Today’s kids are all about Xbox and Pokemon GO, but when I was growing up board games were king!
Here’s a list of 9 of the best.
PERFECTION (Milton Bradley, 1973)
I’m a glass half empty kinda guy. I’m always waiting for something bad to happen. I attribute much of this to playing way too much Perfection as a child.
If you don’t know the game, it’s basically a beat the clock kind of deal where you have to insert a bunch of oddly shaped yellow tokens into their relevant slots on a game board before the timer runs out. If you beat the clock, well, good for you. If you don’t beat the clock … HEART ATTACK CITY! The game board springs up throwing the yellow pieces straight into your eyes. I’m sure childhood blindness was not uncommon when I was growing up. Perfection was the cause!
MOUSE TRAP (Ideal, 1963)
Mouse Trap was the king of board games when I was growing up. Unfortunately, it took 3 days to set up the intricate layout, and even when we did, my dad wouldn’t let us put water in the diving guys pool in case we “ruined the carpets”.
I’ve still never played this game with water. I have however ruined several of my dad’s carpets in other ways.
ATMOSFEAR (Tanner and Clements, 1991)
Atmosfear, Australia’s greatest export since Jason Donovan, wasn’t just a board game; it was an interactive VHS experience where your every move was controlled by a malevolent ghoul on your TV screen. The key to victory? Facing your ultimate fears, your atmosfears … muhahahaha.
GHOST CASTLE (Milton Bradley, 1970)
Ghost Castle, aka Which Witch? in some markets, was the holy grail of board games when I was a kid – at least to me anyway. Looking back, it had glowing skulls and skeletons in the dungeon and embodied every kids dream of getting trapped in a haunted castle. It was also a game I never owned and therefore coveted like a jealous little Smeagol.
OPERATION (Milton Bradley, 1965)
Everything I learned about major surgery as well as the human anatomy I learned from playing Operation. The fact that I’m in prison for criminal malpractice and also a virgin tells you all you need to know.
*Disclaimer: Only one of these statements is true, just ask my cell mate*
BARBIE’S DRESS UP (Mattel, 1995)
I’m 10 years older than my sister. By the time she was old enough to play games I was already a teenager. This made babysitting a bit of a challenge as in my head I was already an adult, so what could we possibly have in common? Thank the Gods then that she had Barbie’s Dress Up!
What could be more exciting to a 13-year-old boy than the prospect of making your way around a game board, adding items of clothing to your outfit before finally laying your hands on the ultimate prize, the corsage from Ken?
I think that game had a lot to do with the man I am today.
GUESS WHO? (Milton Bradley, 1979)
“Does your person look like a sex offender in disguise?”
C’mon, 80% of the Guess Who? faces did.
I VANT TO BITE YOUR FINGER (Ideal, 1979)
Imagine getting this for Christmas. A game where if you wake up Dracula you have to stick your finger in his mouth and let him bite you.
Fingers probably weren’t the only appendage old Drac had a nibble on either. Just sayin’.
DUNGEONS & DRAGONS (TSR, 1974)
If you haven’t played D&D then you really shouldn’t be here!
Considered by many to be the ultimate, immersive RPG experience, Dungeons & Dragons has become a staple of geek life for generations and is still as popular today as it was 40 years ago. Well. When I say popular … if you play this then you’ll probably never kiss a girl, or move out of your parent’s basement but, well … let’s just leave it there.
