I'm doing things a little differently this year. Because of the awesome responses to my Halloween Web interview series, I didn't get to post as much Halloween stuff as I wanted to in October. So instead of taking a Jack Skellington approach, I'll be mainly taking Creepmas to post about Halloween!
To kick things off, here's the Ooky Spooky card game published in England in 1982.
Despite the name, it does not have anything to do with the Addams Family.
Despite the name, it does not have anything to do with the Addams Family.
The rules for this kids game are pretty simple. The goal is to have the most Ooky Spooky (ghost) cards at the end of the game. The game ends when one player is out of cards or all the Ooky Spookies have been captured. Game play consists of players playing one or two cards face down and announcing what they're supposed to be (ex: three witches and two spiders makes five). The following players play one or two cards while trying to beat the last player's total. Once 10 is reached, it starts over again at one.
Because the cards are played face down there is a bluffing element to the game. If you think someone is bluffing or that they may be trying to play a ghost, you challenge them by saying "Ooky Spooky" and check their cards. If the challenger is correct, they take all the Ooky Spooky cards from the play pile and place them in front of them. If an Ooky Spooky was played, the challenger also gets that one. The bluffer picks up all the cards from the play pile. If the challenger was wrong, they pick up all the cards in the play pile instead.
I have to admit, I was a little disappointed in the rules after reading them. But what really grabbed my attention in the Ebay listing was the artwork on the cards. As you can see, they're very much Halloween with witches, black cats, spiders, and of course Ooky Spooky ghosts. I'll likely never play this game but I am glad to have picked it up just for the cards.
There was a newer version released in 2002 that has slightly different rules (which sound a little more fun) and similar cards.
There was a newer version released in 2002 that has slightly different rules (which sound a little more fun) and similar cards.
Visit Creepmas.com for a complete list of participating blogs!
Am loving the art on these too!
ReplyDeleteYeah it is a pretty different style!
DeleteIt's really worth playing, it was one of my favourites when I were a kid... The bluffing is superb, and it's always a challenge to try and pass off a few Ooky Spooky cards without anyone noticing (you need a good poker face though). The older set are better because a) The cards are less like playing cards so it's really noticeable if you're not putting down the correct amount of cards and b) I'm biased, it's what I grew up with and c) The Ooky Spooky illustrations are less friendly on the older set and a bit more spooky. Plus on one Ooky card there's a pic of him behind a bin (maybe it's a haunted bin).
ReplyDeleteI don't think I get many international responses, so thanks for dropping by!
Delete