Classic Board Games

Whatever happened to Monopoly, Clue, The Game Of Life, and Risk?

Before personal computers and video game consoles there were board games. And just as today's PlayStation or Xbox games conjure an entire world via graphics, the names of classic board games bring to mind for those who played them images of their childhoods in a different era. If you're looking to introduce classic board games to your own children, you might be surprised to find the following titles are as popular as ever.

Monopoly

As classic board games go, Monopoly may be the quintessential American board game. After all, taking a stranglehold over the real estate market hardly springs to mind as a great family gaming experience. Yet Monopoly endures and can now be found in numerous formats and special editions.

Some of the twists on this classic board game are rather unusual. Anti-Monopoly, for example, allows players to choose either a monopoly format or a free market format that rewards players who charge fair market value for rent.

There are even times when classic board games come to life. News reports indicate that Donald Trump, buoyed by the success of his show The Apprentice, will produce a reality TV show based on the Monopoly board game.

Clue

This classic board game has already come to life in the form of the 1985 movie Clue, but this whodunit game continues to evolve with the times. The Clue board game is now available in a DVD edition.

But for classic board game purists, the board version of Clue remains, along with a few special editions, and some interesting throwbacks including a Clue 1949 Deluxe First Edition and a Clue Nostalgia Edition.

The Clue First Edition board game replicates everything from the original game, including the board, artwork, weapons, and tokens. The Clue Nostalgia board game is a recreation of the 1963 version of the classic board game, and features a very retro look complete with animated characters on the box.

The Game Of Life

Though it remains a classic board game, The Game Of Life has changed in various ways. For example, the game cars are now sports utility vehicles. Even when you're poor, you've got to have an SUV.

Special editions of this classic board game have been inspired by animated shows The Simpsons and SpongeBob SquarePants.

Risk

Global politics have changed enormously since the classic board game Risk first appeared, but then so has Risk. Avoid the modern era altogether by playing the Risk 2210 A.D. board game, and fight your battles in a world where Greenland has become the Exiled States of America and troops can be stationed on the moon.

Or for a different classic board game experience, wage war between Ancient Earth and the Underworld in Risk Godstorm, where the ancient Greek, Celtic, Babylonian, Norse, and Egyptian cultures contend for global dominance.

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