1930s Games: Best Board, Card And Video Games

Monopoly arrives, Scrabble is invented, and pinball gets its first coin slot.

Below: the board games of the 1930s, the card games people played, the video and arcade games of the era, and how games actually got played at home.

Handy for a themed party, a quiz round, a reminiscence session or working out what someone played growing up.

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Shop greetings cards Look back to 1930 Look back to 1931 Look back to 1932

Cards, prints and badges, made by us

Funny and warm greeting cards, art prints and pin badges, printed in the UK. We do not sell games - this guide is free to read, print and copy.

Congratulations greeting card for a boss promoted to police inspector, with text Congrats Boss Promotion to Inspector. Congrats, Boss! Promotion to Inspector Card £3.87 Minimalist white greeting card featuring bold 'World's Best Boss' typography in a clean black font. World's Best Boss Greetings Card £3.87 See You Later, Alligator (Funny Good Luck Card) See You Later, Alligator (Funny Good Luck Card) £3.75 'Rock On' hand gesture good luck card, ideal for a new job or congratulations. "Rock On" Good Luck Card £3.87

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Board games of the 1930s

  • Monopoly - US release 1935, and published in Britain by Waddingtons in 1936 with the London streets.
  • Totopoly (1938) and Buccaneer (1938), both Waddingtons, both still findable in lofts.
  • Sorry! (1934), a race game that caught on in Britain quickly.
  • Criss-Crosswords - Alfred Butts invented it in 1938; it became Scrabble in 1948.
  • Jigsaws, cheap in plywood and enormously popular through the Depression.

Card games of the 1930s

  • Contract bridge at its peak, with newspaper columns and radio coverage.
  • Solo whist and nap, the pub and works-club card games.
  • Rummy, arriving from America and easy to teach.
  • Happy Families, Snap and Old Maid for children.
  • Patience, played alone by the fire, with a proper single deck.

Video and arcade games

  • Still no video games, but coin-op arrives properly: Baffle Ball (1931) and Ballyhoo (1932) start the pinball trade.
  • Pin tables spread through British cafes and arcades, flipperless and scored by luck.
  • Bar billiards and shove ha'penny leagues in pubs.
  • Clockwork and tinplate toys - Hornby, Meccano, Dinky (1934) - were the era's tech.

How people played

  • Monopoly turned family game night into a three-hour argument, and has never stopped.
  • Whist drives and beetle drives raised money for everything from church roofs to charabanc trips.
  • Games were an indoor answer to a decade with very little spare money.

Years covered in the 1930s

  • 1930 - The R101 disaster, rising unemployment and Amy Johnson flying to Australia. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-1930
  • 1931 - The National Government, the gold standard abandoned and the means test. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-1931
  • 1932 - Broadcasting House opened, the Empire Service began and hunger marches reached London. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-1932
  • 1933 - Bodyline, the first Loch Ness photograph and the opening of the Tube map. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-1933
  • 1934 - Driving tests announced, Belisha beacons and the Queen Mary being built. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-1934
  • 1935 - The Silver Jubilee, the first driving tests and the 30mph limit. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-1935
  • 1936 - Three kings in one year, the Jarrow March, Butlin's and the first television service. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-1936
  • 1937 - The coronation of George VI, the Hindenburg and the first Billy Butlin summer. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-1937
  • 1938 - Munich, gas masks and the Holidays with Pay Act. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-1938
  • 1939 - Evacuation, the blackout, the declaration of war and television going off air. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-1939
  • That is every 1930s year we have written up so far: 1930 to 1939.

How to use this

  • Themed party: pick one board game and one card game from the list and have both out on the table.
  • Quiz round: read a game and ask for the decade, or read the year and ask for the game.
  • Reminiscence: ask what was under the tree one Christmas. Games get remembered better than clothes.
  • Anyone born in 1930 turns 50 in 1980, 60 in 1990 and 70 in 2000.

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Found your words? Now find the card

Shop greetings cards Look back to 1930 Look back to 1931 Look back to 1932

How to write it so it lands

  • Release years matter: a game can be invented in one decade and only reach British shops in the next.
  • For a party, pick a game people can join halfway through. Nobody wants to start Monopoly at ten o'clock.
  • Boot sales and charity shops still turn up the original boxes, usually with one piece missing.

Where to shop next

Frequently asked questions

What board games were popular in the 1930s?

Monopoly - US release 1935, and published in Britain by Waddingtons in 1936 with the London streets. The full list above covers the rest of the decade's boards.

What card games did people play in the 1930s?

Contract bridge at its peak, with newspaper columns and radio coverage. The card games section above has the others.

What video games came out in the 1930s?

Still no video games, but coin-op arrives properly: Baffle Ball (1931) and Ballyhoo (1932) start the pinball trade. The section above lists the arcade, console and computer games of the era.

Do you sell games?

No. We make greeting cards, art prints and pin badges in the UK. This guide is free to read and free to copy - charity shops and second-hand sites are the best place to find the older games.

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