July 2012 Notable Toys — Board Games

Collect the magic gems and free the Wizard in Electronic Labyrinth. The enchanted Labyrinth is in danger. The evil witch Grimelda banished the wise wizard Akata, guardian of the Labyrinth, into a magic book. Can players break her evil spell and free the wizard? Dangers lurk everywhere; Grimelda has put a curse on anyone who has tried to save him and turned them into mythical creatures. Contents: 1 playing board, 1 magic book, 37 Labyrinth cards, 17 object cards, 5 treasure chest cards, 4 mission scrolls, 4 magic keys, 4 playing pieces, 60 gems, instructions. For 2-6 players. Playing time: 45-60 minutes.

Duple is a quick-thinking game of symbol matching and word-finding. Players flip letter cards in turn until the symbols on two players' cards match. Matching players face-off by being the first to shout a word which contains the letters on both cards. Correct answers must be at least 5 letters long and conform to ever-changing categories. Wild Cards and Cascades create unexpected face-offs and the All Play card gets everyone facing off a once. Distributed by Everest. Launch date: February 2012.
Awards: 2013 TDmonthly Seal of Approval

Polar Eclipse is an educational board game created to raise awareness about climate change and lifestyle choices. Published in 2011 by turn 4 turn llc. based in Park City, Utah, the game is created for global citizens 8 years and older. Designed, tested and re-tested with students who attend a Utah K-8 charter school, the game offers players the opportunity to add their ideas to the discussion and move toward their survival by doing so. The game board is a warm to cool, and past to future grid; a game about time and temperature. The object of the game is, as one of five species, to make it into the future and get cooler, to survive. If you hit 100 your species becomes extinct and you are out of the game. The motivation to create this game comes from the inventors background as an elementary teacher and the concern for the natural world. By playing the game, it is hoped that the mix of experience that sparks awareness, concern and stewardship to protect the natural world will expand. Knowledge is power. The game includes a die to set your place in time, 184 event cards to experience cause and effect, 64 arctic cards to offer open-ended and multiple choice questions, five players/species, the game board and a rules and reference booklet. Playing time ranges from twenty to forty-five minutes depending on the set of cards you play and number of players. Eight blank event cards are included to create your own events to add to the game. A secondary activity is to sort the event cards into sets of eight cards, by a symbol on the card, and assemble puzzles that make up the photographs on the cover and sides of the game box.
Awards: 2012 Dr. Toy Best Green Toys

This 65-piece set features five game ideas that introduce and teach shapes and objects with unique tactile game play. Little pirates will be ready for games like "The Sneaky Seeker", "The Blindfold Grab", matching games, and more. For a traditional favorite, flip the game board over and play a classic game of Checkers. Clean up is easy as the 18"x18" game board has a Velcro pocket for storage and play. The gameboard is also a great map for role play adventures. BeginAgain uses plant-based and recycled materials whenever possible. The treasure map game board is made from natural (unbleached, unprocessed) cotton and the 20 game cards and 20 matching game pieces are made from recycled paperboard and colored with water-based inks. The 24 treasure coins are made from natural rubber (from rubber tree).
Awards: 2012 Dr. Toy Best Green Toys

Deluxe Super Scrabble combines the "bigger. better" game play of Super scrabble with an innovative gameboard that holds letter tiles firmly in place. Launch date: July 2012.

The Classic Game of Threezer® Riddles. The fun starts with three seemingly unrelated clues.  What do Roses, Doughnuts and Jurors have in common? Players win the card if their team guesses, “They come in dozens.”  How about A Violinist, An Archer, A Fancy Gift? (They all have bows!) First team to collect the winning number of cards claims victory. TriBond “Threezers” are challenging, clever and contagious. The game’s edge-of-your-seat excitement has sparked sales of over 3 million copies. Launch date: July 2012.

Players and the rest of the group all share a quirky problem that is interfering with their lives, so they have gathered together and invited a psychiatrist to figure out what’s wrong. Will the psychiatrist be able to diagnose the problem, or will he end up just as crazy as the players? Launch date: July 2012.
— "This is that rare party game that combines zany interactivity with a solid yet simple mechanical structure. As a patient, it’s a lot of fun to learn your secret prompt and know that the psychiatrist player doesn’t know it. As the psychiatrist, it can be challenging and hilarious to watch your friends act crazy." - a review on Wired.com.

Kids and their friends are going on a photo safari. To see as many animals as possible, they will have to plan their trip well. Whoever visits the most areas and takes the best photographs will be the safari champion. Launch date: July 2012.
— "My little geeks and I have played DiceAFARI a number of times and keep enjoying it more and more. The dice certainly add an element of randomness and luck to the game but also act as an equalizer...Light, flexible, customizable, and accessible, DiceAFARI is a fun game that will challenge and entertain." - Review on FatherGeek.com.

In Forest Animal-opoly, players buy their favorite animals and learn to be caretakers of the forest by providing food and water for their animals. Whether it’s a huge bison or a tiny weasel, all the animals in the forest are important to the natural cycle of life, therefore, fines are enforced for littering and polluting their habitat. On the reverse side of each property deed find cool facts & unique characteristics for each forest animal. "Forest Animal-opoly is made in the USA, printed with vegetable based inks and made using recycled paper," Carla Miller from Late for the Sky Production Co., told TDmonthly. Launch date: April 2012.

A fast paced game for the entire family. Race to the Dino-Cave but don't be sent back to the Dino-Bath. Large 5" dinosaurs that kids jump and switch, will have kids screaming in minutes. "Beautiful color graphics and an over-sized playing board," Don Rosenthal, president of LuvyDuvy Corporation, told TDmonthly. Launch date: January 2009.
Awards: 2009 Creative Child Magazine Seal of Excellence; 2010 National Parenting Magazine Seal of Approval; 2011 Parents' Choice Fun Stuff Award.

Telepathy Jr is the younger version of the Telepathy board game. Telepathy Jr teaches kids how to use logic and deduction at an early age and is important in the area of critical thinking. Game plays in around 10 - 15 minutes. "There are not a lot of logic/deduction games for youngsters out there and Telepathy Jr will help kids practice their deductive skills," Derek Chinn, owner of LMD Games, told TDmonthly. Launch date: June 2012.

Famed puzzle inventor Ivan Moscovich has an eye for the unusual and a mind for enigmas. His latest magnetic collection of brainteasers, Craniatics is a visual cocktail of new configurations. Includes ten magnetic challenges with solutions. Includes three Craniatics games suitable for 1 or more players.