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Jenga

Jengais agame of physical skillcreated by Britishboard gamedesigner and authorLeslie Scottand marketed byHasbro.The name comes from theSwahiliword "kujenga"which means 'to build or construct'.[1] Players take turns removing one block at a time from a tower constructed of 54 blocks. Each block removed is then placed on top of the tower, creating a progressively more unstable structure. The game ends when the tower falls over.

Jenga
DesignersLeslie Scott
Publication1983;42 years ago(1983)
Players1 or more
Setup time< 2 minutes
Playing timeUsually 5–15 minutes
ChanceNone
Age range6 and up
SkillsManual dexterity,eye–hand coordination,precision, and strategy
Websitejenga.com

Rules

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AJengatower

Jengais played with 54 wooden blocks. Each block is three times as long as it is wide, and one fifth as thick as its length – 1.5 cm × 2.5 cm × 7.5 cm (0.59 in × 0.98 in × 2.95 in). Blocks have small, random variations from these dimensions so as to create imperfections in the stacking process and make the game more challenging.[2]To begin the game, the blocks are stacked into a solid rectangular tower of 18 layers, with three blocks per layer. The blocks within each layer are oriented in the same direction, with their long sides touching, and areperpendicularto the ones in the layer immediately below. A plastic tray provided with the game can be used to assist in setup.

Starting with the one who built the tower, players take turns removing one block from any level below the highest completed one and placing it horizontally atop the tower, perpendicular to any blocks on which it is to rest. Each player may use only one hand to touch the tower or move a block at any given time, but may switch hands whenever desired. Once a level contains three blocks, it is complete and may not have any more blocks added to it. A block may be touched or nudged to determine whether it is loose enough to remove without disturbing the rest of the tower, but it must be returned to its original position if the player decides to move a different one. A turn ends when the next player in sequence touches the tower or when 10 seconds have elapsed since the placement of a block, whichever occurs first.

AJengatower collapses.

The game ends when any portion of the tower collapses, caused by either the removal of a block or its new placement. The last player to complete a turn before the collapse is the winner.

Origins

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Jengawas created by Leslie Scott,[3]the co-founder ofOxford Games Ltd,based on a game that evolved within her family in the early 1970s using children's wooden building blocks[4]the family purchased from a sawmill inTakoradi,Ghana. The nameJengais derived fromkujenga,aSwahiliword which means "to build".[4]ABritish national,Scott was born inTanganyika,nowTanzania,where she was raised speaking English and Swahili, before moving to live in Ghana, West Africa. Scott launched the game she named and trademarked as "Jenga" at the London Toy Fair in January 1983[5]and sold it through her own company, Leslie Scott Associates. The blocks of the first sets ofJengawere manufactured for Scott by theCamphill Village TrustinBotton,Yorkshire. TheV&A Museum of Childhoodhas exhibited one of the original sets ofJengasince 1982.[6]

In 1984, Robert Grebler, an entrepreneur from California who was the brother of a close friend of Scott, contacted her and expressed interest in importing and distributingJengain Canada. In April 1985, Grebler acquired from Scott the exclusive rights toJengafor the United States and Canada, and then in October of that year, Scott assigned the worldwide rights inJengato Grebler,[7]which he in turn assigned to Pokonobe Associates. Convinced ofJenga's potential, Grebler had invited two cousins to form Pokonobe Associates with him in 1985 to increase distribution ofJenga.[8]Pokonobe then licensed Irwin Toy to sellJengain Canada and to be master licensee worldwide. Irwin Toy licensedJengato Schaper in the United States, and when that company was bought by Hasbro,Jengawas launched under the Milton Bradley banner in 1987.[9]Eventually, Hasbro became licensee in most countries around the world.

By 2019, according to Pokonobe Associates, owners of theJengabrand, over 80 millionJengagames, equivalent to more than 4.3 billionJengablocks, had been sold worldwide.[10]On November 5, 2020,Jengawas inducted into the National Toy Hall of Fame.[11]

Tallest tower

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The packaging copy of one edition of theJengagame claims that Robert Grebler may have built the tallestJengatower ever at 402⁄3levels. Grebler built the tower in 1985 while playing with an originalJengaset produced by Leslie Scott in the early 1980s.[12]

Official variants

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Jenga Truth or Daretower

Throw 'n Go Jengais a variant originally marketed by Hasbro. It consists of blocks that are in various colors plus a six-sided die. It is marketed by Art's Ideas.

JengaTruth or Darewas a variation ofJengaalso marketed by Hasbro. This version looked like regularJengaexcept there were three colors of blocks instead of just the natural color ofJenga.

Jenga Xtremeusedparallelogram-shaped blocks that could create some interesting leaning towers.

Casino Jenga: Las Vegas Editionemployedroulette-style game play, featuring a felt game board, betting chips, and additional rules.

In addition, there have been a number of collector editionJengagames, featuring the colors and logos of theBoston Red Sox,Las Vegas Raiders,New York Yankees,andJohn Deere,among others.Hello KittyJenga,TransformersJenga,TarzanJenga,Tim Burton'sThe Nightmare Before ChristmasJenga,Donkey KongJenga,Bob's BurgersJenga,National Parks Jenga,Jenga Ocean,The Walking DeadJenga,Super MarioJenga,FortniteJenga,GodzillaJenga,Rick and MortyJenga,OnyxJenga,andHarry PotterJengaare some of the licensed variations ofJenga.

Jenga XXLandJenga Giantare licensed giantJengagames manufactured and distributed by Art's Ideas. There areJenga Giantvariations which can reach 5 feet (150 cm) or higher in play, with very similar rules.[13]Jenga XXLstarts at over 4 feet (1.2 m) high and can reach 8 feet (2.4 m) or higher in play. Rules are the same as in classicJenga,except that players may use two hands to move the eighteen-inch-long blocks.[14]

Jenga Pass Challengeincludes a handheld platform that the game is played on. Players remove a block while holding the platform, then pass the platform to the next player. This variant includes only half the number of blocks (27), which means the tower starts at 9 levels high instead of 18.

See also

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References

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Citations

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  1. ^Ricketts, Nicolas (2020-11-05)."Block by Block: Leslie Scott's Jenga Game (or, in Swahili, Zuia kwa kuzuia: Mchezo wa Jenga wa Leslie Scott)".The Strong National Museum of Play.Retrieved2023-12-05.
  2. ^Mike Danforth & Ian Chillag (August 14, 2015)."Sheep, Spiders, and Jenga".How To Do Everything(Podcast).NPR.RetrievedMarch 8,2023.
  3. ^Amazing Origins of Timeless Toys,244
  4. ^ab"Strong National Museum of Play".Strongmuseum.org. 2009-01-20. Archived fromthe originalon 2011-08-07.Retrieved2010-05-19.
  5. ^About Jenga: The Remarkable Business of Creating a Game that Became a Household Name. Leslie Scott (Greenleaf Book GroupPress)[1]
  6. ^"A personal view from Leslie Scott, the inventor of Jenga | Victoria and Albert Museum".Vam.ac.uk. Archived fromthe originalon 2012-03-06.Retrieved2012-02-06.
  7. ^About Jenga, 108
  8. ^Amazing Origins of Timeless Toys,247
  9. ^Amazing Origins of Timeless Toys,248
  10. ^"Games offer benefits beyond the obvious one: fun".Orange County Register.2019-05-20.Retrieved2022-06-25.
  11. ^"2020 National Toy Hall of Fame Inductees Announced".2 November 2020.
  12. ^Marketing copy on inside lid of the 2008Vintage Game Collectionedition of Jenga marketed by Hasbro
  13. ^"Get To Know The Jenga® GIANT™ Game Rules".Jenga GIANT official website.Retrieved2019-09-26.
  14. ^"Jenga".Jenga.us.com.Retrieved2012-02-06.

Further reading

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