The board games, once relegated to the storeroom and brought out only during picnics are on the comeback.
Move over Counter-strike and FIFA ‘08. It’s time to play Monopoly. The board games, once relegated to the storeroom and brought out only during picnics are on the comeback. Teenagers in the city are getting hooked on to the veritable treasures of Picnic, Scrabble, Life etc.
Vinit Mehta (19) is a big fan of Life, Business and Snakes n Ladders. He says, “I usually play on Sundays, with a group of friends or on overnight trips by train.” A fan of video games too, he plays board games to relax. The USP of these games as compared to video games — “each time you play, new and unexpected situations arise.”
Spending hours together with friends over a game of MAD is Trishala Jain’s (19) favourite pastime. She says, “It’s better than playing games alone on the computer. This way we can have a good time with family and friends.”
Come vacations and Anjana Iyer (18) can be found hunched over a game of Business or racking her brains over a game of chess. “My friends and I take turns going over to each others homes to play.”
Board games also make their presence felt when younger relatives come for a visit, or during picnics and group outings. Tanushree Deshpande (18) says, “I own a stack of board games. My favourite is Scrabble which I enjoy playing when my cousins come over.”
These games are useful in improving one’s IQ and can be played by anyone, irrespective of age. Each game involves quick thinking, an observant mind and common sense. Karishma Lulla (19) likes the challenges she faces in the Game of Life. “It’s like real life — passing through the entire route of graduating from college, getting a job, marrying and raising kids.”
The old and time-tested games like Ludo, Life and Monopoly are still all time favourites. Vinay Mangalgi, all India category manager (non-books) for Crossword confirms, “We sell around 100-150 games of Monopoly and Scrabble every month. They rule the roost despite other interesting games we stock like Batik, Jhenga, Taboo etc.”
Winning or losing does not matter for these teens, having fun together is the main criteria.
Games Teenagers PlayChakra view is strategy based, involving a battle of brains and the best live to tell the tale.
Triplets is aimed at bringing in three pawns in a straight line and taking them off the board. The player who manages to take out all the pawns wins.
Gotcha is all about keeping your profession under wraps when everybody else’s profession has been disclosed.
Quoridor aims at advancing your pawn to the opposite edge of the board. First pawn to reach the opposite side wins.
Taboo is a word guessing party game. The object is for a player to have their partner(s) guess the word on their card without using the word.
Game of Life teaches children how to deal with money matters and trading decisions early in life.
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