Category Archives: Toys from 2000s

Scrabble Board Game

The Scrabble Board Game is a word-based board game where two to four players earn points by forming words from the letter tiles and combining them with previous letters on the game board. The standard Scrabble gameboard is 15×15 in size.

How to Play Scrabble

Scrabble is a classic battle where every word counts! Using letter tiles, players take turns spelling out words in a crossword fashion to score as many points as possible.

Each playing board comes with a bag that holds and conceals the letter tiles. Players select 7 letter tiles at random from the bag and place them on their personal rack. Now, the challenge is to make the best word you can by using any of the tiles you chose. Included in the bag are two blank tiles that can be played as any letter! continue reading>>

Connect 4 or Four in a row

Four in a Row, also more commonly known as Hasbro MB Games ‘Connect 4’ or Captain’s Mistress is a straightforward strategy game in which counters are dropped down vertical shoots with the objective of getting four counters in a row horizontally, vertically or diagonally.

Origins and History

It is not exactly known when the first Four in a Row game appeared. There are claims and whispers of legend that it may have been a game which was around in Captain Cooks time and was carved or made by hand and played to pass time. This could just be a myth and the only slight link or claim is when a Washington company in 1987 copyrighted a version called Captains Mistress, and on the packaging, they claim on voyages this was played, but of course, no way to prove one way or another.

four in a row blue  connect 4 Hasbro

Milton Bradley MB Games (now Hasbro) started selling their massively successful version of the game called Connect 4 in February 1974 (1976 in UK).

But the game has certainly been around for much longer, In a book by Robbie Bell, there is a picture of a 4 in a row game that he references “Four Balls”. It is a wooden game made to exactly the same design. There is also higher quality example through being made from Mahogany with beach balls for pieces. Bell says that the date of the game is uncertain but it is estimated that it is Edwardian c. 1901 – 1910. On the bottom of the game in gold lettering is inscribed “Remy Martin Cognac”.

Copycat versions

Apart from Hasbro’s Connect 4, many modern games manufacturers make a version of Four in A Row from small cheap plastic travel versions to larger wooden versions.

Since the turn of the century a boom in the production of Giant versions of the game for parties and events in the UK company Garden Games market a version licenced by Hasbro called Giant Connect 4, in the USA it is called ‘Up for It’.

In Spanish a company Feber market it as ‘Mega 4 in a Line’ – another brightly coloured robust Giant version of Four in a Row that can be seen all over the place in garden centres and play areas etc. The old veteran games company Jaques make a Four in a Row game called ‘Score Four’ that they also make it a very large version.

giant four in a row whitegiant connect 4 wooden
Another corollary game derived from Four in a Row is a 3D version of the game. This was first sold by a company called Funtastic in 1968 under the name Score 4 and again clones of it abound to this day – including the inevitable Hasbro version. The classic version of the game, however, is made from wood and consists of a 4 x 4 grid of vertical poles sticking up from aboard. Players drop wooden beads down the poles.

Jenga

Jenga you know the wooden block game where you try to win by not making the tower fall over as you take it in turns to carefully remove a block. This is a classic toy for every child and essential for every toy box. Want a game experience that combines friends, skill, suspense, laughter, and maybe a little luck? You gotta get the Classic Jenga game!

It’s the perfect game for everyone, with edge-of-your-seat, gravity-defying action. Do you dive right in and pull your block, or take your time and study the stack? Any way you choose, show your Jenga style!

Be creative with the Classic Jenga game! Play by the rules, or go rogue and make up your own! Classic Jenga is so simple and uncomplicated, you can play any way you want to. Got a few minutes? Play solo by yourself and beat your own highest tower. Friends around? Break out the blocks, stack them up, and go. You can play it safe and pull the loosest block you can find. Or take a chance on a block that’s a tighter fit. The tower may crash or stand, but either way, it’s the ultimate block party!

jenga classic wooden toy

It’s all about the blocks. Build the tower by stacking layers of blocks. Then take turns pulling just the right block carefully from the main tower.

The tower might wobble or teeter, but as long as it doesn’t fall you’re still in the game. As the blocks head upwards, the suspense grows.

Keep the blocks balanced, and upright and you win!

I think Jenga must be one of the games as a kid most people used to play loads, especially around a friends house or after school, I would usually get bored of it after a half a dozen or so times especially the putting the blocks back into the plastic and making it back into a tower. I liked the slightly tactical and steady hand nature of it. Unfortunately, it didn’t make a couple of times playing giant Jenga any easier.

My Friend Cayla

Dolls are always popular toys and have been since 1950’s onwards, this doll My Friend Cayla is not just a doll – she’s a real friend! Well that is what the box says so it must be true right? Ask her any range of questions, from her likes and dislikes to general knowledge and tomorrow’s weather, and she’ll tell you the answer. Due to launch in July 17th 2014 priced at $90/£59.99 – no info at time of writing on a US date.

Sync her with My Friend Cayla Dollan Android or iOS device via Bluetooth and she’ll use speech-to-text technology to look up answers online and speak them back to you. There’s also a pre-defined list of ‘bad words’ and topics which Cayla will not talk about, for complete peace of mind.

Cayla can also play games, tell stories, and discuss photos. She has lovely hair to play with and is wearing a cool outfit. My Friend Cayla requires three AA batteries, not included, and is recommended for children aged 5 years and older.

What can My Friend Cayla do?

Answer questions

Ask Cayla about all sorts of things, like animals, maths, countries, or spelling, and she will tell you the answer!

Understand and chat

Cayla can chat about clothes, favourite foods, her family, hobbies, and lots more.

Tell stories and play games

Cayla knows lots of stories – choose one for her to tell. She can also play noughts and crosses, and will encourage and congratulate you. Look through Cayla’s photo albums and she will tell you about what she’s been up to.

How does My Friend Cayla work?

Cayla uses an app on an iOS or Android smart device (including Kindle Fire). When Cayla is connected online via the smart device, she can understand speech by sending it to the internet as text.

To enjoy Cayla’s interactive capabilities, she must always be connected to a smart device via Bluetooth wireless technology. To answer general knowledge questions or give current information, connect the smart device to the internet. The speed of Cayla’s responses will depend on the strength and speed of the internet connection, so WiFi is recommended, although she can also work with 3G or 4G. There is a lot which Cayla can do without being connected to the internet, such as playing games, telling stories, talking about her photo albums, and some conversation.

My Friend Cayla is safer than simply handing a tablet to a child for a number of reasons: there is a comprehensive in-built list of pre-blocked words which can be added to at home; it features online safe-search filters; and no websites or links will be shown on the smart device.

 

Teksta T-Rex is the follow-up to the hugely successful Teksta Robotic Puppy which was a sell out and hard to find toy last Christmas season.

The Teksta T-Rex the bone crushing dino! Should appeal to more boys this time round, but in my experience girls often more than boys like a good dinosaur or enjoy a dinosaurs phase and just like his puppy friend T-Rex responds to your voice, lights and sounds with expressive eye patterns to share his feelings.

Teksta Puppy T Rex

Using hand gesture technology command Teksta T-Rex to walk, move his hands, tail and stop. If you stroke his face to hear him roar and see him snap just like a real T-Rex Dinosaur.

If your dino gets hungry feed him with his dino bone to see his ultimate trick, watch him crunch, munch and launch it away, followed by an almighty burp! With over 100 physical and app-sized interactive play features. Includes bone accessory.

For ages 5 and over. Requires 4 x AA batteries (not included).

 

 

Kiddizoom Smart Watch

The Kiddizoom Smart Watch is predicted to be one of the best-selling toys this Christmas 2014. So you may know that wearable tech especially watches are aimed to be the next must have to allow you to keep fit, in touch, on the move – but at a price point which is adults only for now.

So step in the Kiddizoom Smart Watch, it combines several different clock faces, has a touch screen to navigate, and includes a built-in camera and video recorder. It also comes with 3 games, and can be used as an alarm clock, stop watch, and timer.

And of course yes the Kiddizoom will tell the time. Would Lego make a great gift view the latest range here LEGO UK

Would Lego make a great gift view the latest range here LEGO UK Would Lego make a great gift view the latest range here LEGO UK

This is aimed at kids aged five years and up, the battery is rechargeable via usb cable.

  • With built-in camera to take photos and videos. Also includes photo editing tools.
  • 8 modes in 1 – more than just a watch!
  • Features include stopwatch & timer, alarm, voice recording & editing and games.
  • Different analogue/digital clock face designs to choose from.
  • Touch Screen technology.

    • continue reading>>

    Box open of a Rainbow Loom Craft Toy

    Rainbow Loom

    Sometimes the simple toys and old favourites of simple rubber bands can come back with a new slant this time they have in the form of Rainbow Loom, Rainbow Loom is colourful rubber bands which allow you to create your own unique charms, and rings and bracelets.

    The Rainbow Loom is great fun for kids to teens. It allows you to turn colourful rubber bands into your own jewellery creations with easy-to-follow, simple instructions. Each kit includes a Rainbow Loom, 600 assorted colourful rubber bands, an RBL hook and C- Clips which enable you to have fun while creating your own individual designs. There are loads of cool, funky unique designs to make and various combinations to create! View the contents of a standard Rainbow Loom Toy Box open of a Rainbow Loom Craft Toy

    The Rainbow Loom was created in Michigan by entrepreneur Cheong Choon Ng who created the toy after he saw his two daughters making bracelets from ponytail rubber bands. He figured out a new twist with a different loom and a different band shape.

    “I was at one point really popular in the neighbourhood,” said Ng, who used to be a crash safety engineer at the Nissan Technical Center North America in Farmington Hills, Mich. His daughters’ friends would come over and want him to make their bracelets.

    Those looms and plastic bands have now stretched into more than $50 million in revenue. Asked if the private company is profitable, they nod and smile.

    The father and daughters were featured on Dec. 2 in a one-page People magazine article called “Rubber Bands to Riches.” Rainbow Loom won “Toy of the Year” in New York at the industry’s equivalent of the Oscars.

    In January ABC talk show host Jimmy Kimmel asked children and their parents to send in bracelets and other designs created using the popular craft toy. All the colours, patterns and designs were then spun into one big, heavy, colourful suit to be auctioned to benefit charity.

    ABC talk show host Jimmy Kimmel asked children and their parents to send in bracelets and other designs created using the popular Rainbow Loom craft toy. All the colours, patterns and designs were then spun into one big, heavy, colourful suit to be auctioned off to benefit charity.
    On Feb. 26, Kimmel wore the Rainbow Loom suit on his show. The owners of the Wixom, Mich., company, Rainbow Loom by Choon’s Design, made the winning bid of $40,000. The auction benefitted the MaxLove Project, a nonprofit inspired by Max Wilford, 7, who was fighting brain cancer.

    Product Description
    Make super fun rubber band bracelets with this simple-to-use Rainbow Loom kit!

    Make single and wide pattern bracelets for different effects and combine multiple loom sets to make longer and wider combinations. Use short combinations to make funky rings and longer ones for crazy necklaces!

    The specially designed loom makes making bracelets a breeze and the easy-to-follow instructions mean that anyone can join in the fun!

    Also included are over 600 latex-free rubber bands that can be used to make up to 24 bracelets and c-clips which are used to join the ends together. As well as a mini Rainbow Loom that lets you make single-pattern bracelets super fast.

    Includes:
    1 Rainbow Loom
    1 Mini Rainbow Loom
    1 Hook with base opener
    600+ Latex free rubber bands and c-clips

    Not suitable for children under the age of 8 years.
    Dimentions: 25.5 x 4 x 5.5cm

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    Pogo Stick

    Pogo Sticks have been around since the 1950s and became a massive hit through the 1970s when a redesign took place. Pogo sticks are still a popular children’s toy and most children are still keen to try the humble Pogo stick and see how they fair.
    So a Pogo stick is a pole with a handle at the top and footrests near the bottom, at the bottom a spring is in cased inside the pole.
    You need to place a foot on the foot rests or hop onto it and balance whilst you jump up and down with a slight bending motion at the knees. This motion allows you to control by adding or removing energy which goes into the spring below. Or you can see how many full bounces you can do to pretend you are Tigger or to travel in larger but potentially more uncontrollable steps.

    The modern pogo stick was invented in Germany by Hans Pohlig and Ernst Gottschall, they filed a patent in 1920 for a device called spring end hoping stilt – catchy hey.  Over time different designs have been made mainly focusing on adding more movement and higher bounce but also trying to protect the user from chin or head injury’s did also feature in several designs.

    Extreme Pogo or Xpogo is a growing action sport featuring 10ft jumps in height and many modern materials this has led to number of athlete and exhibition teams have been formed, this is one to watch the stunts and flips which are possible is great to watch.

    Can you Guess right when playing Guess Who?

    Guess Who

    Guess Who? Is the well known two player guessing game where players have to guess which character they have picked before the opponent guess their chosen character. The game was created by Ora and Theo Coster and first made in in 1979 by Milton Bradley in the England. It was later brought to the United States in 1982.
    Guess Who Board Game from MB Games Can you Guess right when playing Guess Who?

    Each player has a board which include 24 cartoon style characters with their names below the images on small stands. Each game starts with all of these standing up. Each player then picks from a pile of cards containing one of the same images, players then take turns to asking questions yes or no questions like do they wear glasses?, do they have hair? If they do the image remains standing if not it falls until one is left.