Coverage of the 2005 American International Toy Fair
In a recap of the 2005 American International Toy Fair, television station WCBS in New York makes this inane claim: "Board games are fast becoming a thing of the past."
That statement is utter poppycock. The writer, Brett Larson, is way off base.
He builds his conclusion on the premise that board games are being replaced by DVD games: "Snap TV is hoping to make your DVD player the centerpiece of your next board game, and your remote the dice."
It's true that there are many more DVD games today than there were just last year, but traditional board games and card games still dominated the Toy Fair landscape. (And that presumes that you accept Mr. Larson's implied premise that DVD games are not board games. For argument's sake, I'll grant it to him. But it's a premise which I do not accept.)
In addition to the dedicated Game Zone, game publishers were sprinkled throughout the mammoth Javits Convention Center and in off-site showrooms.
Buyers and journalists walking from booth to booth saw companies like Hasbro, Out of the Box, Patch Products, Mattel, R&R Games, Rio Grande Games, Mayfair Games, Gamewright, Winning Moves, Screenlife, Endless Games, Days of Wonder, Educational Insights, University Games...
the list goes on and on.
In addition to the better-known publishers, dozens of independent game companies -- many returning this year with their second, third or fourth games -- also filled the halls.
In fact, several observers I spoke to commented that they believed games were by far the best-represented category at the show.
No, board games are most assuredly not "becoming a thing of the past."
