PRINTOff-screen games
COURTESY OF: MILTON BRADLEY
July 24, 2008 | 12:00 a.m. CST
Many of today’s most popular face-to-face games borrow key components from past trendsetters. Here’s a look at some of the influential ancestors of the gaming world.
Chainmail
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Chainmail, a precursor to Dungeons & Dragons, is one of the oldest role-playing games (RPGs). Miniature figurines, dice and charts are used in this medieval war game about fantastical monsters and wizards.
Battleship
This two-player plastic wonder has had people yelling “You sank my battleship!” for decades. Milton Bradley turned the pen-and-paper game into a board game in 1931 and retained the seek-and-destroy strategy.
We The People
This Revolutionary War-themed board game was the first war game to use strategy cards. Cards add variation to game play by allowing players to use different attacks and draw events that affect the success of their armies.
Dogs In The Vineyard
In this RPG, the Dogs are religious watchmen who roam the old West, carrying mail, gunfighting and protecting faithful people from harm by whatever means necessary.
Magic: The Gathering
Players become wizards and use fairies, goblins and arsenals of potions to protect their 20 precious life points from opponents’ spells and creatures. Many play this occult trading card game for fun, and others play for cash. Lose those life points, and you could lose your lunch money.
