Farscape
Monopoly, Scattergories and other favourite board games including chess sets, backgammon and card and casino games together with ride on cars and planes, pool tables, table tennis and more. Quote ID: 6813 and password: moneyoff to get 10% off at checkout.

Board Games - Their History

Board games are games that are played on a flat surface - the game board - which can be made from various materials including wood, glass, marble, strong cardboard, stone and other materials. The earliest board games date from around 1500 BC, and were popular with the Ancient Greeks. In fact, an Ancient Greek urn, held at the Toledo Museum of Art, depicts an illustration of Achilles and Ajax playing a board game with each other.

Types of Board Games

They can usually be divided into three categories (with some versions overlapping different categories):

• Strategy
  The object of the game is to capture the opponent's pieces, take control of more of the board or block the opponent's moves. Games that fall into this category include chess, draughts, backgammon and Monopoly.
• Skill
  Many board games have an additional element of skill, including many of those listed above. Additional games that are more skill or general knowledge than luck include Scrabble and Trivial Pursuit.
• Race
  The third type of board game is some kind of race, with luck being the major factor in whether or not the game is won. Games in this category include many childhood games such as Snakes & Ladders, Ludo and Frustration.

If you are really good at chess or other games, you should check out King.com where you can play games of skill such as Chess, Chain Reaction, Goldfish Bowl, Flower Power and a Spelling Game called Keyword.

Monopoly

Monopoly is the most popular board game of all time. The forerunner of the game was invented in the early 1900s and was called "The Landlords Game". It was invented by Elizabeth Magie, and was designed to be an educational game to teach students about the principles of the economy. It was adapted in 1910 by some college students who made it much more of the game it is today.

The very first version of the game called "Monopoly" was copyrighted by Charles Darrow in 1933. He believed that he had struck upon a great idea for a game, but when he approached Parker Brothers (now owned by Hasbro) for assistance in producing the game, they turned him down, as they said that the game contained "52 design flaws". Darrow enlisted the help of a friend, who was a printer, and together they produced 5,000 games. They sold very quickly and at this point, Darrow approached Parker Brothers again, and they decided that this time they would proceed with the idea.

Monopoly has now proven itself to be the most successful game of all time. It has sold over 500 million copies, and has been translated into more than fifteen languages. It is available in over a hundred authorised versions including:

• London
• New York
• Las Vegas
• The Simpsons
• Coca Cola
• Themed to support different football teams such as Liverpool and Manchester United
• Star Wars
• Disney
• Junior

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Backgammon and Board Games Shop
- The backgammon specialists, selling backgammon boards, dice, books and software, together with poker chips, cups, draughts, cribbage, mah-jong, roulette and other gaming accessories at low prices. Worldwide delivery.