Trouble

Players: 2-4

Time: 45 minutes

Category: Racing

Synopsis: The Pop-O-Matic dice roller rolls the dice for you as you race around the board. Bump other players from their spot to get your pawns home first.

Who should play this game? People looking for a quick game with a lot of popping fun.

Year created:  1965

Sorry!

Players: 2-4

Time: 30 minutes

Category: Racing

Synopsis: Race around the board, knocking other players off the board if you pick the Sorry! card. Get all of your pawns around the board and into home before anyone else to win.

Who should play this game? People who want a simple game with a friendly race.

Year created: 1934

Chutes and Ladders

Players: 2-6

Time: 30 minutes

Category: Racing

Synopsis: Travel by the roll of the die, going up if you land on ladders and sliding down if you land on a chute. It’s a race to the top.

Who should play this game? People looking for a game with an easy concept and fast gametime.

Year created: 1943

Monopoly

Players: 3-6

Time: 180 minutes

Category: Monetary

Synopsis: Players are property owners trying to gain more land. They have the opportunity to make money when the others land on their properties. Taxes, mortgage, even bankruptcy are all real threats in the game of Monopoly.

Who should play this game? People who want to dabble in the world of finance.

Year created: 1935

Life

Players: 2-6

Time: 60 minutes

Category: Monetary

Synopsis: Follow your dreams as you buy a car, get married, have kids, buy a home, get paid and retire. Of course you’ll hit some obstacles along the way but that’s life.

Who should play this game? People who want to go experience life to the fullest and get the life they’ve always dreamed of.

Year created: 1860

Risk

Players: 2-6

Time: 120 minutes

Category: Strategy

Synopsis: Set up the armies and take over the world. The chance of dice will determine the success of player’s armies in a battle. Gain as many countries as possible, conquer the enemies and control the world.

Who should play this game? People who have always wanted to conquer the world (or at least the other players).

Year created: 1957

Mancala

Players: 2

Time: 10 minutes

Category: Strategy

Synopsis: Move the stones around the board, dropping them one by one in the pits. If it lands in your “kalah” (large pit at the end of the board), you go again. You win when all the stones are on the other player’s side of the board.

Who should play this game? People looking for a quick, easy game to play with ancient African roots.

Year created: 5,000 years ago

Chess

Players: 2

Time: 60 minutes

Category: Strategy

Synopsis: Pieces move in different patterns on the board. The goal is to land on the other player’s space and capture their pieces. Checkmate the king and the game is over.

Who should play this game? People who enjoy games that resemble medieval warfare, complete with royalty.

Year created: 6th century AD

Battleship

Players: 2

Time: 30 minutes

Category: Strategy

Synopsis: Your ships are at sea, sink your opponent’s ships before they sink yours. Call out spots on the board and it is a hit or miss.

Who should play this game? People who enjoy naval strategy and competition based on logical guesses.

Year created: 1967

Stop Thief

Players: 2-4

Time: 30 minutes

Category: Strategy/Puzzle

Synopsis: Where’s the thief? The bank, the jewelry store? He or she might run away just as you arrive. Use the Electronic Crime Scanner to listen for the noises that will tell you where the criminal is. Beware, he might just taunt you!

Who should play this game? People who want to test their case solving skills based solely on sound. The clues are in the noises!

Year created: 1979

Scrabble

Players: 2-4

Time: 90 minutes

Category: Puzzle/Word Game

Synopsis: Use the letter tiles to form words on the board. Use other words on the board to build even more and earn points.

Who should play this game? People looking to test their vocabulary and puzzle solving skills.

Year created: 1938

Scattergories

Players: 2-6

Time: 30 minutes

Category: Word Game

Synopsis: Roll the die to get a letter. The timer counts down as players fill out their sheets based on a card with categories. The goal is to fill up everything with words or phrases that begin with the letter on the die. You have to be unique, if someone has the same word as you, you don’t get the point.

Who should play this game? People who want to think of unique phrases for everyday things (Boy’s names that start with the letter Q?).

Year created: 1988

Operation

Players: 1-6

Time: 10 minutes

Category: Action

Synopsis: Extract different body parts from a patient with tweezers. If his nose lights up, the surgery was a failure.

Who should play this game? People who want to test the precision of their hands.

Year created: 1965

Mouse Trap

Players: 2-4

Time: 30 minutes

Category: Action

Synopsis: Players build a mousetrap as they move across the board. Once it’s built, they spin the crank and hope it catches the mouse. If the trap works, you’ve won.

Who should play this game? People who want to build a contraption while competing in a game.

Year created: 1963