If you’ve ever been to Cracker Barrel, then you’ve probably spent some time playing the Peg Game while waiting on your meal. The game not only tests your brain skills, (I’ve been an eg-no-ra-moose way too many times) but keeps the young and the old entertained. The beauty of pegs is that they are more likely to stay put in their little holes with less frustration of them rolling off or getting knocked over.
I decided to find out what other peg board games I could locate, and I discovered seven games to play with pegs. Read on to see what I found!
Cribbage
Cribbage is a classic board game dating back to the 1600’s. While you can play with three players, the game is traditionally played with two players. There is also a four player partner version. Cribbage is played with a game pegboard and a deck of cards. There are many versions of pegboards, but no matter the shape, most will have either 61 or 121 pegs. If playing 61, players go out and back, thus bringing the point total to 121.
Cribbage may seem difficult to learn due to the unusual words that describe card plays, but once you’ve learned the lingo, it’s easy to learn. Points are earned during three phases: pegging play, counting the hand and counting the crib. The game plays quickly, with players attempting to collect pairs, points of 15, runs and suits to gain points.
Players use the pegboard to keep score during the game. The player who is the first person to peg out, or get to the end of the board, wins the game.
Battleship
I would venture to say most people are familiar with the classic game, Battleship. But, if you’ve not yet had the chance to play Battleship and to destroy your opponents ships, let me introduce you to this peg game. Originated from a paper and pencil game from World War I, it’s a favorite in young alike.
Battleship is a two player game combining a bit of strategy and a lot of luck. Ships are placed on a grid pegboard game board. Players try to be the first to sink their opponents ships by guessing the locations of the five ships on the grid. Each ship is a different size, and each requires a specific number of hits to sink. The first player to locate and sink all five ships wins the game and the war!
Pegs & Jokers
Pegs & Jokers is a game of both strategy and luck. Using a deck of cards to dictate the move of the pegs, players race to be the first to make it around the board to home before the other players.
Each player or team is given a paddle and pegs. Each paddle has a start and home, and a row of peg holes along the edge. All players or teams interlock their paddles together to form a connected board. Depending on the amount of players, the footprint of the board can vary from a square to octagon.
Each player’s five pegs are placed in the start. Players choose a card from their hand to move their pegs. Specific cards allow the pegs to move from start onto the now connected track along the base of each paddle. On each player’s turn, a card is played from their hand, and the peg is moved around the board. The cards don’t always play in your favor, and can force you back to start. Be the first to move all your pegs around the board into home and you win the game. This game plays well with single players or partners.
Mastermind
Have you ever dreamed of being a secret agent? Do you think you can create a code that can’t be cracked? Welcome to Mastermind.
In this two player game, one player is the Codemaker, with a goal to create a code that player 2, the Codebreaker, tries to crack in less than 10 moves.
To begin, the Codemaker places 4 different color pegs in the secret compartment on the playing board, creating the secret code. The Codebreaker places their pegs on the beginning line at the other end of the board. On each of 10 (or less) turns, the Codebreaker moves their pegs up one line, moving around the color pegs. After the Codebreaker has arranged, the pegs, the Codemaker places 4 smaller pegs, or feedback pegs, in no particular order, to indicate if any of the pegs are in the correct slot.
The game continues until either the code is broken or the Codebreaker moves through all ten spaces and doesn’t discover the code. The Codemaker gets one point for each correct row of pegs played by the Codebreaker, and then players switch roles. Reset the game and now the Codebreaker becomes the Codemaker. Continue playing until one player reaches the predetermined amount of points. Good luck!
Chinese Checkers
Chinese Checkers is a modern version of the German game Halma. In this variation, the board has peg holes in the shape of a six sided star. To win, players must be the first to move all 10 pegs across the board into the opposite triangle.
Players each receive 10 pegs of one color. Players place their pegs in one of the 6 triangle shapes making up the star around the edge of the board. One player begins by moving his peg forward toward the opposite end of the board. The game play continues around, with each player moving one peg a space.
There is much strategy to play. Players can “hop” over each other, (including their own), thereby moving that peg farther along the board. You can even hop over your own.
There are several variations to this game, including teams or double pegs (one player playing 2 sets of pegs).
Trouble
Who can forget the famous line from the commercial, “Trouble, the game with the Pop-O-Matic bubble!”?
Similar to Pegs & Jokers, Trouble can be played with 2-4 players. It includes a die placed in a plastic bubble in the center of the board. The beauty of this feature aside from it’s catchy slogan is that you’ll never lose the die!
Each player begins with 4 pegs at start. Players press down on the bubble on their turn to determine how many spaces they can move their pegs. Some rolls allow re-roll, and others allow you to move a peg from start to play. Play continues around the board until one player moves all his pegs into the home stretch.
The Pop-O-Matic bubble is worth purchasing this now retro family board game. If you don’t like the original version, there are dozens of branded licensed versions.
Peggity
Seemingly simple, this game by Parker Bros from the 1950’s is extremely difficult to master. In the box you’ll find a plethora of pegs in 4 colors and a 16×16 grid pegboard. The object of the game is to place five pegs of the same color either diagonally, vertically, or horizontally.
To play, each player places one of their designated color pegs somewhere on the board. All other players play a peg on their turn. Play continues around the gameboard until one player has placed five pegs in a row as described above. Included also are rules to play the game for two teams of 2.
While this game is no longer found on the store shelves, you can still pick up this classic peg game on eBay.
Conclusion
Hopefully this list of board games with pegs give you fresh ideas for gaming. Do you have or know of any other board games with pegs not listed here? I’d love to hear from you!
