Amusement devices: games – Board games – pieces – or boards therefor – Game piece
Reexamination Certificate
2002-07-08
2004-01-20
Layno, Benjamin H. (Department: 3711)
Amusement devices: games
Board games, pieces, or boards therefor
Game piece
C273S160000, C273S241000, C273S293000, C273S450000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06679496
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a game which is played using a set of stackable game pieces. In particular, the present invention relates to a game which employs a set of stackable game pieces which direct players to perform an activity upon manipulation of the game pieces.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Games using stackable game pieces are well known. For instance, in U.S. Pat. No. 3,863,918, Kramer teaches a game in which players are provided with a set of game pieces of various shapes, and are required to stack the game pieces on top of each other in layers without causing the structure to collapse. Although such games may be suitable for young children, their simplicity would not maintain the interest of older children or adults.
Other games using stackable game pieces have been developed having a greater level of difficulty than the traditional stacking piece game. In one such game, marketed under the trade-mark JENGA, a tower is constructed from a set of game blocks of generally elongate parallelepiped shape, with the blocks in each layer being perpendicular to the blocks in the layer above and the layer below. Players are required to remove a block from the tower and place it on the uppermost layer without toppling the tower. The ability to strategically select game blocks from the tower increases the level of difficulty of the game.
More recently, a game marketed under the trade-mark JENGA ULTIMATE was developed having an even greater level of difficulty than JENGA. The game is played in a manner similar to JENGA, but employs of set of elongate coloured parallelepiped game blocks. A player rolls a die having coloured faces matching the colours on the game blocks, with the colour of the uppermost die face determining the colour of the game block which can be removed from the tower. By so limiting the number of blocks which can be removed, the level of difficulty of the game is increased.
Although JENGA and JENGA ULTIMATE have been commercially successful, it is desirable to provide a stacking game using stackable game pieces which produces an even greater level of difficulty.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
According to the invention, there is provided a stacking block game, a stacking block game kit and a method of playing a stacking block game which addresses deficiencies of the prior art.
The stacking block game, according to the invention, comprises a collapsible tower constructed from a plurality of layers of stacked building pieces. Each building piece is associated with one of a plurality of task classes and one of a plurality of activities associated with the one task class. At least one of the building pieces includes a task class indicia identifying the one task class and an activity description of the one activity.
The stacking block kit, according to the invention, includes a set of game cards, and a plurality of game pieces. Each game card is associated with one of a plurality of task classes and one of a plurality of activities associated with the one task class. Further, each game card includes an activity description identifying the one activity. The game pieces are stackable in layers, with each game piece being associated with a respective one of the task classes and a respective one of the activities.
In accordance with one aspect of the invention, the stacking piece game is played by (1) providing an assembly of game pieces; (2) removing one of the game pieces from the assembly; (3) performing an activity associated with the removed game piece; (4) returning the removed game piece to the assembly upon completion of the activity; and (5) repeating the removing, performing and returning steps amongst players of the game until a predetermined solution is reached.
In accordance with another aspect of the invention, the stacking piece game is played by (1) providing a tower of stackable game pieces for players of the game; and (2) rearranging the game pieces within the tower. According to this latter aspect, the arranging step comprising (a) each player removing one of the game pieces from the assembly, (b) performing an activity associated with the removed game piece, and (c) returning the removed game piece to the tower upon completion of the activity.
In a preferred embodiment of the invention, each game piece comprises a stackable game piece which is marked with an indicia which identifies a task class to which the game piece belongs. Further, preferably a portion of the game pieces are marked with a description of a task consistent with the task class of the game piece. However, in an alternate embodiment, the task description is provided on a set of playing cards.
Preferably, the game pieces are divided into three task classes, with one of the task classes comprising a truth task class in which the tasks of all the game pieces associated with the class identify a truth statement which a player must provide, and another of the task classes comprising a risk task class in which all the game pieces associated with the class identify a risk or a dare which a player must undertake, and the remaining task class comprising a user-defined task class in which a portion of the game pieces associated with the class identify a user-defined task.
Preferably, each game piece is a parallelopiped-shaped game piece whose width is one-third its length. Initially, the game pieces are stacked in layers to form a tower, with each layer comprising three game pieces and the game pieces in each layer being oriented at a right angle relative to the game pieces in the layers immediately adjacent. Then, one of the players selects one of the task classes, and removes from the tower a game piece having the indicia associated with selected task class. The player then reads the description of the task associated with the game piece removed. If the removed game piece is associated with the truth task class, the player must provide the identified truthful statement. If the removed game piece is associated with the risk task class, the player must undertake the identified risk. If the removed game piece is associated with the user-defined task class and has an associated task, the player must perform the identified task.
Once the identified task is completed to the satisfaction of the other players, the player returns the removed game piece to the uppermost layer of the tower. However, in an alternate embodiment, each player is provided with a “pass” card which entitles the player to return the removed game piece to the uppermost layer of the tower without performance of the identified task.
If the player chooses not to complete the identified task, the player returns the removed game piece to the uppermost layer of the tower without performance of the identified task, selects and removes another game piece from the tower, and then returns this latter game piece to the uppermost layer of the tower upon performance of the task identified with the latter game piece. Also, if the removed game piece is associated with the user-defined task class but has no associated task, the player may return the removed game piece to the uppermost layer of the tower without performance of a task.
Each player takes turns removing a game piece, and returning the removed game piece until the tower collapses.
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Birkinshaw Amanda
Eveloff Paul
Grebler Robert
Collins Dolores R.
Layno Benjamin H.
Pokonobe Associates
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