What was your favorite game to play as a kid?

In My Humble Opinion
21

My favorite game was “ride down the hill on your bike with no hands and try to miss the gravel patch at the bottom.” Long name for a dangerous game! I had one or two friends who lived on the same block I did, and it was a very steep hill. I usually managed to miss the gravel patch, but on one memorable occasion, I skidded right into it and took the skin off both elbows and both knees.

Another game–I won’t even try to name this one–was a two-part contest. My friends and I would see who could get the dirtiest. Then we’d go into the house and get white washclothes (sorry, Mom), and see who could paint the coolest designs on our filthy legs and arms with the clean water.

I liked to play touch football, but only if I was wearing white pants. (Again, sorry, Mom.)

You know, maybe it’s a good things I don’t have kids. That way I’m missing the curse–“I hope your kids give you as much trouble as you gave me!” :smiley:

I loved to play Monopoly, because it was really easy for me to cheat. And I love, love, love Trivial Pursuit. It’s kind of sad, though, because I can’t get anyone to play with me anymore.

We also used to play statues, hide & seek, and Red Rover.

We also liked to play in the street after dark, in defiance of our Mom’s strictest orders. Of course, the last time she caught me doing that I was 12 or 13, taller than she was, and she spanked me with the back of a hairbrush. I was laughing at the ludicrous picture we must have presented. The more I laughed, the harder she hit; the harder she hit, the more I laughed. I finally managed to squeeze out a few tears so she’d stop hitting me.

But at 38, I still play out in the street after dark sometimes!!! :smiley:

22

I always liked LIFE as a young child, though I think I mainly liked it for the board design (mine had the game pathway as a road with little hills in it, large spinner, plastic buildings that were mock-ups of houses, a college, etc. One of the money demoninations even had Art Linkletter’s picture on it (early versions had a picture of him on the box with the quote “I heartily endorse this game”).

MONOPOLY was great fun, but when I was little I only had my sister to play with, and we never played for more than an hour or so (you really need all day). And of course, TRIVIAL PURSUIT, especially the RPM card set which I kicked butt at when I teamed with my music teacher uncle.

Another great game I had was the MAD MAGAZINE game where the object was to lose all the money you were allotted before the other players. The spaces on this game had great bits of artwork from MAD issues of the past, and I was an avid reader of MAD during my elementary and junior high years.

23

I was a big fan of British Bulldog in the Boy Scouts. Outside Scouts, I couldn’t find anybody to play though. It was fun. Kinda like football except without all those tedious rules or the girly parts of the game (I am NOT bending over and placing my hands behind some guy’s legs. No way. Uh uh.).

24

I always enjoyed Nok Hockey. I still have the board, but have long since lost the sticks and the puck. It was a really great game. Pretty low tech too, considering the goalkeeper’s were two chunks of wood…

25

When I was younger: Memory. I LOVED that game.

Older: Checkers, Connect 4, and Clue.

It didn’t have a name, but during the summer months we got together with our next door neighbors to make cities out of mud…lots of fun.

26

I played a lot with my dollhouse, and my sister and mother and I would make little fake food out of Fimo like baguettes, eggs, tomatoes, cucumbers and pickles, steaks, and cakes. I still love anything miniature, and wish I had a dollhouse now I could trick out.
We played a lot of Connect Four (had the travel set, too), Uno, Cooties, Monopoly, and Trivial Pursuit. We also dressed the dogs up in our old clothes. We always cut a hole in the underwear so their tails would stick out.
My favorite game, though, was simple Hide and Seek. Our neighbor across the street had this enormous piece of property that extended down a hillside, creating different levels of tropical plants, big trees, and an actual cliff. It was usually about 4 or 5 kids playing, and it would take freaking forever to find anybody. I loved the feeling of lying in the bushes, listening for someone to come looking for me, and trying not to breathe too loudly.

27

[Charlie Brown]
That’s it!!!
[/Charlie Brown]

28

Parchessi

Monopoly

Trivia Pursuit

Chronology

29

Oh my god, this and Cat’s Eye were the freakin’ LOUDEST games known to man. My brother and I asked for them every year for Xmas and never got them because my parents were too cunning.

My brother and I really enjoyed Stratego for a while, but he ended up graduating to RISK and Axis & Allies and I couldn’t really be bothered.

As a neighborhood I remember one summer when we’d taken chalk and all the kids had drawn something in their driveways: One driveway would be the gas station, one would be the car wash, one was the bank drive-thru (this was pre-ATM days) etc and we’d ride up and down the street on our bikes/scooters (I had a Honda “Kick ‘n’ Go”) like we were grown-ups going about our everyday business. Naturally, we had to be home “before the streetlights came on.”

When we were really young my brother and I were really into Play-Doh. Almost every Xmas or birthday would bring another Play-Doh item into the fold. One year we were at my grandparent’s for Xmas and had gotten the Hamburger Factory. We’d spent a good part of the day making assorted “burgers” and other food-type items and took them around as canapes to the rest of the relatives who were there for the holidays. They all took one, pretended to take a bite and said “MMM-MMM!” or “Very tasty!” My grandfather was reading the paper at the time and wasn’t paying attention. When we brought the tray around to him we watched in horror as he said “Oh thank you!” and picked up a piece and put it in his mouth. I seem to remember him commenting on the saltiness and the whole room erupting in laughter.

30

“What’s your favorite …?” threads go in IMHO. I’ll move it for you.

Cajun Man - SDMB Moderator

31

Hide the Belt. (outside game)

Take one heavy-duty belt.
Designate a ‘hider’.
Designate a safe base.

Hider hides belt…anounces “ready”

Others go looking for belt while hider gives clues like 'so-and-so is warm…so and so is cold…

…so and so is burning up…

Then, when someone finds the belt, they come up swinging and can beat everyone to a pulp until they get back to base.

Hidden joys…The strategy:

Let’s say you and four other people are seeking the belt…getting clues about who is hot, etc…and you are reaching under a car and you feel the belt…and the hider is telling you “you’re on fire, you’re hot!”…you’ll need to act stumped to draw in others…they’ll come in and desperately try to get it knowing it’s real close…this is the moment where you get a good grip and corner a few suckers…COME UP SWINGING, BABY!

Watch 'em squeal like pigs as they try to overcome disorientation and the adrenaline rush (and pain) and try to make it back to base!

(finder becomes hider)

BEST GAME EVER! AND …it’s FREE!
(best played with fattest kid’s fattest leather belt)