"I found this game in an attic, do you know anything about it?" Maurice Hesse asked us by email. In fact, "The surf game" was available to us in a Booklet from 1988 as a subscription bonus and had already piqued our curiosity at the time. A short time later, Maurice sent us a few pictures of his find: a game plan lovingly drawn by long-time surf cartoonist Bernhard Förth with somewhat confusing paths waiting for the four players. "It's based on 'Mensch Ärgere Dich Nicht', of course," Tommy Brandner tells us on the phone. He came up with the game back then and designed it together with Förth. "The department in charge of subscriptions wanted something special as a bonus for new readers," Tommy remembers. As far as he knows, the game has never been on sale.
However, unlike the original, the makers have focussed on teamwork in the rules of the game: Two players always form a team and both must reach the finish line. The game is played with a dice, moves only go forwards and if you get a six, you can roll the dice again. If someone is beaten, he or she must move back 15 spaces. The goal must be reached exactly at the end.
On the game board, you "surf" from one bay around a peninsula to the next beach. On the way, you have to navigate around several tonnes and pass all kinds of obstacles: you can be caught by waves, sharks are on the way or a submarine can be rammed. There are also typical stumbling blocks such as "messed up jibe", "lost fin" or "forgot harness" (just before the finish line), each of which throws the character back. On the other hand, events such as "foot in the loop", "clean take-off" or a gust give you extra steps forward! In the event of material damage, a lap of honour must be completed via the "depot". "It was fun to think it all up," remembers Tommy Brandner.
Do you have any exciting premiums or unique items from surfing history at home? Please write to us at redaktion@surf-magazin.de!
Tobias Frauen
Editor
