[Closed] Toys and games from your childhood that don't exist now

Crossbows & catapults, mentioned on stw a while ago and brought back fab memories!

I have an "escape from Colditz" board game still in a cupboard from my childhood. I remember playing it a lot back in the 70s

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I had ghost castle. It was ace!

Diver Dan bath toy. I think it was French and called jo jo le plongeur

Does anyone remember the name of that Harrier Jump Jet toy - you had a base which you put on the floor then a line going up the stairs and the plane would go up, turn around and come back down and you had to land it on the 'Carrier' base? I can't find it online anywhere.

^^
Evel Knievel,

Could anyone ever get that bike to go for more than a few yards before it just feel on its side! ?

One of those things were the advert promised so much that the toy didn't deliver.lol

Happy memories though.

I remember it (I had forgotten completely 'til you mentioned it) But can't remember its name. I think it was my older brother who had that.

Airfix super flight deck?

johndoh - Member
Does anyone remember the name of that Harrier Jump Jet toy - you had a base which you put on the floor then a line going up the stairs and the plane would go up, turn around and come back down and you had to land it on the 'Carrier' base? I can't find it online anywhere.

I know the toy but thought it a Phantom? Not a Harrier?

Can't remember the name of the toy though. 🙁

Flight deck. A phantom on a string, guided by a joystick to land on a plastic deck. The later Super Flight Deck had a catapult launcher.

Johnny Astro - got one of these for Christmas when I was 8 or 9, had really really wanted one, but far too difficult for a young kid to master.

I had a board game which was like Indiana Jones and you went through a temple dodging traps before you get to a gold statue with 6 slots in it and you have to put a dagger into the slots in the hope of knocking the red jewel out. I have tried googling it to find its name but no success. I suspect my parents have still got it in the loft!

johndoh - Member

I was listening to some radio station last night and they were discussing board games and for some reason a 40+ year old flashback came into my head - 'Haunted House' (as I recall it being called) - but available second hand from Amazon as Ghost Castle - I assume a US version.

It was definitely called Ghost Castle in the UK (at least at some point in the 1980s).

Flightdeck was brilliant. Replace the phantom with an old airfix plane model stuffed full with French bangers and cotton wool. Light the cotton wool, launch from bedroom window whilst brother had to and it on the flightdeck on the lawn before it blew to pieces!!! Once land RLF before it blows up!!!! Happy Days 🙂

It was definitely Haunted House in the 70s, complete with "Ghoulish Gertie drops it down the chimney" ball bearing of doom.

Torpedo run, awesome game, lost all the torpedos after about 2 weeks.
Great potential for losing an eye.

Yeah that's it - Super Flight Deck 🙂

And the cars that you drove into each other to smash to pieces then put back together? Something like Supercar Smash 'ems?

Edit: Smash up Derby

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Brings back memories of my dear old dad.

Dragster, by MB.

I've still got this at home. Might 'drag' it out the cupboard (see what I did there), and have a couple of games with Mrs Beagleboy tonight.

Hmmm... after re-reading that, maybe I should clarify what Dragster actually was.

It was definitely Haunted House in the 70s, complete with "Ghoulish Gertie drops it down the chimney" ball bearing of doom.

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Slightly ot as you can obviously still make them but what kid would now?

No idea who showed me how to make them but I spent many happy hours trying to get them over ever more fiendish little bumps in the dirt etc.

I was a huge fan of Smash-Up Derby, and can still sing along with the ridiculous advert that haunted my TV when I was a kid:

We used play electronic generals, a bit chess like but simpler and with an electronic brain

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And a track and filed/Olympics game where you flung the discus with a tiny elastic band

Toys were mostly Lego and Meccano. Are they still going?

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@hols2 still available in Lyme Regis last time I was there .

Spud gun.

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Mate of my son brought Escape from Colditz round when he visited, it was ace!
Just as I recall.
Appell, Appell!

Also Mine a Million, which was some SE Asia / central america trading game where you mined, then shipped, rare gemstones IIRC. Happy days.

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I have an "escape from Colditz" board game still in a cupboard from my childhood.

You can still get it (republished). There are copies in my local Waterstones.

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Loved this game circa 1980.

Spud gun.

Dragster, by MB.

I've still got this at home.

Me too!

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Used to love this game, real strategy and intelligence to it.

Loved Generals. Found mine last year at my mums, still in the box and electronic brain and sound still working. So simple but so tense when playing! Nee Nar Nur Nee Nar Nur Nurrr

tjagain - Member

I have an "escape from Colditz" board game still in a cupboard from my childhood. I remember playing it a lot back in the 70s

It's been re-released, I was pretty tempted to pick it up, just because I don't think we ever understood the rules. DO OR DIE!

Chutes Away

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TCR

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I lusted after these but never got them. The spoilt kid at school did however, and after an hour or two of playing with them realised that they were both a bit crap.

I had absolutely 100% completely forgotten about Ghost Castle until i saw that pic

How about Game of Life? Can't remember much about it apart from their being a spiny thing and buildings and bits of landscape you stuck to the board and funny little pegs (that you'd lose) and little cars. The best thing about the game was it came with toy money in much larger denominations that you got in Monopoly. I just played with the money.

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Can't believe Pop Up Pirate is still a thing

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Although the google image search was entertaining

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I had chutes away, or one of my grandparents did. My mum brought up a couple of my old board games the other week, Coppit and Sneaky Pete. Our 9yo loves Sneaky Pete. Before Christmas I remembered Kick Off which I played a lot, certainly more than Subuteo.

I lusted after these but never got them. The spoilt kid at school did however, and after an hour or two of playing with them realised that they were both a bit crap.

I could have typed those exact words myself. I can't divorce the memory of TCR from luxurious deep pile carpet and the disappoint of pretty much being a spectator.

Hoover fodder

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IMHO Mastermind is a great game. I play the app on my phone occasionally.

IMHO Mastermind is a great game. I

yeah. But the plastic smelled funny

I'd absolutely LOVE to play Crossfire again.
My parent's wouldn't let me have it (guns), but I played it in the shop for a few minutes and was absolutely hooked!

I've just had a quick look to see if I can find the gun design so that I could 3D print a set, but no luck 🙁
Go for about £50-70 on ebay

So many blasts from the past have awakened memories. (Crossfire trigger-blisters, owch)

No-one for Shoot-A-Spook?

Lawn Darts!

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I'd absolutely LOVE to play Crossfire again.

I removed the target ball from it's plastic housing and stuck it up one of my nostrils. It got stuck 😀

Proper Action Man FTW!

I had the Evel Knievel thing up there ^^^ and also TCR 🙂

This was good, but took too long to wind the tops up between battles.

All the games with cars and planes looked soooo snazzy on tv and were often soooo kak in real life 🙁

I had the cheap version of Scalectrix, which was an oval of track which had a spring shaped wire running in grooves in th track. You had to glue pins under your cars to hook them on. Rubbish!

Tin Can Alley. My neighbour, Michael Ritchie, had it. He was a weapons grade walloper. One time, he hit me over the head with a shoe so I wrestled him to the ground and bit him in the back. Funny how I haven't thought about that for years until now. 😆

Tank Command. I got it as a pressie when I broke my arm.

Race and Chase - it was great but was a bit temperamental.

Test match - kid of like Subbuteo for cricket fans.

Buckaroo.

Texas Pete.

(Sigh) Happy days eh!

Sanny

IMHO Mastermind is a great game.

I've still got mine, same box as in that pic.

I don't think it qualifies for this thread though as I'm 99% sure you can still buy it.

Proper Action Man FTW!

Pre eagal-eyes and plastic pants. And whats with having a belt to hold up your undies?

With the rotted off fingers - or even the peg-like stumps when the whole hand had rotted off.

Mastermind. Great game.

Could never understand why the box had a Bond Villain and his assassin on it though.

Back to the OP. Atari. I wanted an Atari. I never got an Atari.

I had the Evil Knievel bike and his truck. Evil often used to go on road trip with barbie in both trucks, then jump his bike through the lift up sides of barbies truck. 😆

She was a fair bit taller then him though so got a bit intimidated and just skidded down the road on his side in a cloud of dust.

Also had a TCR set which was very good but a pain in the backside to set up.

One of my favourite although wasn't really a game, more just a toy.

TCR was OK if the cars were evenly matched. If you had one that was quicker than the other it was hopeless. Scalextric is where it's at. I have lots of Scalextric.

Still got a original Mastermind, hours spent wasted on my fav Astrowars

Loved/Hated Kerplunk! As for Rebound...oh man that brings back memories.

Re cheap copies of Scalextric.
I had the Matchbox version, and it was rubbish. The main selling point was that you could use your existing Matchbox cars. You fixed a plastic pin on the underneath, which engaged in a huge spring that was threaded around the track. A motor which a big gear wheel engaged with the spring. It just about worked.
This video shows how bad it was:

That's the one I had. Nightmare.

Matchbox did some nice "car carrying cases" and stuff though. Always wished I had one but never did 🙁

No mention of HeroQuest yet. Pretty much an distilled Warhammer but good enough that even my sister played it.

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Anyone else with this one? I have vague memories of playing it.

We had the Jim'll Fix It game! 😯

Mastermind I always expected it to be associated with the TV show, but was just a thing with pegs that I never really understood and got bored with.

I'd have said cap guns must be long gone now, but surprised you can still get them.

Still got this one

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Pretty sure I’ve still got my Big Track in the folks loft. Loved that!

Matchbox did some nice "car carrying cases"

I've got one, full of cars.

I remember this being way more awesome than it looks now.
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OMG, Rebound! Thanks for posting selkirkbear. You’ve made my evening!

I still have a galaxy invader 1000 too. Still just about works too!

Crossfire
Rebound

Great seeing them again 🙂

Would love to see a robust Buckeroo in say stainless steel.

Great game. Always broke 🙁

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… and I loved my one of these:

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Loads of things on here that brought back great memories. I'll throw another couple into the mix.

Subbuteo rugby. Okay, nowhere near as good as the footie version but still a great game.

Campaign. Brilliant Napoleonic strategy board game.

I also had something very similar to this - you move the cardboad wheel and if you're unlucky, your player falls down an 'ole. Can't remember it's name. I thought it was Haunted House but maybe not.

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I thought Kensington was a good game too.

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Oh to have been a rich kid like Stoner... 😥

I had one of these wind up ones for Yorkshire children.

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And that penguins walking up some stairs thing. What was that all about?

EDIT - You can still buy that!