Amusement devices: games – Board games – pieces – or boards therefor – Markable or erasable game board or piece
Reexamination Certificate
1999-11-29
2002-04-30
Chapman, Jeanette (Department: 3711)
Amusement devices: games
Board games, pieces, or boards therefor
Markable or erasable game board or piece
C273S271000, C273S272000, C273S273000, C273S15300J, C273S236000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06378867
ABSTRACT:
The present invention is directed to an apparatus for use in playing a word game, in particular a crossword game, and a method of playing such a game using the apparatus. In particular the invention is directed to an apparatus and game that is suitable for play by two or more players.
The crossword puzzle is a very popular and well known pastime and typically comprises an arrangement of squares, each square representing the letter of a word or phrase and clues for solving the identity of the words or phrases. However, the solving of crosswords is typically a solitary exercise and crossword puzzles in their current format do not readily lend themselves to competitive play between two or more players. The present invention seeks to overcome this disadvantage of known crossword puzzles.
Accordingly, in one aspect the present invention is directed to an apparatus for playing a word game, said game being suitable for play by two or more players, said apparatus including;
a plurality of cells arranged in one or more series, each cell having at least one letter assigned to it and the assigned letters of each series forming a word or phrase, said plurality of cells having associated therewith one or more clues for determining the identity of each word or phrase; and
means for indicating whether a letter nominated for any cell matches the at least one letter assigned to said cell, wherein during play of said game said means is capable of performing this function without simultaneously revealing the letter or letters assigned to one or more other cells for which a letter or letters have not been nominated.
Throughout this specification the term “cell” means a defined area in which a letter can placed. For example where the arrangement of cells is printed on a sheet of paper, each cell may be a blank square surrounded by a printed border and a letter can be written in the square. Alternatively, the arrangement of cells may be displayed on the liquid crystal display of an electronic device and each cell may be a blank area surrounded by an electronically created border. A letter can be electronically displayed in each cell.
The one or more series of cells may be arranged in rows and/or columns. It is further preferred that the series are arranged in intersecting rows and columns to form a typical crossword matrix.
In a preferred embodiment, the indicating means reveals the letter assigned to a cell after a nomination for that cell has been made, thereby indicating whether the letter nominated for the cell is correct or not.
In a preferred embodiment, the apparatus includes means for recording a letter or letters nominated for a cell or cells by different players. Preferably the recording means can record the letters nominated by different players in such a manner that the letters nominated by one player can be distinguished from the letters nominated by another. For example, the apparatus may include different coloured markers for the players to record their nominated letters.
The apparatus can be used in a game played between two or more players. For example, in one method of playing a two player game, the first player attempts to solve a word for a given series of cells. The player selects a cell in the series; and a clue (or clues if the cell is a member of more than one series) for solving the word of the series is given. The player then nominates a letter for the selected cell. The indicating means indicates whether the letter nominated for that cell is correct and if the letter is correct, the player is rewarded. For example, the player may be allotted a certain number of points and/or be permitted another turn. If the nomination for the selected cell is incorrect, the player may suffer a penalty such as loss of his turn to the second player. After each turn the indicating means reveals whether a nomination for a cell was correct or not, thereby providing immediate feedback to the players.
It is possible for two people to play a standard crossword puzzle of the type that appears in a newspaper where solutions for the crossword appear in a separate and identical matrix. For example, each player could take it in turn to write a word (or words) of the crossword until the crossword was completed. The players' answers could then be compared with the solution for the crossword. However, it will be apparent from the description above of the apparatus of this invention, that this apparatus provides numerous advantages over the arrangement appearing in a newspaper which does not include an indicating means that is capable of functioning in the manner as described above. For example, when using the apparatus of this invention, each player's turn can be terminated when a player incorrectly nominates a letter for a cell as the indicating means can provide immediate feedback to the players. Thus the incorrect nomination of a letter for a cell cannot mislead subsequent plays, as it would in the aforementioned game with a standard crossword puzzle of the type that appears in a newspaper.
The apparatus of the present invention may be in a non-electronic format. For example, the plurality or arrangement of cells may appear in printed form on a sheet, for example on a board or on paper. In this embodiment, the letters assigned to each cell are printed in each cell. A cover means is located over each of the cells and is configured so that the cover means located over one cell is removable without disturbing the cover means located over another cell (thus the cover means constitutes the indicating means). In a further preferred embodiment the cover means is a single sheet where a portion of the cover over one cell can be removed without disturbing a portion of the cover over another cell. In a further preferred embodiment the cover is a sheet of material such as paper having an adhesive applied to one surface to permit it to adhere to the printed cells. The cover may be scored to allow one section of the cover to be removed without disturbing an adjacent portion. The adhesive is of an appropriate type to permit this.
To play a crossword game using this apparatus, a player selects a cell of a series and is given a clue (or clues if the cell is a member of more than one series) for that series. The player then nominates a letter for a selected cell and removes the cover located over the cell to reveal whether the letter nominated for the cell matches the letter assigned to the cell.
A letter can be nominated by simply calling it out. Alternatively, it can be recorded by writing it down, each player having a different coloured marker to distinguish between letters nominated by different players. A letter could be directly written on the cover located over a cell. Alternatively, a matching printed arrangement of cells may be provided and each player's nomination can be written on this matching printed arrangement.
In an alternative embodiment, the arrangement of cells appears on a board. The apparatus includes a plurality of square tiles with a letter appearing on one side of each tile and the other side blank. Each tile covers a cell. At the commencement of a game, the letter on each tile matches the assigned letter of the cell it covers. The tiles are placed with their letter side facing away from the players. Clues in written form are provided to the players. Each player has a different coloured marker and can mark a cell with their nominated letter. A tile marked in this way can be turned over independently of other tiles to reveal whether the letter nominated for that cell is correct or incorrect. If incorrect, the answer is given. It can be seen that in this manner, the answer for a single cell can be revealed without revealing the answers to cells that have not been selected. Minor variations of such an embodiment could enable the apparatus to be used in a situation where the players are contestants in a TV game show.
In a variation of the apparatus, a numeric value (or score) is associated with each cell. When playing a game using this apparatus, a player may be awarded the score fo
Bachand William R.
Collins Dolores R.
Crossout Pty, Ltd.
Squire, Sanders & Dempsey LLP.
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