the games' history, who really cares where it came from - but that it is there now to be enjoyed. So take a look, get yourself a table and get playing. you'll learn to spin those foos men around their bars fast enough to kick that little ball at warp speed (Expert player can move balls at about 56 kmh (36 mph)) so you've got something to strive for, yes?

Dec 10, Bumper pool

Thu, 10 Dec 2009 11:48:48 GMT

Weirdly enough, it is not known exactly who thought up bumper pool. Although its bumpers have been patented, the actual person who created it is to this day unknown - its been around since the 1500s, after all). But he must have been a genius. I mean, who else could have thought up the concept for this crazy addicting game? With its original octagonal shape and smaller sized table to conveniently allow those of us with a smaller room space (or just so we can fit more games in) and its 2 pockets (one for each player or team) and its infuriatingly, shot impeding bumpers scattered around its surface (12 to 16 of the suckers!), where was I going with this...oh yes....the art of taking a shot that actually might make it through all of the bumpers and make it into one of those many pockets. Its crazy fun! Each player or team gets 5 balls. But for a game to start, you have to shoot one of your (pool) balls into your opponents (the enemys) pockets through all those bumpers in the middle of the table surface, and then through the two bumpers guarding the pocket! If you actually make this shot, then you get to start the game. Dont worry; the rules of bumper pool dont get any harder than that. They do have rectangular bumper pool tables if you want the look of traditional pool, but the octagonal tables do triple duty as gaming, cards or poker tables (eh? Eh?). And the upside is that a bumper pool table is much less expensive but still has all of the excitement and uber competitiveness that regular pool can provide. So get yourself or the obsessive gamer and pool lover on your list a difficult problems and let the competitions begin!

Dec 8, Air Hockey Rules!

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 00:39:56 GMT

Look all over the internet, and it seems at first glance that everyone agrees on the stated fact that Air-hockey was invented in 1972 by Bob Lemieux. Bob was an engineer (at Brunswick Billiards) by trade and an ice hockey fan by hobby. Is it fact? No. Air Hockey was actually invented in the 1960s by a trio of Brunswick engineers Phil Crossman, Brad Baldwin and Bob Kendrick who were attempting to create a game that made use of a frictionless surface. They never got anywhere with it and it got shelved for quite a few years. Then, along comes Bob Lemieux, who dusted off the project, refined the clumsy design refined the design and viola. Once that great air cushioned table top popped into his ingenious mind he thought its holey version could become the recipe for instant success...which it was both publicly, and financially. Air Hockey is such an exciting and fast paced game a mini-version of hockey that youll be thoroughly addicted in no time. When you and your opponent play on a table that forces blasts of air through holes found all over the surface, slamming those disks around with the accompanying paddle mallets, youll find your competitive streak in overdrive. In fact, get a couple of extra paddles and play teams! Its so fun you should really spread it around! Air hockey is an exciting, fast paced mini version of hockey that you and an opponent play on a table that forces blasts of air through holes found all over the surface. This air lifts the puck just off the surface of the table so friction is minimized and the speed of the game makes it competitive and quite addicting. Get a table, a couple of extra paddles and play teams!

Dec 5, Twister is a twisted game...but in a good way...we think

Sat, 05 Dec 2009 11:55:00 GMT

Twister is an addicting and classic board game that uses the players as markers...or rather, the players bodies! Considering that this game was first offered to the public in the sixties, the releasing company that did so, Milton Bradley, was pretty daring, dont you think? A large vinyl sheet is the game board and the players then spin to see which hand or foot goes to what colored spot on the game board. Pretty much gave new meaning to full body contact sports and imagine, it was an instant hit on college campuses...especially once Eva Gabor, live on the Jonny Carson show and splayed out around the game board in a low cut dress watched, along with all of the rest of the TV watching and live audience Johnny Carson spin to take his turn and climb on top of her! The audience went wild and the game was such an instant hit that it sold over a million copies that first year alone. But there is a darker side to the origins of this great game. Because before Twister was Pretzel. Enter Reyn Guyer into the scene the year before Twister was patented in the name of Charles F. (Chuck) Foley and Neil Rabens. Reyn was a sales guy, along with Chuck and Neil at the firm he and his father had founded. While looking for a catchy ad campaign for a Wisconsin shoe company, he came up with the idea of Pretzel. Instead of using it for the ad campaign, he decided it would be a great game. One of the companys artists then created a giant board with colored spots on it and had some of the employees try it out. It was of course a success and was picked up by Milton Bradley...but the name got changed and somehow so did the inventers. Think he delegated a bit too much and trusted them to do the patenting for him? Well never know. What we do know is that this great game is still a hit to this day. And if you dont have your copy yet get one! Then get another for the teen gamer on your list. Then get gramma up playing. Still Hilarious Fun!

Dec 4, christmas games

Fri, 04 Dec 2009 20:33:39 GMT

christmas games

Dec 3, Wheres your Ticket to Ride?

Thu, 03 Dec 2009 12:25:15 GMT

Ticket to Ride is an awesome train game that will never lose its appeal when it comes to sheer enjoyment of a relatively quick playing and addicting board game, or card game, or arcade game. And before you ask; No, its not inspired by The Beatles great classic Ticket to Ride, a tune we all know and love, nor does it have anything to do with the Ticket to Ride World freeboard Snowboard Tour...gee, I would be really disappointed right about now except that this Addicting board game is just about as exciting! Its got destination tickets, its got brightly colored train pieces, its got train cards, and scoring markers and...well, just everything needed that makes it exciting and fun to play! And its won numerous awards because its such a great educational game (dont tell the kids)! Best yet, you can play an entire game in less than an hour so it provides a lot of depth without being all slow and complicated to learn. Simply, players make a bunch of different strategic and tactical choices while competing to build railroads across Canada and the US of A; or across the Ocean into the heart of Europe, or...just check out the various versions because there are some great destinations. Where-ever you travel on the board game maps, you do it trying to develop your plans while disrupting the plans of others - while theyre trying to do the same thing to you, of course. The different gives the game a lot of variety so youll be happy to play it again and again! Thats called high replay value. *grin*. Whatever, all I know is I like it, and I am going to get to try a couple of different versions this holiday, because I am going to pick up a couple of them to play with people I know Ill be asked to play it with. And Im not only going to get the board game version, but Im also going to grab the card game AND the dice expansion version, just because they sound so fun! You can even find a Xbox live arcade version. With the Dice expansion, you still try to complete your Destination Tickets while claiming routes and blocking each other on the map, But, instead of drawing and collecting the Train cards, you get to roll five custom Train dice on each of your turns. Fun! In the card game version (which, by the way, has all of the excitement of the board game version), youll find there are a bunch of game play twists...plus its that much easier to take with us on the road. Which is a great bonus while we're travelling this holiday season!

Dec 1, Diplomacy is a game best played with 7 friends...or enemies...

Tue, 01 Dec 2009 00:46:31 GMT

Weve been training as diplomats since the beginning of time. And while the first diplomatic language dates back to around 2500 BC, the language of this truly addicting board game is the language of secret negotiation, alliances, conspiracies, betrayal and ultimately - of conquest! Created back in 1954 by difficult problems Allan B. Calhamer, Diplomacy is a favourite with organized gamers. Intrigued? Pick up a copy of Diplomacy for the gaming fiend on your holiday list and youll thoroughly enjoy the struggle of numerical supremacy that ensues every game! Dice are not used in this game. Tactics are not important in this game. Instead, players entice bluff, wheedle, threaten and cajole each other while secretly setting your supposed alliances up for betrayal. I mean, come on! How much fun can you have, right?! This type of sneaky game is right up my alley I must admit. Since dice arent used, and the successful Diplomacy player must control more than half of the continent to win which is 18 of the 34 supply centers on the game board. And what continent is that you ask? Well, this game play is placed just prior to World War I, with the seven Great European Powers . A map of European political boundaries (as they existed in 1914) is divided into 75 regions containing the greedily fought over supply centers spaces. So, if you have a lot of time on your hands - about 4 hours grab a bunch of friends 7 players is the optimum number then you are in for a real treat! Enjoy!

Nov 29, Stay Crazy and Try Crazy Eights this Holiday Season

Sun, 29 Nov 2009 01:27:00 GMT

This holiday, when the kids have all that free time on their hands, grab a deck of cards and teach them how to play Crazy Eights. This thoroughly addicting game has been around since the mid 15th century . Yes, its so true! Known back then as Hoc. Hoc was a supposedly French game, that in actuality was introduced into France by Signior Justiniani, ambassador of Venice in in 1674. Even better, it was an outlawed roulette game outlawed because of the huge fortunes that could be lost while playing! So keep that in mind while teaching your impressionable youngsters how to play crazy eights...you just might be able to win all their allowance back! Kidding...it would be more likely that they win your wages...not that we would teach our darlings to play gambling games... Again, grab a deck of cards (two decks if they invite a couple more friends) and deal the cards. The rules are simple: Eight cards for everyone, and one flipped up beside the rest of the deck. You all then take turns playing a matching card (same number or same suit) if you can, picking up if you cant or, according to the card played by the other players either missing a turn, picking up cards if the one played just before your turn is one of the special cards that require punishment. You can keep score too...but you dont have to. You can just play to whoever runs out of cards first wins that round, or you can play crazy eight countdown, also a fun addicting game. Although it can last just a bit too long for the younger players... Whatever type of card games you like, go ahead and grab the makings of a very fun evening, afternoon, and or mornings of fun and laughter!

Nov 25, SuDoku A challenging yet simple brain-teasing game

Wed, 25 Nov 2009 11:14:08 GMT

SuDoku, not to be confused with Sodoku (which is some weird rat-bite fever), is a fever inducing solitary number puzzle. With a fascinating history I love to add. Although the name is Japanese in origin, it actually originated in the 18th century at the time of Catherine the Great (or Catherine II as she liked to be known), when a Swiss mathematician, Leonhard Euler , with way too much time on his hands - thank goodness - came up with what was then known as Latin Squares. This was the infamous 9 x 9 square grid in which the number 1 through nine must appear in the grid only once, either up and down, or across. In any order, but only once in each line. It was only in the late 1970s when US Magazine, the great Dell , began publishing Number Place that it started becoming more widely known. Then, sometime around 1980, Mr. Maki Kaji (he was yup, you guessed it Japanese and the president of Nikoli, Inc. at the time) decided to talk his company into publishing a version of the puzzle that became hugely successful in Japan but not really anywhere else. Step into the picture some 20 years later with Wayne Gould, a retired Hong Kong judge but originally from New Zealand...go figure! He first discovered this addicting game in a Japanese bookshop in 1997 and spent more than a few years developing a computer program capable of generating the puzzles. In 2004 he convinced The Times (British) to use his software to generate and publish daily SuDoku puzzles with other British and US newspapers soon to follow. Enter SuDoku mania! Talk about your truly cross-cultural evolution of a simple puzzle! The popularity of this absorbing and frustrating and addicting puzzle took off and we still cant get enough of it. Today, SuDoku is available in board game versions, handheld electronic versions, book versions, and less challenging Kids versions that are great to grow a new generation of math logic geniuses! There are even some versions offering letters and symbols now available. Grab your favorite version of SuDoku and get solving! This addicting brain game will reap you benefits such as increased memory retention and improved reflexes. Your mind will thank and reward you - so get SuDoku-ing today!

Nov 24, Candyland the fun, non-strategic racing game

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 02:22:23 GMT

Candyland is the perfect 1st game to give and teach to your kids. And whether youre 1 or 100, youll have fun playing it. The king of Candyland is lost and you are on a mission to find him first (hint: youll find him on the last square...as long as youre the first to get there). You dont have to worry about dice or numbers, you simply draw a card from the top of the deck and move to the next square of that same color. You can get fancier and use the location cards to send you all backwards. And thats as complicated as it gets. Candlyland has been around since the late 1940s, with over 40 million games printed since the first one rolled off the production line. Its concept and was actually thought up and designed by Eleanor Abbott, while she was recovering from polio in San Diego, California. In fact it led the most popular toys polls all through the next decade afterwards. And if the game isnt enough, Hasbro, who now own it even though it was originally Milton Bradley Company that bought the rights from Eleanor, treats it as a brand. There have been all kinds and versions of this addictingly fun board game from puzzles to handheld electronics, to a PC game. And theyre all fun! Plus, did you know that Candyland let the pack in yet another way...it was one of the first disputes over internet domain names. Going up against an Adult web content provider who registered the Candyland site name yes...one of THOSE sites! And they won. So get out and pick up a copy of one of the many versions of Candyland for the game lovers on your holiday list! Because once the movie version comes out (screenplay to be written by Etan Cohen of the blockbuster Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa fame) for sure youre going to have a hard time finding a copy of this fun and addicting, strategic-less game anywhere)

Nov 22, Chinese Checkers The Great American Invention

Sun, 22 Nov 2009 00:12:32 GMT

Ok, so actually, this addicting board game originated as Halma in the early 1800s before it evolved to its infamous 6 pointed star as the game of checkers 100 years later. But can you believe it? The only thing Chinese about Chinese Checkers is the name. And it was given that name by the brothers Pressman in keeping with the current craze at the time for all things Chinese. That craze was thanks mainly to the discovery of King Tuts tomb in 1922 and then the mah jongg game introduced the next year. So, they decided to change the boring square Halma board. They also gave it the 6 point star overhaul along with bright colors and jazzy Chinese dragons. Thats the board I grew up playing its indestructible tin base also stored the marbles so none were lost. At least, not from the game... Apparently, the proper opening moves can mean the difference to winning or losing this game. That and forgetting about stragglers left behind or off to the side. These can cost many wasted moves getting them back in the game. And those wasted moves will be made while you watch your sneaky opponent power jump across to your side of the board! Learning the best moves while jumping and blocking your opponent is Chinese Checkers strategy at its best. Grab one of these great board games for yourself and youll quickly add sidewinder and cross caterpillar to your vocabulary while annihilating your opponents and earning bragging rights!