My parents were having a clear out at home a few months back and found their game of scrabble. I'd loved this game for years and since they don't really get time to play it, I took it off their hands.

I have played this a few times since acquiring it recently and I still love the game as much now as I did all those years ago. This game isn't generally about fun (though it can be depending on what words you come up with!), it is a game of strategy and skill.

I'm sure there isn't anybody who doesn't know the game Scrabble, but just in case there are people out there who have never played the game before, it is a word game. The game can be played with 2-4 players, but with four players the game is more interesting. Within the box you get the square playing board, four letter holders and the letters. Each letter has a number on it and the idea is that you try and score as many points as you can making words from the letters you have. The more difficult letters are worth more than the easier letters. To aid scoring, the board contains some helpers such as double word, triple word, double letter and triple letter so if you place your letters on these squares, you get the added bonuses stated. The rules are quite simple in that it has to be a proper word and the word you place down has to join onto a word already on the board, you can't just place your letters anywhere. Each player picks 7 letters to start at random and replaces their tiles to make seven again after making a word. The game carries on until all tiles have been used and the player that has the highest score at the end wins. You can also play with the winner being the one who gets rid of their tiles first if you don't want to score the game.

I love this type of game as it involves a bit of brain power but some that struggle with spelling etc may not find it particularly fun and could get a little frustrated by it. I tried playing it with my 8 year old son as I thought it might aid him with spelling etc at school. He was reasonably good at it but soon got bored and his mind started wandering just because it wasn't a game he found fun to play so I would say it is definitely more a game for adults than for children.

As said, the gameplay itself is simple and the only grey area may be the legality of the word. Some people may think their word is a legal word whereas others may disagree so if you are going to take it seriously, you could have a dictionary next to you to go by, but if the game is only being played for fun, it isn't really worth going to those kind of lengths to settle the disagreement!

As with many games, the original is always the best but unfortunately Scrabble has jumped on the modern bandwagon too and it now has many versions available if the original is seen as too boring for you. You can get a junior scrabble, Simpsons scrabble, Disney scrabble, travel scrabble and Toy Story scrabble to name but a few. Personally though, I prefer the original one and I'm pleased that they still offer the original one and it hasn't changed a bit!

As I didn't pay for this one, I have looked the price up on Amazon and was amazed to find it still retails at £13.00 which to me proves it hasn't lost its popularity and is still as popular now as it was many years ago.

Overall, although this game wouldn't be to everyone's tastes, I personally love this game. I do love games that are fun, but require a bit of skill and brain power too and this game is perfect for me. I have even downloaded the Scrabble App on my iphone! The game doesn't take too long to play and can be fun too. Recommended.