Modern Classic Toys
Remember playing with your red framed, black and grey Etch A Sketch as a kid? Back then it was pretty awesome. But now toys are becoming even more exciting. The Ohio Art Company is beginning to replace Etch A Sketch's familiar red rectangle case with Nickelodeon's most popular cartoon characters. The goal is that this "update" will make the iconic baby boomer toy more appealing to kids and young mothers. But this is not the only toy on the shelves being changed.
Monopoly is out with a new version that replaces the Atlantic City Boardwalk with Times Square. And just a few years ago, Barbie ditched her longtime beau Ken.
"Our challenge is to continue to make Etch a Sketch exciting for the next generation of kids," said Martin Killgallon, marketing director for Bryan-based Ohio Art. This month SpongeBob and Dora the Explorer versions of Etch A Sketch will hit the shelves. A picture of the new look can be found at http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15628914/. The new editions include screen overlays with puzzles and mazes, which differ from the plain original verison.
However, there are still a handful of classic toys that remain unchanged such as the Wiffle Ball and the game "Operation". But with the new tastes of society, I'm sure that even more advances and improvements will be made to original verisons of toys and games.
2 comments:
Many classic games have taken a twenty-first century spin. Clue, candyland, twister, and even basic trivia games have been modernized through dvd versions. I love the classic family board games such as monopoly, yahtzee, and risk. There are even computer software versions of your favorite games that you can play online. Classic board games will never die because there will always be diehard fans and families that will take time out of their busy schedules to play family games. Board games allow for the whole family to take an hour or two to relax and spend quality time with each other.
Modernizing classic games is a wise marketing decision today where "family time" is virtually disappearing in most homes. By giving old games new twists, kids in a world where video games rule may take a new interest in games that cause them to think a little, like Monopoly, and possibly even--Gasp--spend some time with their families. The decision to modernize the games will, in turn, also probably increase sales for the companies who were beginning to have trouble selling the same classic versions they had had on the shelves for decades.
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