‘Key to the Kingdom’ – My First (Real) Board Game
Everyone’s favorite hobby starts somewhere. Mine started with a very special key to the kingdom, a cobra pit and a hatred of Voodoo Specters.
The year was 1992. And it was a strange time. The Mall of America opened its doors to the public, the people took a new ear to the song “Stuck In the Middle With You” and the world just couldn’t lie about how much they loved big butts. In the midst of it all little ol’ me was watching the brand new channel, Cartoon Network. It was during the commercial breaks that I saw an ad for something that confounded me.
It said it was a board game, but it didn’t look anything like the board games I had played. No properties to fight over, no chutes to slide down, and no amount of sorry would send you back to start. No, this game was different. And like most things in the 1990s, the advertisement for it was SUPER RAD!
The game was Key To The Kingdom and it blew my mind as a kid. I had never seen a board game like this before. You have to remember, board games in the 90’s were very weird. For those of you who have never heard of Key To The Kingdom, let me welcome you to this glorious game of sword, sorcery, and nostalgia.
Key to the Kingdom Overview
Key To The Kingdom is a dice rolling, exploration, hand resource management game set in a fantasy theme. Players explore the game board, rolling a die and moving the many spaces in various branching paths. Sprinkled throughout the board are various Hazards that players will have to overcome to progress forward.
Hazards range from ice bridges to rainbow bridges, tiger pits to snake pits, and magic circles to magic wizards. To overcome the hazards, players will have to use the equipment cards combined with the luck of the dice. However, the hazards are only a small part of the game.
The main object of the game is to explore the dungeons. The game has 6 dungeons, each housing a random monster and a random treasure. Dungeon monsters are pretty varied in their methods of defeating them. Some require nothing more than rolling a specific number on a d8. Others require you to discard a certain equipment card. And finally, some monsters are literally impossible to beat.
If successful in defeating the monster, the player acquires the dungeon’s treasure card. But, they keep it hidden. Players can steal your treasure cards or the Demon King (who we didn’t even mention) might also send you to one of the many dungeons. But, once a player brings the key and one other treasure back to the starting space of the game, they win!
Final Thoughts
Nowadays, there are plenty of games that do what Key To the Kingdom does and do it better. It’s a game that is very held to the whims of the die roll. But, Key To The Kingdom will always hold a special place in my heart. It was the first game to introduce me to the idea that board games could be so much more. I know there is a remake of Key to the Kingdom by Restoration Games, but I haven’t really looked into it.
Funny story. I ended up buying 2 copies of it as a kid. I had lost the d8 that the game comes with. But I had never seen a d8 before. So, I thought it was a rare and unique die which I wouldn’t be able to find anywhere else. And so, I used my allowance to buy a second copy. Just for a second d8.
The game’s main attraction is the fact that the game board can fold out to reveal an expanded board underneath, allowing players to jump into magic whirlpools and potentially crush other players in the collapsing world. As clever of an idea as that is, it doesn’t really add a whole lot to the game, but it is very cool and fun nonetheless.
I played the heck out of Key To The Kingdom growing up, but it would be many years before I rediscovered modern board gaming with Settlers of Catan in college. Since then, I’ve found a hobby I love and spend a lot of my time and money on. I’m glad to see how far board gaming has come over the years and what is on the horizon.
What was your first “real” board game that hooked you good? Be honest.
