This is no trivial matter

October 4, 2011 4:58 PM

Which version of Trivial Pursuit do I want?

So remember when Trivial Pursuit first came out? Ok, I don't but I remember playing the original version when I was a kid. I want that but the more recent version. Something that has questions from the last 30 years.

I don't want a version that is specifically harder or easier just newer. And I don't want a subject specific one either (I've played LOTR DVD Trivial Pursuit btw and that shit is HARD).

I realized this weekend that I do not own Trivial Pursuit and it made me sad, no problem I thought, I'll just hit up Amazon. Ummmm, there are like 100 versions.

I feel like the 25th Anniversary Edition is it, right? I just want to make sure before I purchase and open the game.

posted by magnetsphere to Sports, Hobbies, & Recreation (12 answers total)

25th Anniversary edition sound silly and not much like the original (which you can always score at the Goodwill for less than three bucks). Master Edition sounds more like what you're looking for. However, I admit I'm a sucker for the old version. Nothing like testing your knowledge about Nixon's secretary of the interior when you were born in the 80s!
posted by jabes at 5:10 PM on October 4, 2011

I have Version 6, which is pretty much identical to the original, except for being updated - it came out in 2003, though, so it may or may not be updated enough for your purposes. It looks like the 25th Anniversary edition has had some gameplay changes, though...

This list of all of the editions may help you...
posted by polymath at 5:39 PM on October 4, 2011

It looks like the 20th Anniversary edition (amazon link) is going to be the most modern equivalent to the edition you played when you were a kid.
posted by carsonb at 5:44 PM on October 4, 2011

OK, I'm changing my answer to "Volume 6", which is apparently heir to the Genus line of Trivial Pursuit, and came out a year later than the 20th Anniversary edition.
posted by carsonb at 5:51 PM on October 4, 2011

Yeah, it looks like I'm going Volume 6 on it. Thanks everyone! Of course it is the most expensive one on amazon... Going to look around for deals online though.

Yes, I know I can get the original version at a thrift store but I actually looked at the Goodwill nearest my house this weekend and they didn't have it. I don't really feel like driving all over town looking for it and I want a newer one.
posted by magnetsphere at 6:29 PM on October 4, 2011

Is Master Edition I not new enough? Haven't played it myself but it advertises "Classic Game Play."
posted by Rewind at 6:33 PM on October 4, 2011

Why choose one? Trivial Pursuit nights with friends are wonderful. I have a cabinet full of different editions, because if you play one edition too long you memorize the questions. I know you said you don't want to lock into one category, and the LOTR one IS hard, but the 80's and 90's versions are great for nostalgia.
posted by Ruki at 6:50 PM on October 4, 2011

I agree that Volume 6 will be the most modern version of the game that is identical to what you played. The '90s edition is quite a bit of fun and not too terribly hard. If you are a big SNL buff you might get a kick out of that set but I will warn you that it does require deep knowledge of obscure sketches and characters. I remember the 1960s edition as being crazy difficult for someone born six years after that decade ended. If the answer wasn't a president or a Beatle I was unlikely to get it right.
posted by mmascolino at 7:24 PM on October 4, 2011

Piggybacking: what's the hardest general-knowledge one?
posted by box at 7:36 AM on October 5, 2011

I certainly haven't played all of them but I think your perception of hard will be very personal. In the original Genus Edition, Brown (Arts & Literature) was generally very difficult because it features lots of books and cultural things that I don't have any familiarity with. Pink (Entertainment) was almost as hard since it focused on a lot of movies that premiered well before my birth.

I didn't play Volume 6 but I have played 20th Century Edition and found it more difficult than the '90s edition.
posted by mmascolino at 9:34 AM on October 5, 2011

I love to play where each person gets to pick the box of questions they want to answer. You're a movie nut, so your questions are selected from the Silver Screen set. An early 1900's history buff, it's the Vintage Years edition for you. Kids can play with the grownups, cause their questions will come out of one of the Junior Editions. Sports fans, the All-Star Sports Edition, etc, etc, etc.

It makes it a lot more fun if everyone gets to shine in their area of expertise.
posted by marsha56 at 9:39 AM on October 5, 2011

Another fun option is to roll the die again after you landed on a color to select which box of questions that your challenge is drawn from.
posted by mmascolino at 10:39 AM on October 5, 2011