droolicious : board games

Log-On, But Don't Fall Off, With Squirrel Stacking Game

Aaron Burgess — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 20:30:00 GMT

From the design team of Christina Sciullo and Liz Dubois, Log-On combines the best parts of games like Jenga and Don't Break The Ice! with nicely finished wood pieces and cartoonish, retro-cool styling. Playing is easy -- and easily repeated for hours of fun: Stack your logs and leaves ever higher, and cry victory when you're the first who can place the squirrel atop its woodland home without the whole thing collapsing.

$21 from Greener Grass Design.

Family Game Night: Haba's Toddler-Friendly Charades

Aaron Burgess — Thu, 01 Jan 2009 17:00:00 GMT

Today's all about resolutions, and if spending more time together as a family is on your Big List for 2009, weekly game nights are a great way to commit. Of course, if you're like me, you've got a mixed brood that ranges from very young to just-old-enough-to-have-attitude, so finding a game that includes everyone can be tough.

My family's turned to charades as a solution, and with two pre-readers in the house, we swear by Haba's version. Not only is the game compact enough to throw into a diaper bag, but it's also picture-based, which means your little ones only need to be able to recognize the image on each cue card in order to play.

Older kids and grown-ups will also have fun imitating the assortment of animals, people and everyday objects in the game, and for sheer comedy value, you can't beat watching a toddler try to keep up.

$12.93 from Amazon, and if you're looking for other ways to fill up your next family game night, check out some of our past round-ups from Strollerderby and right here at Droolicious.

Scrabble Diamond Anniversary Edition: You Can Take It With You

Aaron Burgess — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 14:30:00 GMT

That musty, dusty Scrabble game you inherited from your grandparents may be perfectly fine for family game night, but if you're willing to splurge a little, the Scrabble Diamond Anniversary Edition would make an equally great hand-me-down for your own grandkids someday.

On top of its keepsake value, the Diamond Anniversary Edition -- released earlier this year to commemmorate 60 years of Scrabble -- has plenty of upgrades to justify its purchase. The rotating gameboard gives every player an upright view of your triple-word score; the raised-grid gameboard is designed to keep letters from slipping; and the curved tile racks give an improved view of your letter blocks while also keeping prying eyes from your precious vowels. You can also pack it up for easy transport -- a nice feature whether you're working the competitive circuit or just heading off to Grandma's house.

Oh, and that bit about having to splurge for it? You're in luck: Thanks to Amazon's "December Deals" special, the regularly $35 Scrabble Diamond Anniversary Edition has been slashed to $14.99.

Indoor Fun: Gator Golf

Aaron Burgess — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 17:21:00 GMT

Outside of the orange (?) alligator, Playskool's new edition of Gator Golf should be familiar to those of us who remember the original version's commercial from our pre-kid days. "What could be greater than playing a game of golf with a gator?" went the old jingle, and this game should have new-school kiddoes singing a similar tune.

The old-school Gator Golf ad -- ah, memories...

This version of the game plays exactly the same way as its green-colored cousin: Putt your ball into the motorized alligator's mouth, and the gator flicks the ball back to you with its tail. Tack it onto the Safari Adventure Mini-Golf Set that Lisa covered earlier this week, and you've got a perfect 18th (well, fifth, but who's counting?) hole.

$14.24 (regularly $20) from Amazon.

Very Big Toys: Spy Gear's New Board Games

Aaron Burgess — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 16:04:00 GMT

Wild Planet's Spy Gear gadgets are perennial favorites among junior secret agents (and I've got three mini 007s at home who will attest), but the company's recently unveiled board games bring the action out of the kids' hidey-holes and into family game night.

Spy Trackdown ($39.95; pictured above) puts you in the role of a secret agent whose mission is to save the world from an evil mastermind -- essentially the same plot of any spy thriller ever made -- but this time, you're also competing against other super-spies in a race to snag the crime boss. You move through 52 cities in six continents, traveling by plane, boat, motorcycle and helicopter and stopping to receive secret messages from headquarters that tell you how close you are to your target. The game includes a fun little gadget -- the Spy Phone -- that transmits cuztomized clues to each player, and through memory, deductive reasoning and stealth (you'll definitely want to keep tabs on how the other players are moving), the best spy wins.

While Spy Trackdown can be played in about an hour, the new Spy Wire ($29.95, above) is a bit faster-paced: You compete against another player in a race against the clock, furiously sliding tiles to close circuits and defuse a bomb while collecting all three of your opponent's detonators. It's a bit too quick-moving for little players to handle -- although they will dig the explosion sound effects -- but older kids or anyone who's got the patience to get through a round of Perfection will eat it up.

7 Days of Educational Toys: Original Memory Game

Heather Kuldell — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 22:57:00 GMT

OK, call it my own nostaglia, but I still dig Hasbro’s Original Memory Game even though you can get Dora, Spider-Man, Sponge Bob, Disney ... and who knows how many other versions.

Need a refresher? Memory is a card game that can be played solo or with multiple players. Find matching pairs of picture cards and at the end of the game, the player with the most matching pairs wins. The game practices those same brain muscles as when you ask, “Where is your other shoe?” No promises, but I like to think that extended play will help kids figure out the answer.

Available at Hasbro.com for $6.99. For ages 3-6.

Monopoly Razes Atlantic City, Dumps Dollar, Goes Global

Aaron Burgess — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 18:04:00 GMT

If you caught CBS' The Early Show yesterday, you probably already got a first glimpse at Monopoly Here & Now: The World Edition, the completely overhauled version of the world's most-played board game (half a billion players and counting, according to the game's parent company, Hasbro). This time out, Mr. Monopoly's empire has expanded far beyond Atlantic City's borders, thanks to a six-week worldwide voting campaign that found some 5 million people chiming in on how they'd like the new version to look.

As you might expect, the results are pretty wide in scope: From a whole new global currency (the "M"-represented Monopoly Dollar), to a complete overhaul of the playing spaces (they're now cities, with the 4-million "M" Montreal claiming the blue high-rent spot most of us remember as Boardwalk), all the way to to more worldly-looking houses, hotels and playing pieces:

For all it adds, Monopoly Here & Now: The World Edition also scales back on some familiar items: For instance, paper money has been replaced by bank cards and an electronic banking unit, and the familiar old utilities have given way to green-themed renewable sources such as wind and solar energy. Plus, thanks to EA's upcoming video-game versions, including the Aug. 27 debut of the game on mobile phones (via download) and at Pogo.com, you can do away with the board altogether.

Monopoly Here & Now: The World Edition is also slated to hit Wii, Xbox 360, PS2 and PS3 in October, but if you're online for the game's Aug. 27 Pogo.com and mobile rollout (at 14:00 GMT, specifically), you can join players across the globe in an attempt to set a world record for the most people ever playing a game of Monopoly at the same time.

Oh, and fear not, classicists: You'll still be able to buy the old-school, Atlantic City-centric edition with your worthless U.S. dollar. As for the rest of the world, see you in Montreal...

Giveaway: Win a Chatterbox Conversation-Starting Game (ends 6/15)

Aaron Burgess — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 15:04:00 GMT

The school year may be behind us, but that doesn't mean the citizenship skills your kids spent the past year building need to wither. In fact, with The Chatterbox, you can keep those skills in shape without the kids suspecting they're getting a lesson: Though no bigger than a recipe-card holder, The Chatterbox packs 140 game cards in six life-skills categories, each divided into age-appropriate questions (3-6, 7-11, and 12 and up) designed to get the family talking, the kids thinking, and everyone working together to build character, harmony and conversational skills.

Sound too good to be true? My family's been using The Chatterbox since April, and I can attest to how much quality time it's given us (it's also been a life-saver on road trips), but it's also gotten accolades from California First Lady Maria Shriver, in addition to being selected by Nicole Richie for a VIP celebrity giveaway as part of her ongoing charity work.

And now, the reason you're reading this: Thanks to the nice folks at Chatterbox Games, 5 lucky Babble readers will have a chance to score a Chatterbox of their own (retail value: $24.95). To enter, just send your full name and email address to us at babblecontest@gmail.com. On Sunday, June 15, we'll choose 5 winning entries at random from the pool of entries. Good luck!

RandomLine's Alphabet Squiggle Game -- Play With Your Letters

Mir — Mon, 19 Nov 2007 13:01:00 GMT

It's a board game that grows your child's language skills and grows along with your child -- Alphabet Squiggle is equally fun for preschoolers just starting letter recognition and early readers alike. For just $17.45 (at Amazon) you can save yourself from yet another interminable game of Candyland. I'm just sayin'.

Late in the Sky's Pony-opoly Full of Pretty Ponies

Mir — Sat, 17 Nov 2007 22:02:00 GMT

If you've got a little one obsessed with all things pretty pony, don't despair. Skip the cheap plastic figurines or the prohibitively expensive life-like horses and go for the pony-lover's answer to Monopoly. Pony-opoly ($12.76 at Amazon) deals in pony ownership and treats, and will foster counting and fair game play skills while delighting the young horsey set. (I just feel sort of bad for whichever pony is the equivalent of Baltic Avenue.)

Mercifully, There Are 'I Can Do That' Games

Kelly Mills — Wed, 07 Nov 2007 18:07:00 GMT

As one member of a super-dorky board game playing family, I have noticed that aside from the old classics, the vast majority of "bored" games for kids are halfhearted versions of Candyland with some themed character slapped on the box. This is why I'm so thrilled by three of the Seuss-themed games from I Can Do That: You to the Rescue, Sing Your Heart Out, and the namesake game, I Can Do That. The games are absolutely creative, and here's a rarity: the playing pieces are quite clever, like the Horton visor-thing from You To the Rescue, the foam fish bowl and bent rake from I Can Do That, and the musical sled from Sing Your Heart Out. The company was founded by a former Cranium guy, and the games are $19.99 apiece, a very small price to pay for something that will save your ass next time it rains.

Scooby-Doo 3D Board Game Fun for You and Your Meddling Kids

Aaron Burgess — Wed, 17 Oct 2007 20:32:00 GMT

Hard to believe it's been 38 years since Scooby-Doo! debuted, especially considering the number of Scooby-related gizmos that seem to find their way into stores every year. Capturing all the spooky-fun kitsch of the classic series, the Scooby-Doo! Haunted House 3D Board Game from Pressman ($17.99 at Amazon.com) is one of the more creatively designed Scooby toys of late, as well as a great way to get your kids in the Halloween spirit while satisfying their (and, if you're like me, your) Scooby jones.

A breeze to assemble, the game is equally simple to play: Flick the spinner, move your character, and try to avoid the booby traps as you work your way through the haunted house and reveal the mystery villain who awaits you at the top. Given the simplicity, older kids may not see the replay value, but their little siblings (especially those frustrated by board games that require reading) will have a blast, and you'll enjoy repeatedly telling them you would've won "if it weren't for you meddling kids!"

Beleduc Schmetti Coloretti Fun to Say and Play

Mir — Mon, 24 Sep 2007 17:02:00 GMT

You have to love a game with a name that's so much fun to say. Schmetti Coloretti. Schmetti Coloretti! And the fact that it's a game of matching colors and patterns -- not to mention that it involves butterflies -- is pretty good, too. Available from Hot Toads! Toys for $16.99 CDN, though they don't ship outside of Canada at this time. (If you don't live in Canada, you'll have to make do with just saying Schmetti Coloretti, which is almost as good.)