Isn’t it sad how technology has become such an irreversible part of our lives that all the entertainment now we look for is on a screen? What happened to those good ol’ days when we had to invent our own games without the convenience of phones and computers and the Internet? Remember those simple yet awesome games like Cat’s Cradle and STRESS? Perhaps some of these old-time games listed below can help spark your childhood memories and bring you back to simpler times.

1. Flag Eraser Game

Ah, the good old classic. Remember those primary school days when everyone would rush to the little bookshop in the canteen during recess and purchase as many of those 50c cuboid erasers with different countries’ flags on them? The Flag Eraser Game was so affordable and easy, and yet it provided such great entertainment value when all we had in class were our desks.

This is how the game would go: each player would be armed with one eraser and start at a corner of the table. Then, only by using a finger to flick the erasers, each would try to “attack” the other erasers by mounting their own erasers on top of them. Each time an eraser is on top of another, the eraser at the bottom is eliminated, and this goes on until there is only one lone survivor left.

Kind of sounds like The Hunger Games huh. Maybe this is where it came from, who knows?

2. Slap-Scissors-Paper-Stone

This one’s even better because it’s FREE. It’s your classic Scissors-Paper-Stone (or Rock-Paper-Scissors) game but with a painful twist. The loser suffers for his/her loss!

Involving only 2 players, they would use one of their hands to play, and the other hand would be linked to the other player’s. After each round of Scissors-Paper-Stone, the winner gets to slap the loser’s hand as hard as he/she can. And the game goes on until someone can’t stand the pain any more, or when the teacher walks in.

Wow I remember playing this game until my own hand was throbbing and crimson red.

3. Pick-Up Sticks

Another very economical game. You would just need to go to the local store and get a set of colourful pick-up sticks for less than $5. I remember this game being the cause for much excitement, and everyone in class seemed to bond over such a simple game while sitting in a circle.

One player will start by assembling the colourful set of sticks in the middle of the circle, holding them upright and altogether before letting them all fall into a natural mess on the floor. The rule of the game is simple: Pick up as many sticks as possible, one by one, without moving the other sticks! It’s amazing the kind of tricks we kids had up our sleeves, and how amazingly steady our little hands could be.

4. Cat’s Cradle

All we need for this game is a loooooong and durable string tied end to end to make a circle. This one’s a tricky one to explain. It involves 2 players, who take turns to take the Cat’s Cradle by using their fingers to pinch 2 visible or hidden X’s in the string’s formation, to create a new formation with 2 new X’s to continue with. Each successful step represents a cleared level.

Of course, since this is a slightly more complicated game, it involves some visual stimulation and explaining before one can become a master at it. But once you get going, it’s so addictive!

I think I got to the 9th level once, try to beat that!

5. Playground Hide-N-Seek

Ooh this game was fun. AND it also serves as a good workout (if you don’t run into things). During recess all of us would go to the playground and believe me, we made the most out of it.

Again this is a game with a twist. Just like the traditional Hide-N-Seek, there would be one seeker and the rest would be hiders, hiding around the premises of the playground. But here’s the twist: The seeker is BLINDFOLDED. So the hiders could move around the playground as much as they liked, silent as shadows (or, you know, shouting at the seeker like monkeys), while the seeker would try to catch all of them.

6. SNAP!

And last but not least, SNAP! is a game of quick-thinking and fastest reactions. Also called STRESS!, this game is definitely the most stressful of the lot. It involves a pack of cards, a table, and 2 very excited players.

Here’s how it goes: Each player will have half the deck, and at the start of the game each player will open 4 cards in front of them as preparation. At the count of 3 each player will open another card in the centre of the table, marking the two piles they will be playing with. The aim of the game is to clear all cards as fast as possible by putting them in sequence on the 2 piles. If 4 is on top of the pile for instance, then a player can only put 2, 3, or 4 on the pile.

Every time the two piles coincidentally have the same card on top, the players have to shout “SNAP!” and snap the smaller pile as quickly as they can. The pile they snap will be the pile they will have to continue with.

And so the game goes on until someone finishes their pile. So yes, adrenaline will be pumping throughout this game!

Ah the good old times… can’t beat them! They’re some of the most fun games around, and something we should share with our (future) kids.