For Millie and Toby this type of one-on-one challenge is a game they love. Of course, there was lots of arguing and maybe a little bit shouting and pouting but all in all they did have a lot of fun. I did not have so much fun as Tracey, who beat me three to nothing. I shall have my revenge when we next have a games evening!

They're based in convenient locations including supermarkets, newsagents and train stations. Plus they're often open late and on Sundays. Slap Ninja is a game for two players ages 4 and up. If there are more of you, run a tournament and time each other’s wins. You can either be the Master or Student. With one hand on the game controller, which is styled as a karate bench, as the Ninja Master, you’re using your huge karate chopping hand to protect the red coin in your other palm; as the Student, you’re trying to gain points by successfully tapping your Master’s treasured coin. Some of us got very excited playing the Master in Slap Ninja… We had a great laugh playing all together and they really liked how noisy and boisterous the game (and the subsequent zapping) got. It is also nice that they have a game that they can play with just the two of them without anyone else having to get involved to adjudicate or explain rules. Isabelle started as the Student and loved trying to ‘steal’ (or should we say press) her brothers coin, as much as Harry loved trying to slap her hand. To Isabelle’s delight she won the first round resulting in Harry getting zapped. They then proceeded to take turns at being the Student and the Master loving it when the other got zapped.I actually loved playing deluxe Master Mind once we’d all understood (and agreed) what we had to do. I’ve quite a logical brain and enjoy logic puzzles so to me it all made perfect sense as to how to interpret the code maker’s marking of the code breaking attempts. I can see how this might not be for everyone though. Now, the bit we weren’t totally clear on is if you tell the code breaker which peg is the right colour in the right position. We did, but I’m finding rules online that suggest you should go either way. This was our first attempt so I was keeping things easy. The Slap Ninja controller is modelled after a karate bench. On top there are 3 led lights at either end. One of the “bench legs” is plain, the other has a small button on it and a trigger. Above this “bench leg” is a red coin and a giant ninja hand. TheSlap Ninja game is aimed at children aged 4 and up. I think that this is pretty accurate. Not least because the trigger to control the giant hand takes some effort to squeeze.

Master C has had a bit of a thing for playing noughts and crosses recently. He’s realised that with a bit of logic you can make it impossible for the other player to win. He likes winning. Rather a lot. As a responsible parent I realise that it’s my duty to make sure he understands that in life it’s not all about the winning. Nor is it possible to always win. That’s where finding a copy of the vintage 1978 game Super 3 comes in rather useful. Filed Under: Family Games, Games for two players, Spears Games, Vintage Games Tagged With: board games, Home you go, spears games, vintage games Deluxe Master Mind But, before we move on to deluxe Master Mind, let’s start with the original game. The History of Master Mind I’m pretty sure that most people my age played games in maths lessons at school that involved making pictures from some basic shapes. Either plastic ones if your school had a bit of money, or cut from paper or card if your school had a stretched budget. That’s basically what Superpuzzle from Spear’s Games is.Playing pieces can only move forwards, staying in their lanes, and how many spaces they can move is dictated by the roll of the die. If you land on a square occupied by an other piece then you say “Home you go!” and that players piece has to return to its starting square. You are able to move over and past opponent’s pieces if you throw enough to do so. Filed Under: Games for two players, MB Games, Vintage Games Tagged With: game for two players, MB Games, Noughts and Crosses, Super 3, Tic Tac Toe, Two player game, two players, vintage, vintage game, vintage MB Games Home you go! If you’re interested in vintage board games then why not head over to Facebook and join our new vintage board games group. Slap Ninja is a new fast and skilful game that will appeal to both children and adults alike. Essentially the game is for two players and is centred around a huge chop hand operated by one player and the other player trying to grab treasure before the hand slaps him.

It was perfect timing therefore to tell the kids about the invisible ink story (although Master C is now convinced that he can do no homework and just tell his teachers that he used invisible ink every time!) and also let them have a go at being ninjas themselves by helping me to review the game Slap Ninja from JAKKS Pacific. Once you have enough pegs to take a square you remove your opponent’s pegs from that square and fill it all in with your own pegs. Once this is done that square can not be touched again, even if your opponent rolls a 2.Slap Ninja is designed for two players; one the Ninja Master the other student. The aim of the game is for the student to grab the Ninja’s without being slapped by the Ninja’s huge chopping hand. One of the most obvious things when you look at the deluxe Master Mind box is that a different couple appear on the cover. Again you have the seated white business man, but this time behind him is a woman of Indian appearance. It’s still an iconic look, but a different couple. This extended version of the game also appears to have gone by the name Super Master Mind too. The games inside are identical from what I can tell, but the name different. Possibly for different markets. Players who roll a 7 can place a peg in any central hole, or in any hole in square number 7, including the central hole. If you roll a 12 you can place a peg anywhere on the board. Rolling a 2 allows you to remove an opponents peg and then roll again.

The game itself had a bit of an air of mystery about it. The box cover featured a seated business man and a woman of Chinese appearance stood behind him. The game itself is nowhere in sight. How peculiar. Player 1 is the Ninja Master who uses the Huge Karate Chop SLAP to defend the precious coin from the sneaky thieving opponent. Slap Ninja is designed for children age 4 years and over but definetly appeals to older children and adults. How to Play Slap Ninja. You see, as an incurably hopeless, wish-upon-a-star daydreamer, when my first baby boy came into my life, I swiftly realised that being the parent you thought you would be, and creating family memories to treasure in the way you imagined before your baby was born [and keeping you awake all night] is a real challenge.Superpuzzle is something that you an either play on your own, or against another player. The game contains two sets of twenty four pieces (one set red and one green) with each set having 12 each of two different shapes – a rectangle, and what could be described as a rectangle with a corner cut off! If you’d like some inspiration for more activities to do with your children, have a look at this. Pin This For Later… You can still buy new versions of the original Master Mind from toy shops and online. Some versions use the name Master Mind (or sometimes MasterMind) whilst others have very similar names for what is effectively the same game. What is obvious though is the absence of Invicta’s strong iconic brand. Strangely the pair of them became quite an iconic couple with the man in question reaching some level of fame as Mr Mastermind. My searches online for more about the history of the game came across a fabulous article about the pair of them being reunited years later and talking about how they had no idea quite how iconic they would become.