Sep
15
Here is another card game game from the Pepys/Castell Brothers collection. According to the boardgamegeek entry the publication year is 1961. This is curious because a key feature of the game, including the box art, is the use of the Concorde plane. The Wikipedia entry for the Concorde states that construction of prototypes didn’t start …
Aug
18
Today’s game is more about great works of art than actually being one itself. But I figured that a collection of great board game art ought to feature somewhere a board game about art. In fact, there are several games that fall into this category. But it is this game that seems to stand as …
Jul
28
Since dipping deeper into the art of games recently, I’ve discovered a wealth of games – card games in particular – produced by the company Pepys in the UK during the middle of the 20th century. I’ve been playing games all my life, more deeply in the hobby for about 20 years, but only become …
Jul
05
For this post we’re still on nostalgic card games, but we cross the Atlantic from the UK to the USA for Cities. This is yet another set-collecting game of the Rummy class. The artwork is rather art deco, reminiscent of the era – the original publication date is 1932. I really love the drawings for …
Jun
23
There is an enormous variety of “generic” card games that is amenable to custom artwork – Happy Families or Go Fish have been mentioned here, but also trump games and Sevens. In Sevens, the deck comprises standard numbered suits – it doesn’t matter what the suits are, they just have to be different and distinguishable. …
Jun
14
While we’re on the card game theme here’s another piece of nostalgia from 1930s Britain. Belisha is a Rummy variant, based on the theme of a motor trip from one end of the UK mainland to the other. The other important part of the theme is motor and pedestrian safety, and this game was apparently …
Jun
02
Or more correctly, Les Mammifères (<- note the little grave mark on the “e” in there…). This card game is a recent acquisition, originally from France and undated, although at a guess looks to be 1950s vintage. The name on the box hints that the artist is Fernand Nathan. However, those who know the games …
May
19
Snakes and Ladders, according to various sources (search Wikipedia and Boardgamegeek, and even the Victoria and Albert Museum in the UK), was actually invented in India and brought to England in the late 19th century. It was originally concerned with virtues and vices – virtuous deeds being rewarded with a ladder up (closer to Nirvana), …
