# What were your favorite obscure board games as a kid? **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [June 19, 2008, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-your-favorite-obscure-board-games-as-a-kid/453511 "2008-06-19T20:07:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Pithy\_Moniker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8dc957/32.png) [@Pithy\_Moniker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pithy_Moniker)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2008, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-your-favorite-obscure-board-games-as-a-kid/453511/41 "2008-06-20T20:22:16Z")
[Prize Property](http://www.boardgamegeek.com/game/2645) - It’s the tiniest bit like Monopoly in that you developed land. We loved it and would play for hours. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2008, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-your-favorite-obscure-board-games-as-a-kid/453511/42 "2008-06-20T20:28:35Z")
[QUOTE=Lute Skywatcher] We also had some Charlie Brown game but don’t remember if it’s [this one](http://www.boardgamegeek.com/game/25541) or [this](http://www.boardgamegeek.com/game/9602) unless I could find a shot of the board. [/QUOTE] Aha! Found one on eBay and it’s the latter. Only boardgame I know of that uses both horizonal and vertical surfaces. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2008, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-your-favorite-obscure-board-games-as-a-kid/453511/43 "2008-06-20T20:55:18Z")
> [@](#): > > Quote: > Originally Posted by Lute Skywatcher > We also had some Charlie Brown game but don’t remember if it’s this one or this unless I could find a shot of the board. > > Aha! Found one on eBay and it’s the latter. Only boardgame I know of that uses both horizonal and vertical surfaces. I had the former one – you had move around the board and collect upside-down cards while avoid the Booby Hatch (Good Grief! The Booby Hatch! – actual quote from the game board) Things have changed. Today I’d like to _find_ The Booby Hatch. ---
**Author:** ![MHaye](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/bbe5ce/32.png) [@MHaye](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MHaye)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2008, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-your-favorite-obscure-board-games-as-a-kid/453511/44 "2008-06-20T22:04:34Z")
[QUOTE=Struan] [Scoop!](http://www.boardgamecompany.co.uk/Scoop1965(VG86).htm) , a game about the newspaper industry. All I really remember about it is that it had a really nifty cardboard telephone, the individual newspaper stories were funny, and that I’ve never seen another copy of the game. [/QUOTE] We had this game when I was a kid. I used to love that telephone. 🙂 I wasn’t the only one to remember that game favourably, either. Wish we still had it but it probably got thrown in a junk clearance in the 70s. Ah well. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Some\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ad7895/32.png) [@Just\_Some\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Some_Guy)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2008, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-your-favorite-obscure-board-games-as-a-kid/453511/45 "2008-06-20T23:27:00Z")
[QUOTE=GargoyleWB] There was a series of small portable games from TSR, similar to Steve Jackson games. I played them to death, but Wikipedia and the web is very sparse on details of any of them…they were little games with paper boards and cardboard counters, and many were very well designed and fun. Vampyre (my favorite, you play a hero from the Dracula novel and try and kill Dracula) Revolt on Antares Saga (viking heros trying to kill a dragon IIRC) They’ve Invaded Pleasantville (body-snatcher alien invasion in a small town) [/QUOTE] [Here’s a whole list](http://www.boardgamegeek.com/geeklist/21659/item/426099) of all of the TSR minigames and details on them. ---
**Author:** ![Moirai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/96bed5/32.png) [@Moirai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moirai)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2008, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-your-favorite-obscure-board-games-as-a-kid/453511/46 "2008-06-21T01:10:03Z")
Uncle Wiggily! Holy cow, I loved that game! My grandparents had a game at their house in the desert based on the TV show [Happy Days](http://www.boardgamegeek.com/game/9514) that was pretty fun for little kids. ---
**Author:** ![Cunctator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/43a26b/32.png) [@Cunctator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cunctator)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2008, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-your-favorite-obscure-board-games-as-a-kid/453511/47 "2008-06-21T01:20:16Z")
We loved Totopoly. It was a game that had two separate boards. On the first board you bought and trained racehorses. Then on the second board you placed bets with the tote and raced the horses. ---
**Author:** ![MrSquishy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b9e5f3/32.png) [@MrSquishy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrSquishy)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2008, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-your-favorite-obscure-board-games-as-a-kid/453511/48 "2008-06-21T01:48:02Z")
[Full House](http://members.aol.com/wergames/pbfull.htm). No, not based on the TV show; it’s a game about trying to get your hotel as full as possible. It was lots of fun. I also liked the Uncle Wiggly game, and [Masterpiece](http://www.boardgamecompany.co.uk/Masterpiece(VG18).htm). ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2008, 10:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-your-favorite-obscure-board-games-as-a-kid/453511/49 "2008-06-21T10:27:47Z")
from Steve Jackson games–_Melee_ and _Wizard_. A big bang for a tiny buck. ---
**Author:** ![Harmonious\_Discord](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/74df32/32.png) [@Harmonious\_Discord](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harmonious_Discord)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2008, 11:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-your-favorite-obscure-board-games-as-a-kid/453511/50 "2008-06-21T11:01:08Z")
[Voice of the Mummy](http://yourprojectman.com/VoiceoftheMummy.aspx) - The sarcophagus was a record player and a plastic record inside randomly played instructions for players. It sells for a few hundred dollars now, so you can see it was a rare and desirable game. I think it was on the market for only one Christmas. ---
**Author:** ![pmwgreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/edb3f5/32.png) [@pmwgreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pmwgreen)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2008, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-your-favorite-obscure-board-games-as-a-kid/453511/51 "2008-06-21T21:49:17Z")
[Pirate and Traveler](http://www.boardgamegeek.com/game/2326) I still have it sitting around in a box somewhere. You travel the world making money trading and then you try to bury it all in Greenland while stealing from other players. I had no idea it was so old! ---
**Author:** ![Tripler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripler/32/21807_2.png) [@Tripler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tripler)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2008, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-your-favorite-obscure-board-games-as-a-kid/453511/52 "2008-06-21T22:47:28Z")
[Supremacy](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supremacy_%28board_game%29) I was in training for world domination at a young, tender age. Tripler You sank my battleship?!? I nuke you from orbit!! ---
**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2008, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-your-favorite-obscure-board-games-as-a-kid/453511/53 "2008-06-21T23:47:49Z")
Another person who had & remembers Green Ghost here. And Which Witch. Lessee what else? Alfred Hitchcock’s “Why”, sort of a Clue rip-off. One that wasn’t mine but was a favorite of a younger cousin was Chutes & Ladders. ---
**Author:** ![tarragon918](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d26b3c/32.png) [@tarragon918](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tarragon918)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2008, 12:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-your-favorite-obscure-board-games-as-a-kid/453511/54 "2008-06-22T00:24:15Z")
My grandparents also had a version of the Uncle Wiggily game - anyone remember Nurse Jane Fuzzy Wuzzy? 🙂 One game that I remember playing as a child was [Video Village](http://www.boardgamegeek.com/game/5624) - the link is to the regular game, but there was also a children’s version that came on Saturday mornings for a few years. I’m not sure if there was a board version of the children’s show, but I do remember that we created our own life-size version of the game in several backyards. In the child’s version, the winner “fished” off the bridge for their prize. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2008, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-your-favorite-obscure-board-games-as-a-kid/453511/55 "2008-06-22T01:11:25Z")
One that hasn’t been mentioned; _Lie, Cheat, and Steal_. It was a political game about winning elections. One thing I remember about it was that you got money by cards - you looked at what was on the card and could then claim an amount of money. The other players could either believe you and the bank paid you what you claimed or they could call your bluff. If you were lying, you paid a penalty. If you have been telling the truth, they paid the penalty. ---
**Author:** ![Cheez\_Whia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/d26b3c/32.png) [@Cheez\_Whia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheez_Whia)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2008, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-your-favorite-obscure-board-games-as-a-kid/453511/56 "2008-06-22T01:30:07Z")
[Kommissar](http://www.boardgamegeek.com/game/2377). A childhood friend had this. I liked to play it more than he did. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![lunar\_elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/35a633/32.png) [@lunar\_elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lunar_elf)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2008, 2:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-your-favorite-obscure-board-games-as-a-kid/453511/57 "2008-06-22T02:02:55Z")
[QUOTE=Sublight] [The Farming Game](http://www.boardgamegeek.com/game/5195) My grandparents lived in the Yakima Valley where the game is set and bought me a copy when it first came out. I little while back I found that it was still in print and bought a copy. My wife and her friends thought it was great fun. [/QUOTE] I came here to post the game too. It’s like farmers meet monopoly. My hubby’s family played this quite a bit and it mysteriously moved with us when we got married. 😃 I like this much better than monopoly. [Raise the Titanic](http://www.boardgamegeek.com/game/5282) Always good for killing time at my grandparents house who thought all the grandkids would like this. ---
**Author:** ![divemaster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/divemaster/32/78_2.png) [@divemaster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/divemaster)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2008, 3:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-your-favorite-obscure-board-games-as-a-kid/453511/58 "2008-06-22T03:13:03Z")
I remember some of these–like Stock Market and Mousetrap and the Magnificent Race. My sister and I played a ton of board games, either just the two of us or with the neighborhood kids. A couple I remember that have not been mentioned and are likely somewhat obscure were –a game based on the Columbo TV show/character –some game where the object was to build a peanut butter and jelly sandwich (not a real one, but one out of game pieces) –and some weird game where each player’s “token” was a real ice cube and the object was to make it through without melting. At times your ice cube was subject to “the hothead” (a metal washer soaking in hot water that was placed on your cube) and other perils. I remember your cube could get salted, but I didn’t know if that were a good thing or a bad thing. ---
**Author:** ![snailboy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/97f17d/32.png) [@snailboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snailboy)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2008, 5:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-your-favorite-obscure-board-games-as-a-kid/453511/59 "2008-06-22T05:48:12Z")
[QUOTE=Soul] [Hero Quest](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HeroQuest_(board_game)) : My dad and I used to play this all the time. He didn’t really like it, but I loved it so he put on a smile and played it with me nonetheless. [/QUOTE] Here here lil buddy. I loved that game. I wish I could play it right now. ---
**Author:** ![Tripler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripler/32/21807_2.png) [@Tripler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tripler)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2008, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-your-favorite-obscure-board-games-as-a-kid/453511/60 "2008-06-22T13:24:17Z")
I forgot to mention earlier: [Battletech](http://www.sarna.net/wiki/Main_Page). I started getting into it as a kid, and kept playing it every now and then with a friend of mine. [Über-geek warning] I still have the rule books, and actually use them quite often. I’m in the process of learning how Microsoft Access works, and I tell ya, for raw data, those rulebooks are great. Try learning how to link tables of weapons/equipment to vehicles/Mechs, project maintenance forecasts, ammo levels, pay tables, employees, etc. Seriously, for just learning how to set up a database for the real-world jobby-job, the Battletech source info is friggin’ _awesome_. [/Über-geek warning] Tripler And my mother always said those games would ‘rot my mind’. :rolleyes: [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-your-favorite-obscure-board-games-as-a-kid/453511.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-your-favorite-obscure-board-games-as-a-kid/453511.md?page=4)