If you were a kid who liked Magic 8 Balls, handmade fortune tellers, and M.A.S.H. (Mansion/Apartment/Shack/House), then in the early ‘90s, Milton Bradley came out with a board game that was made just for you — Ask Zandar. Well, just for girls, really, as it’s pretty clear that the game was marketed to appeal specifically to tween girls. But you know what? It worked! At least, it worked on me, as I can attest that I did indeed own this game.
The term “game” here is, uh, pretty loose. Basically, the game would essentially go like this: a player would draw a question card, read it aloud, and then guess whether Zandar would give a yes or no answer to said question. From there, they would wave their hand over Zandar’s globe and he would give his answer. If they had guessed his answer correctly, the player then took a gem of their color from the pile or placed one of their already obtained gems onto a tile on the game board. But, if they guessed incorrectly, they would have to give back a gem. The other players in the game could also make a guess on other players’ turns, either getting a gem or losing a gem if they were right or wrong.
Want to know how this game was clearly aimed toward girls? Just take a look at some of the questions:
- Will _________ ask me out?
- Will I have to go to the prom with someone geeky? (Um, how rude, Ask Zandar!)
- Will aliens kidnap me and make me their next queen?
- Will my brother/sister make kissing noises when my date comes to pick me up?
- Will my parents let me stay home alone when they go out for the evening?
- Will I be 6 feet tall before I stop growing?
- Will I lose my homework this week?
- Will kids laugh at my next haircut?
Asking the important questions here, obviously.
Whoever is the first person to get five of their gems on five of the tiles is the winner. What does the winner get? Why, their own personal fortunes read by that wily wizard Zandar. Each tile would feature a particular subject such as A Special Talent You Have, A Rumor You Heard, The Way You Look, A Boy You Like, or Something You Had a Fight About. You’d change a switch on Zandar’s base, and now, instead of just giving you a yes/no answer, when you waved each of those tiles over his head, he’d give you a slightly more detailed fortune about each topic, such as, “You don’t have to worry about this” or “You will get a phone call about this.”
The most memorable thing for me about this game was how Zandar would say “I will now read your fortune!” in his ridiculous voice. I don’t really remember actually playing the game all the way through, but rather just busting out Zandar and asking some questions while he was in Fortune mode. I mean, really, he’s just a fancy Magic 8 Ball, let’s be honest. It’s not really a board game but more of a slumber party activity. But is there anything wrong with that? Not to a tween girl in the ‘90s!
Did you play Ask Zandar? What are some of your favorite memories? Let us know in the comments! But first, take a further trip down memory lane with this commercial from 1993:
- Milton Bradley released Ask Zandar in 1992. Milton Bradley has been around since 1860, but in 1984 the company became a division of Hasbro.
- Artist Bill Mather created the artwork for the cover of the game box. You will see his name in the credits of many films, and he is an Emmy Award winner. The artwork he did in Forrest Gump won an Oscar, and his work in Batman Returns earned an Oscar nomination as well.
- Zandar and his crystal ball required 4 AA batteries to work, which of course did not come included in the box.
- The game cost $35 back in 1992, which would be about $65 today if adjusted for inflation.
- Fortune-telling grows out of an association with Gypsies. So why did the creators of this game make Zandar look like a wizard a la Merlin rather than a more typical female fortune-teller gypsy type, especially when the game was aimed at girls? Hmm.
- Milton Bradley released Ask Zandar in 1992. Milton Bradley has been around since 1860, but in 1984 the company became a division of Hasbro.
- Artist Bill Mather created the artwork for the cover of the game box. You will see his name in the credits of many films, and he is an Emmy Award winner. The artwork he did in Forrest Gump won an Oscar, and his work in Batman Returns earned an Oscar nomination as well.
- Zandar and his crystal ball required 4 AA batteries to work, which of course did not come included in the box.
- The game cost $35 back in 1992, which would be about $65 today if adjusted for inflation.
- Fortune-telling grows out of an association with Gypsies. So why did the creators of this game make Zandar look like a wizard a la Merlin rather than a more typical female fortune-teller gypsy type, especially when the game was aimed at girls? Hmm.
