Never win a game of Monopoly? You could get rich by selling the board 

As the lockdown continues, many families have been opening the cupboard door and pulling out a favourite old board game tucked away at the back. 

Most of these relics of the past have been collecting dust over the past few years thanks to the rise of the internet, with social media and computer games usually holding more appeal for the younger generation.

But to fight off boredom, many families have been looking for something new to do together – and one answer has been rooting out board games they fondly remember playing when growing up. 

It has led to an unexpected leap in demand for second-hand games in excellent condition while some obsolete examples are now selling for hundreds of pounds.

Street-wise: Pre-war sets of Monopoly sell for £100, but early handmade round sets can fetch £90,000

Sarah McClure runs online shop Vintage Playtime and enjoys playing board games with husband Christopher, 34, and their children Darcy, ten, and Oliver, seven.

She says: ‘Demand for board games has more than doubled during the coronavirus crisis. Although it is initially driven by nostalgia, a lot of people are finding that once they sit around the table with the rest of the family, these games turn out to be lots of fun. They bring light relief during these difficult times.’

The 39-year-old adds: ‘Among those games most recently in demand is The Garden Game. This early 1980s favourite has beautiful illustrations – with the object being to plant imaginary seeds until the garden is full. It is the perfect antidote for the current lockdown. A while ago it could be picked up for a few pounds, but now it is hard to get hold of and might be worth up to £100.’

Another favourite that continues to appeal to all generations is Buccaneer. Invented in 1938, players take the role of a pirate plundering their way to victory. The game was dropped in the 1980s, but early Buccaneer editions – complete with a roll-up scroll board map – sell for £200 or more. 

Even sets from the 1950s can go for £100. The set contains glass ‘diamonds’, ‘rubies’, ‘gold’, ‘pearls’ and ‘barrels of rum’ – that can easily get lost. It is only board games that are still complete that collectors are interested in.

Horseracing is a popular theme as people look to make up for the loss of outdoors sporting competition while they are stuck indoors with nothing to do.

Among the favourite horseracing games is Escalado. This was introduced in 1928 and early sets that still have their lead-weighted horses can sell for more than £200 while even later tin metal ones made up until the 1970s sell for three figures if in top condition.

Escalado with plastic horses made from the 1990s onwards are sadly relatively worthless. Another horseracing game, the 1938 Totopoly, can also sell for £300 due to the rarity of surviving intact games. Sarah says: ‘There are also modern unusual games you might never have heard of that can prove fun.’

For horseracing fans she suggests The Really Nasty Horse Racing Game that was launched in 1987.

Favourite: Pirate game Buccaneer was invented in 1938 and editions with a roll-up board map can sell for £200

Favourite: Pirate game Buccaneer was invented in 1938 and editions with a roll-up board map can sell for £200

To imitate some of the skulduggery that goes on in the real world of horseracing, competitors can force other horses to fall and take drug tests. This once discarded game might now sell for £70 or more. For real escapism during the Covid-19 crisis, you need go no further than Escape From Colditz.

This game was devised by former German prison camp escapee Major Pat Reid in 1973. Early sets have a Swastika on the cover and are worth £100. In an attempt to be politically correct, the Nazi logo was removed from the box lid in the late 1970s. A favourite among Sarah’s own family is the 1986 Escape From Atlantis – still relatively affordable with second-hand examples in good condition typically costing £50.

She says: ‘Like so many of the best games it is not quite as wholesome as you might expect – which adds another layer to the appeal. There is an element of risk in that if you are not careful you can come to a grisly end being eaten by sharks.’

To start a family feud, there is still nothing quite like a game of Monopoly. It was originally based on the New Jersey streets of Atlantic City in America – and created by unemployed Charles Darrow in 1933 when he was desperate for money.

His early handmade sets were on a round board and now sell for £90,000 or more. He sold the game rights to Parker Brothers in 1935 – and later royalties allowed him to retire a multi-millionaire. 

But Monopoly was actually based on an earlier invention called The Landlord’s Game from 1903. Far from being a model for cut-throat capitalism, this earlier incarnation had been created by socialist Quaker Lizzie Magie to help people understand taxes and the unfair way landlords exploit tenants.

She sold her rights for a less lucrative $500 to Parker Brothers in 1935. Find an early example and you have a board game that is worth £50,000.

But you are far more likely to own an old Monopoly set that comes in an original black box. These were made until the 1960s and sell for £50. Find a pre-war example and it might be worth £100.

You can date your Monopoly from the pieces. Earliest pre-war sets had a top hat, thimble, iron, shoe, battleship and cannon – then came a racing car, purse, rocking horse and lantern. A Scottie dog, wheelbarrow, horse and rider arrived in the 1950s.

A more recent game that might strike a chord during the current lockdown crisis – Pandemic: Contagion – came out in 2014. It has a foreboding message on the lid ‘You are the disease. There is no cure.’ The idea is to compete with other nasty lurgies to wipe out civilisation – the winner killing us all.

Perhaps unsurprisingly there has not been a great rush to collect this game and it still sells for just £35. 

 

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