Get your game face on! Toy Insider Senior Editor Marissa DiBartolo stopped by Western Mass News in Springfield to talk about the best games to play on family game night. For more on the items featured in this segment, check out the product notes below, and for our complete rundown of the best gifts for the holidays, check out our complete holiday gift guide.


ELMO’S WORLD HIDE AND SEEK (IDENTITY GAMES USA)

  • Elmo wants to play hide and seek. Kids look at the pictures very closely and try to find Elmo.
  • Elmo is hiding somewhere around the house – but won’t be gone for long! Based on a timeless play pattern, Elmo “Hide & Seek” is a refreshing update to the beloved classic and features a sturdy character that chirps out little hints when hidden.
  • One player or parent hides Elmo, while the others use the enclosed clue cards to find him. A cheerful “I am here, I am here!” helps guide the players to the secret hiding place.
  • Age: 1+
  • MSRP: $19.99
  • Available: Amazon

 


ULTRA DASH (PLAYMONSTER)

  • Ultra Dash is a fast-paced action game that uses lights and targets to encourage children to test their speed, skills, and teamwork.
  • Kids race to match the color of the flashing light on their tagger to the color of the targets. Colors flash randomly and players can change their target course, so it’s a different game each time.
  • Designed for one or more players or teams.
  • Age: 6+
  • MSRP: $19.99
  • Available: Target, Toys “R” Us, Walmart

BALLOON BOT BATTLE (KD GAMES)

  • Kids shouldn’t let their balloon bot pop in Balloon Bot Battle. Two players go head-to-head trying to pop the other player’s balloon before their own balloon is popped.
  • When the balloons are outfitted with the punching arms, kids can move the levers back and forth to punch their opponent’s balloon. When one balloon pops, the game is over.
  • Age: 8+
  • MSRP: $19.99
  • Available: Toys “R” Us

PLINGPONG (BUFFALO GAMES)

  • Pling Pong is a fast paced game of skill, luck, and strategy.
  • Players bounce balls into their opponents’ cups to eliminate them from play – but everyone must avoid the black cup.
  • This game includes fun ricochet action as balls bounce every-which-way with a tiered design. Sink shots to eliminate opponents and the last player with cups on the boards wins.
  • Play the standard four-person game or a variation such as two-player, three-player, eight-player, Random Re-rack, Speed Round, or High Stack.
  • Ages: 7+
  • MSRP: $29.99
  • Available: Target

EXIT: THE GAME (THAMES & KOSMOS)

  • The hit Escape-Room concept for home use. Players must solve a series of riddles and puzzles to escape from a room. Each correct solution brings players to another riddle to test how fast they can escape the room.
  • This is a great party game for up to six players.
  • Available now in three versions: Pharaoh’s Tomb, Secret Lab, and Abandoned Cabin.
  • Age: 12+
  • MSRP: $14.95
  • Available: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Toys “R” Us

WHO’S THE DUDE? (IDENTITY GAMES USA)

  • Players can play charades with “The Dude,” a life size inflatable man-doll, while the other players try to guess within the time limit what you and the Dude are doing.
  • Using the charade cards, player act out scenes from a movie, a sport, or a profession.
  • The game includes 440 charade cards, 50 score sheets and different ways to play.
  • Age: 16+
  • MSRP: $24.99
  • Available: Target

About the author

Bill Reese

Bill Reese

Bill Reese is Business Operations Manager at Adventure Media & Events, where he's worked since 2014. A former editor at Playbill and graduate of SUNY–Purchase, he spends most weekends rooting for the New York Red Bulls pro soccer team and making subway systems out of Brio trains with his little boy Jonah.

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