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Board Games - The Best Selling Board Games Of All Time By Royce Armstrong
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| Thursday, March 19, 2009 |
Must have been a crushing blow. It was 1934, the depths of the Great Depression. Charles Darrow was unemployed. However, he had an idea. In reality, there was a game. He called the game Monopoly. He loved the game and felt it was the ticket to financial success and the despair of depression. Darrow had taken his game to the famous game company Parker Brothers to help you publish and sell.
The Parker Brothers had agreed to review the board game for Darrow. They were not impressed. Formed in 1883, aged 16, George Parker, the game publisher has been making and selling games and puzzles for 51 years. During that time they had seen the success and failure. Parker Brothers knew the game business. They knew what worked and what did not. They knew what sold and what is not. Representatives of the giant game company found 59 reasons that Darrow did not think the game could be successful.
Charles Darrow simply did not agree. Thought. Decided to publish himself and the monopoly of the market through department stores. There were 5,000 copies of the board game form.
Hope was scarce during that harsh Christmas of 1934. The money was even scarcer. And the monopoly was a success. Nearly all 5,000 copies of the game sold. Within a year was the publication of the Parker Brothers game. It was the best selling game in the United States, 1936.
Monopoly is now published in 89 languages and more than 200 million copies of the game have been sold. Over 500 million people have played the game. It has also been adapted as an electronic game. Monopoly is firmly entrenched as the best-selling board game of all time.
Monopoly is a relative upstart compared to other popular board games.
The oldest board game known is called "The Royal Game of Ur," or the "Game of 20 seats." This game was discovered in a 4500-year old tomb in southern Iraq. This game was played throughout the Middle East for perhaps 1000 years or more. In fact, the rules have been found in cuneiform tablets. Andalusia game fans can play this old game still, even though it has long been lost popularity.
Perhaps the oldest board game still popular today is chess, which first appeared in India in the sixth century AD In the year 1000 is being replicated throughout the Middle East and Europe. The rules and game board design have evolved somewhat over the centuries, but the game remains the same as the ancient Indians played. That could hardly have dreamed of, however, world-class game of chess or play electronic versions of the game that we enjoy today.
Another very old, but immensely popular board game is checkers, also known as drafts. One form of tokens which serves as the Egyptian Pharaohs in 1600 BC This game has also evolved over the centuries. In the 12th century the game was adapted to the 64-square chessboard. Four years later the rules involving capture were added, yielding essentially the same game we play today.
There is simply no way of knowing how many copies of chess or checkers have been sold or the number of people who have played these games. If the numbers were known, they would have to be really amazing.
Popular Board Games Share Common Traits
Other top selling board games are Yahtzee, Scrabble, Mahjong, Trivial Pursuit, Battleship, and the game of risk. Most of these games were developed during the 20th century and continue to be all big sellers and tremendously popular.
These popular board games share some similar traits. Most of them involve specific strategies of play. When using these strategies successfully, the games are fun, challenging and intensely rewarding as players attempt to capture part of the board and / or each other. Another common element in most of these board games is chance or luck. Luck is introduced usually by drawing cards or rolling dice. The element of chance opens up further possibilities for game strategies. A final important feature of these games is that in one way or another reflect the lessons of life. They teach competition and sportsmanship. Teaching strategy and the lesson of never giving up.
Perhaps that is why Charles Darrow was so attracted by the monopolies. He believed that success is employing strategies to follow a dream and never give up. We are glad that Darrow did not give up. We are glad not to throw the game with 59 things wrong with the garbage left by the plant Parker Brothers in 1934.
About the author: Royce Armstrong is a freelance writer with a business and banking background who believes consumers should get the best value for your money when buying board games, family games and learning games |
posted by neptunus @ 6:24 PM
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