My Top Five Childhood Vintage Board Games

Board games are a way of life for me and my family. I did some hard thinking to try and remember what my favorite board games were as a kid and came up with an interesting list. Let me know if you enjoyed any of these, too!

As I went through my Dad's closet, also known as The Game Closet, I found many of the games listed below. When I looked them up online for current prices on them, I was surprised to see that there was a website dedicated to old board games! It is called boardgamegeek.com. I am going to be spending a lot of time there! (Click on the game name for the link to its description, and click the price for a link to eBay for the going price. The auctions will end at any time, so check it out soon!)

When I was young, my parents introduced my sister and me to board games. It was great! One of my Dad's favorites was Chutzpah; a type of Jewish Monopoly. Think of all the aspects of Monopoly, but put a Jewish twist on it. It was made back in 1967, so in today's standards, it isn't really politically correct, but it was still fun. My Dad had Jewish friends that laughed at this game, too. I will admit that I learned a lot of Yiddish in my early years. If you want to purchase it today, it is being sold on eBay right now for $36.68.

My favorite game as a grade-schooler was Hangman. It was the one with the plastic cases, red and blue, that you put the letters on top and then turned a dial to show the status of the 'hanging'. I loved it so much, that my sister would laugh because I would sit and play it with my dog! It was a great old game that debuted in 1977 in the UK. The only American version I could find debuted in 1988, but I know I had it prior to that. Who knows! If you want to purchase it today, try eBay and it will run about $16.36. Maybe I should bid on it!

A neighbor friend of mine loved Donkey Kong the video game on Atari. She loved the game so much, that her Grandmother bought her the board game! Yes, you read it right! There was an actual Donkey Kong board game that came out in 1982. It was a lot of fun to play, and had the same rules as the video game, only you used actual pieces and dice. The pieces were Mario and Luigi! That game was so much fun that we would play it for hours. Ah, 1982 was a good year! I was nine. eBay has it for $7.49 with 2 bids, but you can purchase it un-opened in original packaging for $50!

My sister and I would sit for hours playing Probe, by Parker Brothers. It was ages 8 to adult and 2-4 players could play at once. The version we had was from 1982 and did not have an actual 'board'. It has four trays and little rectangle letter cards you put in the tray and flipped over when another player would guess it right. There was score kept on this game, depending on how the guessing was done. My sister made up her own rules and taught them to me. If you want to play it, I suggest reading the rules and abiding by them, especially if you are going to teach them to someone. (Thanks Sis!) There were cards that you picked instead of rolling a die. It was a very fun word game. You can get it for $4.00 on eBay right now.

I saved the best for last. Yes, there were many board games that I loved as a kid, but none more than Crossbows and Catapults. This game was awesome! It had a huge floor mat as a board, and pieces/bricks you used to make your castles and forts. After everything was built, then you took turns moving your men across the board to take over and also you got to use real (toy) crossbows and actual (toy) catapults! It was the best game ever. It took awhile to set up, and clean up was a pain, but it was well worth it. This game is from 1983; I was 10 years old. Ahh, that was the life! (Well, technically, Life was a totally different game, but we won't go into that.) I found it on eBay for a whopping $119.99! This is for a sealed, complete set! Wow... I wonder if my old one is still in the garage...

Well, that is it. This is a list of my top five favorite vintage board games that are no longer manufactured or sold in stores. I have a different list for ones that are still produced! My family loves board games.

Sources:

My Dad's Closet

www.boardgamegeek.com

www.ebay.com

Thanks Dad for the picture of Chutzpah!