Patent Application
20060043677
1. Field of Invention
This invention relates to board games. More specifically, the invention relates to board games requiring significant cognitive skills for critical thinking.
2. Prior Art
Various strategy board games are known, but in general they require that the participants be fluent in a common language or be proficient or literate in language. Games that don't require language proficiency, such as certain card games and board games intended for children, are exceedingly simple and depend much more on luck than critical thinking such as that involving the analysis of multiple variables in order to win. Other known games, usually considered adult games, such as chess, backgammon, and even checkers, lack the excitement of the element of chance.
Heretofore unrecognized is the need for a simple to learn and fun board game that requires no language skills to play, yet requires significant cognitive skills for critical thinking, and has some element of chance as well.
The game board comprises a plurality of spaces organized into multiple runways. Runways are adjacent to the starting point at the center of the board. Branch runways are adjacent to a plurality of runway spaces. Many of the spaces are subdivided into subspaces. Some of these spaces are subdivided into subspaces The center space is the starting point. Prism subspaces are at the intersecting space of a runway and a branch runway. Prisms indicate that the direction of the spectrum sequence may reverse. In its main embodiment, each runway ends with a subspace, star endpoint. Each branch runway ends with a subspace, circle endpoint. The game typically includes pieces known as color tiles. Once tiles are played, they do not move for the duration of the game. The game also typically includes cards known as color cards. Cards are accumulated throughout the game. A card can be acquired in multiple ways; From the deck when a player's tile supply is depleted. When a tile is played on a circle endpoint. When a tile is played on a star endpoint. On a star endpoint, a player has the option of taking a card from another player. To win the game, typically a player must accumulate a set of six various cards to form a full color spectrum.
Starting point 10 may include some indicia or indication that it is the starting point. In the exemplary embodiment, starting point 10 is indicated by a star. At the end of each ending branch 11c is a special space of two different types identified by a color or design. In game board 7, each ending point is identified as a special space by either a 5-point star or a circle, although other designs and/or indicia may be similarly used. In addition, there is a special space 12 at each branching-off point along the runways identified in the example game board 7 by a triangle. While the special places are located as shown, there is no requirement that each branch end be identified as a special space, and the circle and 5-point stars may identify other spaces as being special. Likewise, other spaces aside from runway intersections, may be identified as a special space 12 using a triangle or other design/indicia.
Although the exemplary embodiment has starting point 10 located in the center of the game board, this is not a requirement for the game. Furthermore, indicia and markings may be printed, applied, or otherwise formed onto the surface of game board 7. Furthermore, game board 7 may be impressed with the game board features described above. Depending upon the material game board 7 is made from, game board features may be burned, carved, engraved, etched, or molded, or additional similar known techniques, and combinations thereof may be employed.
Furthermore, game board 7 and other elements of this invention to be described can be implemented in a computer system for single-player or multiple-player play. For example, a single player could play against any number of computer-generated “virtual” opponents as is known in the art of computer games. Alternatively, a plurality of players can compete by taking turns on a single computer or video game console or using a plurality of computers connected via a computer network, for example, using LAN and/or Internet connections.
In addition to game board 7, the disclosed game comprises a number of tiles comprising a number of sets of tiles wherein each set contains a complete natural sequence of tiles. An exemplary set of tiles are shown in
In addition to, or instead of colors, each tile may be identified with a number, design, or size such as shown in exemplary tiles of
A tile holder 30 as shown in
A final element of the game is a deck of cards 40 as shown in
Various other combinations of pieces can be played with. For example, the game can also be played with two hundred forty tiles in the six different colors instead of one hundred eighty or forty cards instead of thirty. A number of “wild” cards (not shown) that can stand in for any of the other cards can be mixed in the deck. Likewise, a number of “wild” tiles (not shown) can be used that could stand in for any other tile.
Finally, each player is given a tile holder 30 configured to hold that player's tiles and keep neighboring players from seeing the tiles.
Gameplay:
All of the color tiles 5 are placed face down on a flat surface. Each player picks nine tiles and places them in a tile holder. Alternatively, all the tiles are placed in an opaque bag and tiles are removed from the bag without looking at them. The cards are shuffled and placed in a deck face down. Gameplay is turn-based. One of the players is selected to go first. For example, each player may choose a card 3 to see who plays first. The player with the highest value card plays first, with violet being the highest value. If two or more players pick the same card, they pick again until one player wins the draw. The winning player plays first and play continues in a predetermined direction, e.g., clockwise. All cards are returned to the deck and reshuffled.
The goal of the game is to acquire at least one card of each unique design. Cards are acquired by running out of tiles, or by ending a series on one of special spaces, 13, 14. If a series ends on a special space 14, than the next card in the deck is drawn. If a series end on a special space 13, than the player may choose to either remove the next card from the deck, or take one of his or her opponents' cards. If the player runs out of tiles, than he or she can also remove the next card from the deck and draw a number of tiles, e.g., six, from the remaining tiles.
So, the first player places a series of tiles in their natural sequence from his or her tile holder beginning on the starting point 10. Typically, a player will want to play as long a sequence as he can, but there is no requirement that he or she do so. The players do not have to place all the tiles that they can and may in fact, choose not to place any. He concludes his turn by picking a tile from the pile and adding it to his tile holder. For the color tiles shown in
The following is an example of game play in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. Suppose the sequence of the first player ends with a green tile 24 succeeding a yellow tile 23. The next player must place a blue tile 25 in order to play from this sequence. If the green tile is three spaces from an endpoint and the player has a blue, violet, and red tile, he can reach the endpoint and acquire a card. If the endpoint is a circle endpoint he may pick a card from the deck. If the endpoint is a star endpoint he may either choose a card from another player or he may pick a card from the deck.
If the red tile had landed on a special space 12 which may be called a “prism space”, the following player or players may next play either an orange tile 22 or a violet tile 26 because the sequence direction may reverse at special spaces 12. Play following the violet tile would then continue with a blue tile 25 followed by a green tile 24 and so on.
Although the invention has been described by reference to particular illustrative embodiments thereof, many changes and modifications of the invention may become apparent to those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention's contribution to the art.
