At a time when mobile games and console titles dictate our entertainment choices, there’s something wonderfully nostalgic about the analog pleasures of classic board games. While Monopoly and Scrabble continue to grace family game nights, many vintage treasures from the ’70s and ’80s have mysteriously vanished from our collective memory.
These forgotten games represent an era when physical components, imaginative premises, and face-to-face social interaction defined our entertainment experiences. While many have disappeared from store shelves, they live on in the memories of those who spent rainy afternoons moving pieces across their boards. Perhaps it’s time to hunt down some of these board games and rediscover the simple joy of saying “it’s your turn” without waiting for a loading screen.
Séance (1972)
Séance was as peculiar as it sounds. Players bid on the possessions of a deceased Uncle Everett (using $20,000 in starting funds), with a creepy twist: they had to communicate with his spirit (via a battery-operated record player!) to determine their value. Inherited items might end up being worthless or trigger estate taxes.
The game combined strategy with an unsettling supernatural vibe, making it both fascinating and bizarre. Somehow, it was marketed to children 7 (some sources say 10) and up (because it’s never too early to learn about death AND taxes). Due to their fragile mechanical components, complete working copies now sell for over $200.
King Oil (1974)
In an era when “Dallas” and “The Beverly Hillbillies” had us dreaming of striking it rich with black gold, King Oil let players fulfill their oil tycoon fantasies. This game combined property investment with resource management as players drilled for oil, acquired land, and accumulated wealth. You could say that it is Monopoly’s Texan cousin with a ten-gallon hat.
King Oil’s mix of luck and strategy was a thrilling way to experience the highs and lows of the oil business without the real-world risks. The game’s detailed plastic drilling derricks provided the kind of tangible satisfaction that an app may not be able to replicate. For kids of the 70s, nothing beat the joy of discovering oil and becoming a cardboard J.R. Ewing.
Stay Alive (1971)
This survival-themed game with a 20–30 minute playtime combined elements of Ker-Plunk and Battleship, and was one of pure marble mayhem. Players (2 to 4) needed to place marbles on a 7×7 grid (with sliders and holes) and had to try to trap their opponents’ marbles in holes that opened unexpectedly. The goal was to keep your marbles on the board while plotting to make your opponents’ marbles fall through the cracks.
With each player strategically adjusting their sliders, the tension built until the inevitable drop of the marbles. It was a test of foresight, skill, sabotage, and cunning that could get surprisingly competitive and kept families entertained for hours. Unfortunately for us, the board game was discontinued in the late 70s.
Bonus Trivia: Stay Alive was briefly rebooted in 2005 by Winning Moves Games USA, with a smaller board size and design, but the reissue was also discontinued.
Dark Tower (1981)
Before gaming went digital, Dark Tower brilliantly blended traditional board gaming with what passed for “cutting-edge” technology in 1981. This Milton Bradley creation featured an electronic tower in the center that controlled gameplay through digital displays and sound effects.
Players took on the role of warriors, gathering gold, recruiting troops, and battling enemies on their quest to defeat the evil within the tower. The combination of traditional board game elements with electronic components was revolutionary for its time, earning it a cult following. Finding a working copy today is going to be hard, though — the word around is that the game’s high price ($200 today) and legal issues* contributed to its short market life (1981–1982).
Trivia for board game enthusiasts: In 2022, Restoration Games released a crowdfunded “reimagined gameplay” sequel, Return to Dark Tower.
*More on the legal battle: The game’s design became entangled in legal disputes after Milton Bradley allegedly used concepts from Triumph, a 1980 sci-fi prototype by Alan Coleman and Roger Burten. The duo argued that MB had “misappropriated trade secrets”. A jury initially awarded Coleman/Burten $737,058 in 1984, but the verdict was temporarily vacated before being reinstated on appeal in 1985. This legal battle likely accelerated the game’s discontinuation, but Milton Bradley had already sold $22 million worth of units before the verdict.
However, designers and employees who worked at Milton Bradley at the time have reason to believe that the court ruling was unfair. They allege that the only thing common between Triumph and Dark Tower was that it featured a controller positioned in the center of the game board. There is also the fact that Triumph was space-themed, while Dark Tower had a medieval setting.
Which Witch? (1970)
Milton Bradley’s spooktacular creation had kids navigate a 3D haunted house while avoiding three witches: Ghoulish Gertie, Wanda the Wicked, and Glenda the Good. The pièce de résistance? A metal “whammy ball” dropped down a chimney could send opponents’ pieces tumbling through traps.
The goal was to reach the Charmed Circle at the top of the stairs without falling victim to traps or being turned into a mouse. The game’s whimsical design and eerie theme made it a standout. Bradley marketed this spooky strategy game to kids as young as six, proving 1970s parents had nerves of steel. The game was rebranded internationally as Haunted House (UK) and Ghost Castle (Europe), with mechanical tweaks over time.
Bonus trivia: A Real Ghostbusters-themed version with identical mechanics was released in the 1980s
Headache (1968)
With a name that perfectly described what parents experienced during extended family game nights, Headache was essentially Sorry!’s more aggressive cousin. Though introduced in the late ’60s, the Kohner Brothers’ Headache gained peak popularity throughout the 1970s and 1980s.
Players raced around the board, strategically landing on opponents’ pieces to knock them out of the game. The distinctive plastic pop-o-matic dome in the center would pop with a satisfying sound when pressed, adding a tactile element that today’s touchscreen games sorely lack. Nothing built sibling rivalry quite like watching your brother or sister gleefully eliminate your game piece – a character-building experience that defined 70s childhoods.
Bermuda Triangle (1976)
This maritime adventure, featuring a detailed map of the Bermuda Triangle, had players navigate their ships through the treacherous waters while dodging a magnetic “mystery cloud” that would spin randomly and capture the ships (via magnets) at any moment.
The unpredictable nature of the cloud (controlled by a spinner) added suspense to an otherwise straightforward game about port collection. Players had to move ships unidirectionally along a fixed path to collect cargo cards (e.g., bananas, sugar, lumber) valued at $10,000–$100,000.
The map spanned from Florida to Puerto Rico, with a 46-space ship path. Strategic elements included blocking opponents’ ships and timing deliveries to maximize profit, while luck dominated cloud interactions. Your winning conditions included two scenarios, where you either reach $350,000 or lose all ships.
At the heart of it, the Bermuda Triangle was an interesting blend of strategy and luck, perfect for those fascinated by the sea and its secrets.