LAWN GAME

Description

(b) CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

Not Applicable

(c) STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

Not Applicable

(d) THE NAMES OF THE PARTIES TO A JOINT RESEARCH AGREEMENT

Not Applicable

(e) INCORPORATION-BY-REFERENCE OF MATERIAL SUBMITTED ON A COMPACT DISC OR AS A TEXT FILE VIA THE OFFICE ELECTRONIC FILING SYSTEM

Not Applicable

(f) STATEMENT REGARDING PRIOR DISCLOSURES BY THE INVENTOR OR JOINT INVENTOR

Not Applicable

(g) BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

(1) Field of the Invention

The disclosure relates to game kit and more particularly pertains to a new game kit for use in a game where players attempt to traverse a playing path before other players.

(2) Description of Related Art Including Information Disclosed Under 37 CFR 1.97 and 1.98

The prior art relates to yard games and games where players define play pieces that traverse a playing path. Various yard games are provided by the prior art, but the prior art fails to disclose such a yard game which uses separate tiles to form a playing path and provides instructions on a portion of the tiles to direct movement of the players along the playing path.

(h) BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An embodiment of the disclosure meets the needs presented above by generally comprising a plurality of tiles which are separate from each other. The tiles are positionable in any one of multiple arrangements to define a playing path in which each tile defines a landing space along the playing path. The plurality of tiles includes a set of instruction tiles which each include indicia representing a gameplay instruction. A die or other random selection device may be used with the tiles to direct players to move along the playing path according to a set of game rules.

There has thus been outlined, rather broadly, the more important features of the disclosure in order that the detailed description thereof that follows may be better understood, and in order that the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated. There are additional features of the disclosure that will be described hereinafter and which will form the subject matter of the claims appended hereto.

The objects of the disclosure, along with the various features of novelty which characterize the disclosure, are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming a part of this disclosure.

(i) BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING(S)

The disclosure will be better understood and objects other than those set forth above will become apparent when consideration is given to the following detailed description thereof. Such description makes reference to the annexed drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a top kit view of tiles of a game kit according to an embodiment of the disclosure.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of instruction tiles and a die of an embodiment of the disclosure.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of non-instruction tiles of an embodiment of the disclosure.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of additional instruction tiles of an embodiment of the disclosure.

FIG. 5 is a top in-use view of an embodiment of the disclosure.

FIG. 6 is an in-use view of an embodiment of the disclosure.

FIG. 7 is an in-use view of an embodiment of the disclosure.

(j) DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

With reference now to the drawings, and in particular to FIGS. 1 through 7 thereof, a new game kit embodying the principles and concepts of an embodiment of the disclosure and generally designated by the reference numeral 10 will be described.

As best illustrated in FIGS. 1 through 7, the game kit 10 generally comprises a plurality of tiles 12 which are separate from or unconnected to each other. The tiles 12 are positionable in any one of multiple arrangements to define a playing path 14 in which each tile 12 defines a landing space along the playing path 14. The playing path 14 of each arrangement has a start end 16 and a finish end 18, wherein the start end 16 of the playing path 14 and the finish end 18 of the playing path 14 are spaced from each other. Each tile 12 has an upper surface 20 sized and configured to support a player 36 thereon, and the plurality of tiles 12 is sized and configured to facilitate construction of playing paths 14 on a ground surface 38, such as in a park, on a lawn near a single-family dwelling, or the like. The tiles 12 are equal in size and shape to each other.

The plurality of tiles 12 includes a set of instruction tiles 22 and a set of non-instruction tiles 26. Each instruction tile 22 includes indicia 24 representing a gameplay instruction. The indicia 24 may comprise alphanumeric characters, symbols, graphical images, or the like. The indicia 24 may be formed by printing, etching, embossing, or the like. Each non-instruction tile 26 is free of indicia 24 representing gameplay instructions. The set of non-instruction tiles 26 comprises different groups of non-instruction tiles 26 which have different colors from each other.

A random selection device 28 is provided which is used in conjunction with the tiles 12 to play a game. The random selection device 28 comprises a die 30 with a plurality of sides 32. Each side 32 has indicia 34 which is unique from the indicia 34 of the other sides 32 of the die 30. The indicia 34 of the sides 32 of the die 30 represent numbers. The size of the die 30 is such that the die 30 may be rolled on the ground surface 38. When rolled, a selected side 32 will face upwardly from the ground surface 38 to display its indicia 34 to a player 36 standing along the playing path 14.

The game kit 10 is used to play a game in which players 36 traverse the playing path 14 from the start end 16 to the finish end 18 according to a set of rules in an attempt to be the first player 36 to reach the finish end 18. The game is set up by placing the tiles 12 in one of the arrangements to produce a corresponding playing path 14. One of the instruction tiles 22 has indicia 24 designating it as a start tile 40, while another instruction tile 22 has indicia 24 designating it as a finish tile 42. The start tile 40 is placed at the start end 16, and the finish tile 42 is placed at the finish end 18. The remaining tiles 12 are placed along the playing path 14 between the start tile 40 and the finish tile 42. In at least one embodiment of the game rules, the instruction tiles 22 are not to be placed adjacent to each other during setup. Under this restriction, the remaining tiles 12 may be placed at random or pseudo-randomly between the start tile 40 and the finish tile 42.

The players 36 stand at or atop the start tile 40 and take alternating turns rolling the die 30 and traversing the playing path 14. On each turn, the corresponding player 36 rolls the die 30 and moves along the playing path 14 toward the finish tile 42 a number of landing spaces equal to the number indicated by the selected side 32 of the die 30. If the player 36 lands on a non-instruction tile 26 at the end of this action, the player 36 remains on the tile 12 until the player 36's next turn. If the player 36 lands on an instruction tile 22 at the end of the action, the player 36 follows the gameplay instruction represented by the indicia 24 of the instruction tile 22. Play continues until one of the players 36 reaches the finish tile 42.

Various different gameplay instructions may be provided by the instruction tiles 22. In reference to the exemplary form depicted in FIGS. 1 through 3 and 5, the gameplay instructions include the following instructions, provided in the table below with explanations for each. In some embodiments, one or more of the gameplay instructions may relate to the colors of the non-instruction tiles 26.

Further instruction tiles 22 may be provided with other gameplay instructions. Several different gameplay instructions may be given, and a selection of instruction tiles 22 is depicted in FIG. 4 showing examples of various additional gameplay instructions. These gameplay instructions and explanations therefor are provided in the table below.

With respect to the above description then, it is to be realized that the optimum dimensional relationships for the parts of an embodiment enabled by the disclosure, to include variations in size, materials, shape, form, function and manner of operation, assembly and use, are deemed readily apparent and obvious to one skilled in the art, and all equivalent relationships to those illustrated in the drawings and described in the specification are intended to be encompassed by an embodiment of the disclosure.

Therefore, the foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the disclosure. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the disclosure to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the disclosure. In this patent document, the word “comprising” is used in its non-limiting sense to mean that items following the word are included, but items not specifically mentioned are not excluded. A reference to an element by the indefinite article “a” does not exclude the possibility that more than one of the element is present, unless the context clearly requires that there be only one of the elements.