Tag Archives: Game

Barrel of Monkeys

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Barrel of Monkeys

It is ‘more fun than a barrel of monkeys’.

  • Barrel of Monkeys is a game or toy that contains plastic linkable monkeys and a container that they are held in.
  • The main object of the Barrel of Monkeys game is to make the longest monkey chain by linking the arms, before dropping any.
  • Barrel of Monkeys was invented in 1965 by Leonard Marks, who came from New York’s Roslyn, in the United States, who is said to have sold the game to Lakeside Toys around that time.
  • Barrel of Monkeys was most likely an improvement on a similar form of entertainment of detachable hooks and links, that was possibly first invented in 1953 by Lawrence Reed from the United States, and was patented in 1955.
  • It is believed that ‘Barrel of Monkeys’ was originally to be named ‘Barrel of Fun’, but due to copyright issues it was named after a well known phrase.

Barrel of Monkeys, chain, coloured, blue, red, green, yellow, assorted, plastic, game, Milton Bradley, Ten Random Facts, Australia

  • The monkeys in the Barrel of Monkeys game were originally, until 1968, stored in cardboard cylinders, but this was changed to a plastic barrel.
  • Barrel of Monkeys traditionally contains twelve monkeys, though twenty-four is the barrel’s capacity, and the monkeys are generally coloured similar to the barrel – red, blue, green or yellow.
  • Barrel of Monkeys is manufactured by the Milton Bradley Company, which in 2014 was owned by the game and toy corporation Hasbro.
  • Two Barrel of Monkeys’ monkeys are said to be able to be linked in eighty different ways, using arms, legs, heads and the like, and they can been used in 3D models to create polyhedral chemical structure models of viruses and proteins.
  • In 2011, Barrel of Monkeys was given the 53rd place in the ‘All-TIME 100 Greatest Toys’ list.
Bibliography:
Barrel of Monkeys: One of the All-TIME 100 greatest toys, n.d., Answers, http://invent.answers.com/toys-and-games/barrel-of-monkeys-one-of-the-all-time-100-greatest-toys
Barrel of Monkeys (Game), 2014, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barrel_of_Monkeys_(game)
Leonard, M 1968, ‘Interconnectable toy elements having hook members’, Google Patents, no. US3414265, 5 July, accessed 10 September 2014, <http://www.google.com/patents/US3414265>
Reed, L 1955, ‘Detachable link and hook game-piece’, Google Patents, no.US2712444, 5 July, accessed 10 September 2014, <http://www.google.com/patents/US2712444>

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Scrabble

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Scrabble

“Every word’s a winner.” – slogan of Scrabble.

  • Scrabble is a 2 to 4 player game revolving around words, requiring orthographic, strategy and probability skills.
  • ‘Scrabble’, meaning to ‘scratch’, ‘scramble’ or ‘struggle’, is played by placing tiles to make interconnecting words, in a way that scores points, left to right or downwards, on a board.
  • Since 1999, Scrabble has been produced by Hasbro Inc, in the United States and Canada, and it is manufactured by Mattel in all other countries.
  • Scrabble is sold in many countries and languages, 121 and 29 respectively, but the game cannot be played in Chinese or Japanese.
  • The square tiles used in Scrabble are typically made of wood or plastic, and are 0.4 cm  (0.16 in) high and 1.9 centimetres (0.75 inches) square,

Scrabble, Old, Original, Started, same, Play, Words, Wooden Tiles, Board, Ten Random facts

  • In 1938, Alfred Mosher Butts, an architect and artist from New York in the United States, invented Scrabble, originally known as ‘Lexico’ and then ‘Criss-Crosswords’, but the game did not start becoming popular until the 1950s.
  • Scrabble typically contains 100 tiles in the English version, and the words accepted in the game are generally those found in standard dictionaries or word game dictionaries.
  • Major tournaments for Scrabble include the World Championships, National Championships and the Brand’s Crossword Game King’s Cup.
  • There are many variations of the game Scrabble, that can be played, including online or digital versions that can be played by two players or one player.
  • It is estimated that 150 million Scrabble sets have been sold in the world, since its invention.

 

Bibliography:
Scrabble, 2014, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scrabble
Scrabble History, n.d, Hasbro Gaming, http://www.hasbro.com/scrabble/en_US/discover/history.cfm

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Yahtzee

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Yahtzee

“The classic shake and score dice game!” – Yahtzee slogan.

  • Yahtzee is a dice game that is primarily based on luck and probability and it was first trademarked on 19 April, 1956 by the E.S. Lowe Company.
  • Yahtzee is based on a number of historical dice games, including Yacht, Yogi, Generala, and Cheerio, and has had a few names in the past including ‘Yatzie’.
  • Yahtzee is played by rolling five dice, up to three times per turn, and creating combinations that score points.
  • Not including bonuses, the largest scoring combination is a ‘Yahtzee’, occurring when five of the same number is rolled in a turn.
  • Yahtzee remains popular and 50 million copies of the game are sold every year, and approximately 100 million people play the game around the world.

Yahtzee, Dice, Sheet, Grandad, Scores, First round, Second Round, 1,1,2,2,3 Ten Random Facts, Game, Dice

  • It is said that Yahtzee was invented by a rich Canadian couple who used to play the game on their yacht, who then wanted to give some sets to their friends who enjoyed the game, and so they approached Edwin Lowe, who made them 1,000 sets for the rights of the game.
  • In 1973, the rights for Yahtzee were bought from the E.S. Lowe Company by the Milton Bradley Company, and Hasbro later became the owners.
  • There are thirteen dice combinations listed on the scoresheet, and the largest possible score without bonuses is 375 points, while with bonuses the largest score exceeds 1000.
  • Many games have been derived from Yahtzee, with the first being ‘Triple Yahtzee’, and another variation was ‘Word Yahtzee’.
  • Yahtzee was not popular when it was first marketed, until parties based around the dice game were held.
Bibliography:
Yahtzee, 2013, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yahtzee
Yahtzee History, 2013, Yahtzee Online, http://www.yahtzeeonline.org/yahtzee-history.php

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Mario Franchise

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Mario Franchise

“It’s-a me, Mario!” – Mario from the Mario franchise.

  • The Mario franchise is the most popular video game franchise ever, and is produced by Nintendo, featuring the main hero, Mario.
  • The main series from the Mario franchise is Super Mario (from 1985), which involves the player to venture through the setting, ‘Mushroom Kingdom’.
  • There are more than 200 games that are based or derived from the Mario franchise, and together the number of copies sold is over 865 million.
  • Spin-offs of the Mario franchise include Mario Party (from 1999) and Mario Kart (from 1992), which are some of the longest running series.
  • The first release in the Mario franchise was Donkey Kong in 1981, designed by Shigeru Miyamoto, involving the player known as ‘Jumpman’ (later known as Mario) to jump over objects and save ‘Lady’.

Mario Franchise. Games, Nintendo 64, Wii, New Super Marios Bros Wii, Mario and Sonic at the London 2012 OLympic Games, Mario Party 8, Mario Tennis, Super Mario 64, Mario Kart 64

  • Hudson Soft, another video game publisher, has been responsible for producing some of the Mario franchise games, including Mario Party until 2012.
  • The Mario franchise has released anime, comics, an unsuccessful film, and manga as well as general items such as shirts or pens.
  • The Mario franchise is mainly a platform genre, but other games in sport, racing, puzzle, party and role-play have also been published.
  • The common logo of the Mario franchise features a red ‘M’, on a white circle, which is in a red square, and is usually featured on the character Mario’s hat.
  • The first 3D game of the Mario franchise was Super Mario 64, featuring a camera that follows the path of Mario, for the Nintendo 64 console.
Bibliography:
Mario Franchise, 2013, Giant Bomb, http://www.giantbomb.com/mario/3025-1/
Mario (Franchise), 2013, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mario_(franchise)

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                     Mario Franchise Games

Balloon

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Balloon

The balloon goes up, up and away!

  • Balloons are like an artificial sac and are inflated by filling with a type of gas, so that they become 25 – 3o cm (10 – 12 inches) in diameter, although larger and small size balloons are manufactured.
  • Historically, balloons were made from dried animal bladders or intestines and modern balloons are made from rubber, latex, polychloroprene, nylon fabric or foil.
  • In 1824, modern style rubber balloons were invented by an English scientist, Michael Faraday, who was using them in his gas related experiments.
  • Party balloons, the most common type, are typically made of latex and are inexpensive.
  • Balloons will naturally deflate, because the gas inside eventually escapes through the balloon wall, although foil balloons will hold the gas in for much longer periods of time.

Balloon, latex, inflated, deaflated, lotes, small, tied, waterballoons, Ten Random Facts, Australia

  • Balloon modelling involves long tubular balloons that are inflated, that can then be twisted into animals or objects, and are common at parties or fairs.
  • Dropping or releasing balloons outside is popular at celebrations, such as New Year’s Eve or weddings, although many authorities disagree with releasing balloons as they can damage wildlife, environment or power lines.
  • Some balloons are intended to contain water and are easily popped, and are great for throwing at each other, creating a water ‘fight’.
  • Balloons are commonly filled with air or helium, but other gases include oxygen, nitrous oxide and hydrogen.
  • Large balloons have been used in transportation, and are generally known as hot air balloons.
Bibliography:
Balloon, 2013, Wikipedia, <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Balloon>
The History of Balloons, 2002, Balloon HQ, <https://www.balloonhq.com/faq/history.html>

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Rubik’s Cube

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Rubik’s Cube

Twist, turn, twist, turn Rubik’s cube

  • A Rubik’s Cube is a 3D puzzle, typically a 5.7 cm (2.25 inches) cube, that involves turning connected smaller cubes to create a solid colour on each side of the large cube.
  • Ernő Rubik, who was a Hungarian sculptor and professor of architecture, invented the Rubik’s Cube in 1974, and it took him more than a month to solve it.
  • Rubik’s Cube was the game of the year in Germany in the 1980s, and became a craze in the same decade, as well as the most popular puzzle, with 350 million cubes being sold up to 2009.
  • The classic Rubik’s Cube has 26 cubies, which are the smaller cubes that make up the large one, six faces of nine tiles, also known as the 3 x 3 x 3 cube, with the tiles traditionally white, red, blue, orange, green and yellow.
  • Rubik’s Cube is also known as the ‘Magic Cube’, or ‘Büvös Kocka’, the original names, as well as the ‘Hungarian Horror’.

Rubik's Cube, Green, Half Complete, unfinished, Blue, Yellow, Red, orange, Coloured, 3 x 3 x 3, Puzzle, Game, Magic Cube, Ten Random Facts

  • It is said that some Rubik’s Cube experts can solve the puzzle in 24 to 28 moves, in the standard puzzle position.
  • The Rubik’s Cube has variations that range from pocket sized 2 x 2 x 2 cubes to enormous, most expensive  17 x 17 x 17 cubes that cost over $1000 as well as virtual versions in both 4D and 5D.
  • The quickest official time to solve a Rubik’s Cube is in 5.55 seconds, achieved in March 2013 by Mats Valk from the Netherlands.
  • There is only one correct answer to the Rubik’s Cube, with 43 quintillion incorrect ones and both Rubik and experts believe that the cube would take more than a lifetime to solve if the pieces were moved randomly.
  • Rubik invented the Rubik’s Cube to answer the following question: “How could the blocks move independently without falling apart”.
Bibliography:
Bellis, M 2013, Rubik’s Cube, About.com, <http://inventors.about.com/od/rstartinventions/a/Rubik_Cube.htm>
Rubik’s Cube, 2013, Wikipedia, <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rubik’s_Cube>

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