# Blockhead!

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Tabletop stacking game using colorful wooden blocks

Blockhead! game, 1954 edition

**Blockhead!** is a simple tabletop game suitable for children four years of age or older. It was invented in 1952 by G.W. "Jerry" D'Arcey and developed by G.W. and Alice D'Arcey in [San Jose](/source/San_Jose%2C_California), [California](/source/California). Originally consisting of 20 brightly colored [wooden](/source/Wood) [blocks](/source/Toy_block) of varying shapes, the object of the game is to add blocks to a tower without having it collapse on your turn.

## Rules

The first player sets one of the blocks on a flat surface; this is the only block allowed to touch the base. Each player then takes turns adding a single block until the tower collapses. The player that knocks over the tower on their turn loses. A player who loses three times is eliminated. The last player remaining wins.

Blockhead! uses [slang](/source/Slang) terms with a block theme: A player who has lost once is called a "[square](/source/Square_(slang))"; a player who has lost twice is a "[character](/source/Eccentricity_(behavior))"; a player who loses three times and is eliminated is a "[blockhead](/source/Idiot_(usage))".

## History

Cover of the 1954 square box edition

The game was first published by [G.W. "Jerry" D'Arcey](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=G.W._%22Jerry%22_D%27Arcey&action=edit&redlink=1) in 1952. In 1954 [Saalfield Publishing Company](/source/Saalfield_Publishing) released the first 25-block version of the game. The design of the blocks has remained consistent through each edition, the only change being modifying the yellow “double hump” to be more heart-shaped. Currently, the game is produced by [Pressman Toy Corporation](/source/Pressman_Toy_Corporation).

### Editions

- 1952: G.W.D'Arcey square box

- 1954: Saalfield tall box #7563

- 1954: Saalfield square box #7563

- 1969: Saalfield Executive Edition #6163

- 1969: Saalfield Giant Edition #7625

- 1975-76: [Parker Brothers](/source/Parker_Brothers)

- 1982: Pressman

- 1992: Pressman Super Blockhead! - 30 Pieces

- 2001: Pressman Cylindrical Box

- Current: Pressman

*Blockhead!* was voted into [Games Magazine](/source/Games_Magazine)'s Hall of Fame and appears on the [GAMES 100](/source/GAMES_100) list.[1]

## Reception

*[Games](/source/Games_(magazine))* included *Blockhead* in their "Top 100 Games of 1982", calling the game "Very addictive" and declaring that "We know of no better equalizer of children and adults, game fanatics and non-gamers."[2]

## Reviews

- 1983 Games 100[3]

## See also

- [Jenga](/source/Jenga), another stacking game

## References

1. **[^](#cite_ref-1)** ["GAMES Hall of Fame"](https://web.archive.org/web/20100417062722/http://www.gamesmagazine-online.com/gameslinks/hallofame.html). *GAMES Magazine*. 2005-06-15. Archived from [the original](http://www.gamesmagazine-online.com/gameslinks/hallofame.html) on 2010-04-17.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-games_2-0)** Schmittberger, R. Wayne, ed. (November 1982). "The Top 100 Games 1982". *[Games](/source/Games_(magazine))*. No. 33. p. 53.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-3)** ["GAMES Magazine #45"](https://archive.org/details/games-45-1983-november/page/46/mode/2up). November 1983.

- "15th Anniversary Celebration for Blockhead" (advertisement). Saalfield Publishing Company. 1969.

- ["Blockhead Rules, Pressman"](https://web.archive.org/web/20000919031916/http://www.pressmantoy.com/instructions/blockhead.html). Archived from [the original](http://www.pressmantoy.com/instructions/blockhead.html) on 2000-09-19. Retrieved 2006-12-09.

- ["Blockhead! - BoardGameGeek"](https://www.boardgamegeek.com/game/3427). Retrieved 2006-12-09.

- "Blockhead! Rules" (Game Insert/ Rulebook). Saalfield Publishing Company. 1954.

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Blockhead!](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blockhead!) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blockhead!?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.