The year of 1972 wasn’t really a huge year in the world of board game design and publication. Other years within the decade of 1970, especially later in the 70’s, had a lot more published (all 70’s board games).
However……
We did see the popular word game ‘Boggle’ come on the market, and various random themed games which is always delightful to see.
Buying Collectables – We have tried and continue to try our best to find places selling the games listed online for those interested in the collectables (see each game if it has an available @ link).
4000 A.D.
4000 A.D. an interstellar space conflict board game published by House of Games. There was no dice involved in play so strategy of movement was very important. This got the thumbs up by many sci-fi gamers and youngsters of the 70’s, but didn’t do so well with others as they felt that more should have been enabled in the gameplay.
Boggle
Boggle a simple word game that came on the market in 1972 is still played today. It became so popular that it’s played in tournaments, although not as near as big as Scrabble. Word buffs love it!
Conquest
A strategy game self-published first by Donald Benge in 1972. One of the best two player board games of the 70’s. There have been other versions published since its introduction and the designer/publisher created a chess like version (Quest Chess) later. Excellent ancient warfare game!
Isolation
An 8×6 board housed the abstract strategy game, Isolation. A two player game which involved moving pawns and tile like squares to isolate an opponent to win the game. A popular version was published by Lakeside. Brings back fond memories for many kids of the 70’s that played it.
The London Game
The London Board game was created based upon the London Underground with a board showing all the available stations. This was quite a simple roll the die and move through the stations on the board and other aspects on the game got players onto another line and the ability to close stations. Great game for families, train enthusiasts, and fans of anything London.
Outdoor Survival
Outdoor Survival: A game about wilderness skill was published by Avalon Hill. This is just an excellent theme for a board game of adventure and exploration. This was unique for the 70’s as wargames after wargames was created making this a breath of fresh air. This game was more about theme and fun rather than pleasing the serious gamers.
Richthofen’s War
Another board game published by Avalon Hill was Richthofen’s War which was a WWI hexagon grid type wargame. Players had to be in control of an airplane and each plane had its own unique abilities. This game was not overly complex and expansions was added later for those that connected well to the game. There wasn’t a lot of WWI games published as the main games created was themed on WWII.
The Ungame
The Ungame has a wonderful story behind its creation. A mother (Rhea Zakich) that suffered Polyps that was unable to speak for a period of time used cards to communicate which then became the idea behind the board game. Many versions was created over the years including A Christian, Catholic, Kids and pocket versions.
