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4 Mar 2009

How "Boggle" and "Word Factory" Came About

Word game players are all aware that "Boggle" 4x4 grid lettered dice is the origin of the "Word Factory" 5x5 grid version. Unfortunately, there is no clear record of the patented made in the Philippines as I update this article somehow someone deleted the information through Wikipedia via Boggle history. Instead, Wikidpedia re-written it "no version of Boggle offering a 5×5 grid was marketed outside Europe for an extended period until recently[when?]". Kabayan speak up!

Wikipedia records "Boggle is a word game designed by Alan Turoff in 1972 and trademarked by Parker Brothers and Hasbro. The game is played using a 4x4 grid of lettered dice, in which players attempt to find words in sequences of adjacent letters."

In the Philippines, a similar game which was first distributed in 1978 and is still in circulation up to the present is the game "Word Factory." The game was first patented in the Philippines, and is currently being manufactured and distributed to selected retailers by the Philippines-based game manufacturer, 13 P.M. Enterprises. Word Factory was a variation on the version of Boggle as it existed in 1978, using a 5x5 grid instead of a 4x4 one, and using plastic dice instead of wooden ones. At present, the game is being marketed to other countries, targeting mostly migrant Filipino families.

In a nutshell, 1978 when "Word Factory" game was first distributed in the Philippines not long after the "Boggle" game relaunched and redesigned their marketing sell in 1976 since its birth in 1972. However, the "Word Factory" as one of the Boggle game variants has no record yet on Wikipedia as we speak.


Which game word do you like to play guys offline?

I first came to know about and play the "Word Factory" when I was in high school 1990's until it really worn out with my family and friends. It was a gift by our parents when we were bored playing scrabble when no internet and no loads of toys unlike kids in the Western world. We played it until worn out by putting tape over it/rewrite the letter on the dices when we get to college. Mind you the three-minute timer still working, enough timer for cooking eggs! It did last long and it's worth a brain exercise!

Word Factory is better for me because it has 5x5 grid dices and it is still flexible to play with 3-4 letter word for kids and adult. At long last, I bought my own new one "Word Factory" from the Philippines for about P349.75 worth (AU$10.00 depending on the rate conversion). Word Factory can have 2-6 players ages 7 to 77 or even older as far as the brain can work. Why not 90 year old?



Can you form any word below starting 4 letter word?
1. hello
2. pies
3. tries
4. cries
you may continue by putting on the comments below for a try.





Source:
1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boggle
2. 13 P.M. Enterprises, Quezon City Philippines
3. A Beginners Guide to Boggle (Volume 1) By Rutha Turnquist
4. Me, myself, the Gen X consumer




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2 comments:

  1. price, priced, code,rice, ride, pyre, pier, grid, cold, color, roll, rolled, heed, heel,held, sire, code. I need more information on boggles history... thanks... helped alot

    ReplyDelete
  2. great to see you playing the Word Factory down here! Thanks for leaving your comment. Here are some links if you want more information about the "Boggle":

    http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/237501/boggle_a_brief_history_of_a_word_game.html

    http://www.gamechronicles.com/reviews/360/xblahfgnboggle/boggle.htm

    ReplyDelete