March 2012 Notable Toys — General Games

This is the 6th addition to the game of Dominion. It adds 26 new Kingdom cards to Dominion including 20 Actions 3 Treasures 3 Victory cards and 3 Reactions. The central theme is cards that do something immediately when you buy them or gain them. Dominion: Hinterlands is an expansion and cannot be played by itself; to play with it you need Dominion or a standalone expansion to Dominion (e.g. Dominion: Intrigue). Those provide the Basic cards you need to play (Treasure Victory and Curse cards) as well as the full rules for setup and gameplay. Dominion: Hinterlands can also be combined with any other Dominion expansions.
— As of 1/02/2012 this product had 4.5 out of 5 stars from 10 reviews on Amazon.com.

4 dynamic action images - "picto-verbs" get minds in motion. Roll the dice & the creative problem solving, language learning, and story telling begins. "Once upon a time, a giant LAUGHED..." Rory’s Story Cubes Actions features 9 cubes that illustrate 54 every day verbs. Players can play with them solo or combine them with other sets of Rory’s Story Cubes to kick-start their creativity and set their imagination in motion.
— As of 1/02/2012 this product had 4.4 out of 5 stars from 5 reviews on Amazon.com.

Players beware; getting the answers wrong is a lot harder than getting them right. Get it Wrong to Win is the only game where the objective is to give the WRONG answers to the questions. Players attempt to answer five questions with wrong answers before the timer runs out. But watch out, one correct answer and their turn is over. The player with the most tokens wins.

The popular Brainstring has been turned inside out. Brainstring Revenge is just as knotty as the original, but features a movable ball with a 360° spin that will have users on the ropes. Twist, turn, stretch and slide the puzzle in all directions to unravel the tightly wound knot. Once the strings are completely separated, the puzzle is solved – no strings attached.

Rapid reflex is a card game that challenges players to match images, colors, and left/right directions. Players take turns reading the action cards. The first player to slap the color that correctly matches the action card, with the correct hand, gets to keep the card. The first player to collect one card of each color wins.

Dark magic has been performed at Hogwarts! A fellow student has vanished from the famous School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and it is up to the players to solve the mysterious disappearance. Play as Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Luna or Neville and try to discover WHO did it, WHAT spell or item they used, and WHERE the student was attacked. Was it Draco Malfoy with a Sleeping Draught in the Owlery? Move around Hogwarts making suggestions- but watch out! Wheels on the board actually move to reveal secret passages, hidden staircases, and even the Dark Mark! When players think they've gathered all the facts they need, they go to Dumbledore's office to make their final accusation to win the game.
— As of 12/30/2011 this product had 4.3 out of 5 stars from 15 reviews on ToysRUs.com. Pros: More in depth than original Clue; fun for Harry Potter fans. Cons: Instructions are a bit confusing.

Crossboccia is the reinvention of Bocce Ball by introducing play in 3 dimensions. Crossboccia balls will rest on uneven surfaces. A vertical vector becomes part of the game, so stairs, tables and chairs can be played upon. Suitable for indoor or outdoor use, the next arena can be anywhere. Launch date: February 2012.

Drawing inspirations from cards illustrated with whimsical characters and situations, players weave fanciful stories ranging from the romantic to the preposterous. Whether making up their own fairy tale or creating a story together, Tell Tale Fairy Tales revs up kids' imaginations.

Search the seas for matching shrimp in this fun family game. The shrimp may share any of 4 characteristics—quantity, origin, size, and color. When players catch a matching shrimp trait between the 3 fishing zones, they squeeze the starfish to haul in their catch and collect their cards. The slickest shrimp spotter will be crowned King of the Prawns.

Armed with a stack of Ingredient Cards and a given Food Challenge, create the yummiest or yuckiest meals with Chef Cuckoo. The best—or the worst—chefs will emerge from the kitchen with the stars to prove it.

Spot It NHL edition is great for die-hard hockey fans. Hockey themed symbols give Spot It its cool edge. The logo of every NHL team appears on the cards.

What happens when America’s favorite pastime and the best-selling card game in the country collide? The official MLB™ edition of Spot It! Whether the logo of a favorite team, a bitter rival, or another baseball related image, spot it and players will be running the bases to victory.
— In a May 2012 survey about licensed products, Elmer  Carranza, manager of Doodlehopper 4 Kids in Springfield, Va., named Spot It as their best seller. They sell 24 copies each month.

Finally, a Spot It for little ones. With a scaled down card deck and 6 symbols instead of 8, Spot It Jr. Animals is accessible for kids under 6. Adorable animals appear on all the cards, with one big animal centered on each card for easier spotting.
Awards: 2014 TDmonthly Top Toy Debut Award, 2013 TDmonthly Seal of Approval

Everyone’s favorite travel-size game has officially hit the open road. Each colorful symbol is something one would see on a typical road trip. This edition has a new way to play: One card is turned over, and all players scan the scenery for things that match the symbols from the card. Spot it to win.
— Karl Steinbach, owner of Rainbow Toys in Falmouth, Maine, told TDmonthly in an April 2013 survey that this version of Spot It! is a best-selling travel toy.

Feed the Woozle is a cooperative game that focuses on developmental skills of children ages 3-6 in an active, fun game. The object of the game is for all players together to "feed" the Woozle 12 silly snacks. Players roll a die and then place the indicated number of snacks on a spoon. Then they spin a spinner that directs them to walk to the Woozle performing a gross motor movement like Bunny Hop or Walk Backwards. It's not so easy to keep those snacks from sliding off the spoon while hopping across the room. If everyone together can feed the Woozle 12 snacks, then everyone wins. "This game is cooperative - either the game wins or the players win. It encourages group participation and habits of cooperation. The game is leveled - meaning it focuses on specific preschool developmental skills in a fun way that is age-appropriate and grows with the child," Donna Jaffe, president of Peaceable Kingdom Press, told TDmonthly. Launch date: January 2012.

12 new cubes and new cards for the FauxCaublary Game. Launch date: February 2012.

216 new categories and an extra timer to add to kids' Word on the Street fun. "Word on the Street is great for spelling practice, but is also a party game," Leah Sugar, VP of marketing at Out of the Box Publishing, told TDmonthly. Launch date: February 2012.

Chaotic Connections is a brand new board game that takes players on a chaotic cross-country road trip without them leaving their living room.  Each player is dealt four cities on the map and attempts to connect the roads to the cities as quickly as possible. The first player to connect all four wins. However, there will be road blocks, detours, extra cities and other obstacles along the way.  Chaotic Connections can be played with 2-6 players and will enjoyed most by players ages nine and up. Launch date: August 2011.

Slooooks! is a new game that's a cross between eye-spy and a scavenger hunt. The rules are simple and all ages can play together ... and the game board folds up like a book so it can be taken anywhere. "It's never the same game twice," Kate Patterson of Ashare Patterson Design told TDmonthly. Launch date: May 2011.

Double Double Dominoes is a new approach to Dominoes. Players score points by matching up dominoes over key areas of the game board. Play a Double Domino and players double their score. Players can grab bonus points every time someone matches their position on the score track with a domino played… including themselves. Contents: Game board, 56 dominoes,  4 score pieces, Game rules.