The original Trivial Pursuit was created by two friends in Montreal in 1979. They were arguing over who was the best board game player and to try and settle this they devised there own. They hooked up with two others and almost sold there underwear to get the money to finance it. They even sold shares to friends and family. They sold 1100 in Canada before taking it to america were they did even worse. Eventually in 1982 it was an overnight success! In 1984 alone it sold over 20 million games. It is now available in 28 countries in 18 different languages.
Throughout the history of the game they have tried various different variations. There is the original Genus edition, Kids editions, Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, 80's, 90's and even a Post War Baby Boom
edition. I think they are on the 6th Genus now and this 20th Anniversay is the latest.
**What's Do You Get**
The box is in a variety of metalic colours with the Trivial Pursuits logo and beneath it is a large 20. The 0 is a piece of pie.
Once inside you get the following -
1 Gameboard - this is again a bit more spangly than the original in metalicy colours and lots of new symbols of the latest cars, mobiles etc. It is definitely brighter and has a nice bright appearance.
300 question and answer cards - in the same format as any other game
36 coloured wedges - pieces of pie to the rest of us
1 Die - all spangly and see through, and annoying to find on the board if your not playing in good light
**How Do You Play**
I you are familiar with the original game then it is the same, if not then this is a quick run down. A counter for each player/team is placed in the centre of the board. Then the players take it in turn to throw the die. When you land on a question segment you get asked a question of this category and if you are correct then you have another go.
To obtain a piece of pie then you have to land on the six larger wedges around the edge of the board, one for each category. Once you land on the wedge then you get asked a question as usual and this time if you get it right you get a piece of pie and get to go again.
So you continue in this vain until one player has filled his counter and then he heads back to the middle. When you eventually land here(it always seems to take ages to land on it!) then the members of the opposite time choose a category for you to answer(usually the one you have performed worst on throughout the game). If you answer this correct you win.
**So What Makes This One Different** Firstly the categories are different -
Blue - Globel View
Similar to the original geography but with everything from culture through to space exploration thrown in. eg Which Scandinavian country calls itself 'mind expanding' in its holiday adverts? Norway
Pink - Sound and Screen
Again this is similar to the old entertainment and includes television, music and film. eg Which member of the Rolling Stones is a respected portrait artist? Ronnie Wood
Yellow - News
So originally this would have been History but now they have added memorable headlines to the history eg Who described Saddam Hussein as : The guy who tried to kill my dad? George W Bush
Brown - The Written Word
This was probably everyones most hated category as it was literature, but now it the influence of writing which covers everything from books, mags and even the internet eg Which comedian and writer, who was born in the room where Private Eye was founded, died in 1997? Willie Rushton
Green - Innovations
Was science and nature and basically it is again with a new name eg What was the 1995 5-series the first BMW range to be fitted with as standard? A radio
Orange - Game Time
Originally Sports and Leisure and it has been expanded so that computer games etc can be involved eg who won the first FA Cup Final played under a roof? Arsenal 2003
**So What Else Does It Have?**
Well to be honest not much really. They suggest a short version of the game in that you can get a piece of pie on any space and thus none of the backwards and forwards to try and land.
**The Cost**
I bought it from argos for £25 and i have seen it all over since then from £20 through to as high as £35 in a specialist games shop.
**My Opinion**
We are friends with another couple and when we get together we are games nuts(we are normal at all other times). So we like to have a go at something different. I had been planning on getting this for a while and when i did we played it that night. To be honest it was a little disappointing. It is a more funky looking board game and we liked the more up to date categories but really other than that it really isn't any better than the original.
The format of course is good and it works but i think we expected more. I have also noticed that you seem to come across the same questions reasonably quickly. It comes with three packs of 100 cards and on the first three games this was fine as we opened a new pack of cards. After this we found that we were coming across the same questions quite quickly.
Now i have a theory on this, which may not be right, but it is what i think. Some categories are either easier or more popular than others and due to this they are asked more friequently. We have found this with with the Pink, Sound and Screen and the Orange, Game Time.
It is still a good game, but i am not sure whether i expected too much or it just isn't different enough. We still play it occasionally but it will never really be a first choice.
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I know what you mean about the questions coming around quick. I wonder if they sell extra question cards?
AnitaM 10.08.2005 11:14
I like this version because I actually have half a chance of knowing the answers since the questions are all about things that have happened in the last 20 years. I do agree that there aren't enough questions though and you do end up repeating them fairly quickly.
chattell 02.07.2005 08:37
I have the original but always find it hard to get anyone to play with me. AAGGHHH. Di
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