While some toys and games are obvious fads from the start, others have a more lasting appeal. Case in point: the popular retro game Monopoly came out nearly a century ago, and yet it’s still popular today. So forget Fortnite, and get creative by buying some rad retro gifts and games.
Prices and availability are subject to change.
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Rubik’s Cube
$9 from Amazon Shop Now
If there’s one toy that encapsulates the 1980s, the Rubik’s Cube is a solid choice. This colorful puzzle is just as engaging today (a mere 43 quintillion possible moves!) as it was in the ’80s when it first appeared on store shelves in the U.S.
Slinky
$4 from Target Shop Now
Invented in the early ’40s, the Slinky has been occupying restless hands far longer than, say, the fidget spinner with its number of “tricks,” such as falling end over end downstairs with a single push to start — not as easy as it sounds. There are dozens of colorful or themed variations such as the Slinky Dog, but even the simple (and cheap) steel original is good for hours of idle entertainment. Slinkys are among the shrinking number of toys still made in America.
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Play Doh
$29 from Amazon Shop Now
Kids have been building colorful creations with Play-Doh since the mid-1950s, and the modeling compound is still a hot holiday item today. Skip the fancy playsets and funky new versions with sparkles or sand and go with this 36-pack collection of classic colors.
Microscope
$17 from AmScope Shop Now
Want to encourage a science-minded child? Get them on the road to discovery with the AmScope Kids 100X-400X-1200X Beginner Microscope that comes complete with slides. Be warned — you may be asked for a hair sample.
Matchbox Cars
$15 from Walmart Shop Now
Along with Hot Wheels, Matchbox model cars have entertained kids for generations. A nine-car starter pack like this one will jump-start anyone’s collection.
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View-Master
$22 from Amazon Shop Now
View-Masters are stereoscopes that come with corresponding “reels” containing images that appear in striking 3-D through the peepholes. Most reels contain images of animals or natural or historic sites from around the world. Though a virtual reality version has hit the market, the low-tech original is still as fun as ever.
Barbie
$41 from Amazon Shop Now
Barbie first appeared in 1959. More than a half-century later, she’s still a toy icon, available in a dizzying array of personas from fairy princess to physician. This “happy birthday” version makes a sparkly, shiny addition to any child’s Barbie collection — even if it’s not their birthday.
Pinscreen
$13 from Amazon Shop Now
An executive toy as much as a children’s one, a pinscreen lets the user create a three-dimensional image from crowded metal pins by pushing them from the other side, potentially creating a cast of one’s handprint or face. It’s a simple, creative gadget that can also help children with sensory processing difficulties.
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Baseball Cards
$20 from eBay Shop Now
This boxed set contains eight foil packs, each containing six Major League Baseball cards plus bonus autograph cards and throwback cards featuring popular historical players.
Hula Hoop
$40 from Amazon Shop Now
Like many of the best toys, the perfectly simple hula hoop encourages children to have fun through exercise, so they’ve become popular with adults for the same reason. (This version is glow-in-the-dark for an extra element of fun, but prices for more basic versions can go down to the single digits.) The modern version made of plastic tubing was invented in 1958, but people have been twirling, rolling and even hulaing in hoops from rawer materials for far longer than that.
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Geodes
$20 and up from Amazon Shop Now
A hammer tap can open a world of wonder for a child with this gift bag that features 25 whole Moroccan geodes. Expect plenty of oohs and aahs when the crystal centers are exposed — and use the moment to share some geological facts. (Hammer not included.)
Connect 4
$9 from Amazon Shop Now
A little like a more-involved, gravity-based form of tic-tac-toe, Connect 4 is a cheap, portable two-player game that’s simple enough for young children, yet involves enough strategy to engage adults. There are many versions produced today of the 1974 Milton Bradley original, including a “Spin” version.
Rock ‘Em Sock ‘Em Robots
$27 from Target Shop Now
This miniaturized boxing match has been a childhood classic since 1964, allowing two players to operate fighting robots until one knocks the other’s head off to end the game. The toy of today is slightly smaller and features a few altered sound effects, but otherwise remains unchanged.
Spirograph
$12 from Amazon Shop Now
Invented in the late 19th century, the Spirograph is a drawing tool that lets anyone create hypnotic mandala-like designs. Modern Spirograph sets include multiple sizes of drawing wheels and different colored pens that allow children or adults to get creative with this uniquely mathematical design toy.
Rail Twirler
$7 from Amazon Shop Now
Though not quite as versatile as the yo-yo, the retro rail-twirling toy is still about strategically keeping a spinning wheel in perpetual motion, in this case using a wire frame to keep it going. The toy is incredibly cheap, mesmerizing and can provide hours of play for children with otherwise idle hands.
Art Set
$40 from Amazon Shop Now
This art set encourages creativity in kids of all ages, with the more expansive options ideally suited to tweens and teens. Select from a variety of options that include numerous crayons, markers, watercolor cakes, and pretty much all the accessories a budding Picasso might need.
Skip-It
$17 from Amazon Shop Now
Invented in the ’80s but based on an earlier toy from the ’60s, the Skip-It is an anklet that encourages exercise, with an attached ball meant to be spun around one leg while the other jumps over it upon each revolution. Today many versions come with built-in counters to monitor how many hops you can manage without losing momentum.
Tinkertoys
$40 from Walmart Shop Now
Invented in 1914, Tinkertoys are like many other enduring toys in that they empower children to build things without imposing too much structure on them. Parents can also rest assured knowing the appealingly old-fashioned set of wooden spools and connecting pieces helps children develop fine-motor skills and spatial awareness.
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Lincoln Logs
$31 from Amazon Shop Now
Lincoln Logs give children the chance to build, but whether they rely on the accompanying instructions or their own imagination is up to them. Given the toy’s structural nature, it’s no surprise they were invented about a century ago by John Lloyd Wright, the son of famous architect Frank Lloyd Wright.
Radio Flyer Wagon
$20 from Amazon Shop Now
First produced in 1923, Radio Flyer’s red wagon became an icon of American childhood for a simple reason: It encourages kids to get outside, whether they’re riding in the wagon or hauling it around themselves.
Lite-Brite
$13 from Amazon Shop Now
Children use colored pegs to create vibrant glowing images from templates or on freeform sheets on the Lite-Brite. The toy invented in 1967 has managed to stay relevant because it encourages children’s creativity and often includes templates inspired by popular children’s franchises such as My Little Pony.
Jacob’s Ladder
$6 from Amazon Shop Now
A folk toy of uncertain origins, Jacob’s Ladder consists of a string of flat wooden blocks connected by interlaced ribbons that allow the blocks to change order and cascade over one another in an optical illusion fascinating for all.
Gyroscope
$21 from Amazon Shop Now
Gyroscopes are spinning wheels with many scientific uses, and since 1917, they’ve also made entertaining toys, similar to but more visually stimulating than the average spinning top. The classic version, perfect for placing atop a desk to occupy idle hands, is still for sale today through Amazon and other sellers.
Polly Pocket
$23 from Target Shop Now
Invented by a father for his daughter in 1983, Polly Pockets differ from other doll lines in that they’re unusually small—usually 2 to 3 inches tall, with proportional clothing accessories and playhouses to match. Subsequent updates by Mattel have made Polly dolls larger and more fashion-oriented with clothes that can either stretch onto the dolls or attach magnetically.
Simon
$22 from Target Shop Now
Simon is an electronic memory-based game in which players try to remember and repeat an increasingly long sequence of flashing lights and tones. Though it’s no longer the pop-culture phenomenon it was in the late ’70s and early ’80s, Simon remains a simple yet challengingly effective form of entertainment for anyone older than 7.
Fashion Plates
$25 from Amazon Shop Now
Originally popular in the ’70s and ’80s, Fashion Plates are the creative toy to get for any young aspiring fashionista, allowing children to design unique outfits in one self-contained set featuring an idea guide to get started. By mixing and matching rubbing plates featuring different garments, they build outfits and color them in using the include crayons and colored pencils.
Yo-Yo
$14 from Amazon Shop Now
Though the modern yo-yo gained popularity in the ’20s, this deceptively simple toy has survived for centuries in various forms and in various cultures, most prominently in Japan. Today it’s easy to find cheap simple yo-yos as well as “professional” versions including specialized gloves, replacement strings, carrying cases, and sometimes books teaching tricks.
Magna Doodle
$15 from Amazon Shop Now
Invented in 1974, the ever-popular Magna Doodle — now known as the Geekper magnetic drawing board — consists of a display panel where children can make temporary illustrations of tiny magnetic powder using a magnet-tipped stylus, similar to but easier to use than an Etch a Sketch. Newer versions include multicolored magnetic powders as well as stamps.
Wooly Willy
$6 from Amazon Shop Now
First produced in 1955, this simple but classic toy uses a magnetic wand to move metal fillings like hair follicles around a bald cartoon face. Inspiring several knockoffs, Wooly Willy survives as a toy today because it’s creative, entertaining from a young age onward, and still wonderfully cheap.
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Fisher-Price Chatter Phone
$13 from Amazon Shop Now
This beloved rolling toy still has the same old-fashioned rotary dial as it did upon its initial release in 1962, having undergone a short-lived update to push buttons in 2000. The design is no longer modernized, but young toddlers around 2 years of age still enjoy the chatter phone’s flashing lights, ringing noises, and moving eyes.
Operation
$20 from Target Shop Now
A variation on a buzzing carnival game invented in 1964, most children who grew up playing Operation probably had no idea it was testing their eye coordination and fine motor skills the entire time. The toy, which is best for ages 6 to 14, is still easily found online and in stores today, often in themed versions where the patient is Shrek, Homer Simpson, and other characters.
Clay
$13 from MichaelsShop Now
A little Rodin in your house? The easy-to-use Crayola Air-Dry Clay allows him or her to create sculptures that need no oven or kiln to set. Projects can be stamped, beaded, or imbedded with found objects and also painted with tempera, acrylic or watercolors when dry.
DIY Jewelry Kit
$15 and up from Amazon Shop Now
Kids ages three and up will likely have a blast creating their own blinged-out rings and necklaces. Happytime’s “snap-together” jewelry kit includes all that’s needed to create a dazzler for everyone at the sleepover.
Related: Thoughtful and Easy DIY Holiday Gifts That Will Save You Money
Monopoly: The Classic Edition
$33 from Amazon Shop Now
Monopoly still remains a family favorite more than 100 years since its inception. And unlike the dozens of updated spinoffs (like Avengers Monopoly), this version takes players back to the retro game we all remember.
