Balance of power tower

As if in futile tribute to the sheer towering greatness of this game – but maily to keep ourselves amused - we’re going to attempt to complete this entry without using the word “balance” or any derivative thereof. The subtitle doesn’t count. Do you think we’ll manage it? Place your bets now.

Tip It seemingly gained inspiration from ye olde plate spinners of ‘70s variety entertainment telly, centring as it did around the eternal battle between man and gravity¹. That little plastic fella perched on top - perhaps himself some vestige of the circus specialty act - wouldn’t have looked much out of place on The Paul Daniels Show. Supported only by his nose and the equal weight of two rings clutched in his hands, we’d stare up at him slowly rotating and just hope he didn’t fall, at least not on our go.

The object of the game was to remove a collection of tokens from a lower tier of this strange spinning plastic construct without upsetting the acrobat above. Or possibly just move them around, it’s difficult to know. There was a special fork in any case.

Like an extraordinarily complex version of Jenga, and with a similar reliance on Newton’s laws, Tip It was all about cause and effect. Cause the tower to topple and the effect was nerve-shattering (see also Ker-Plunk). But, like Jenga, plate-spinning and even our toy gyroscope, much of the pleasure was divined in anticipation of that final collapse. The cathartic submission was addictive - or are we giving too much away regarding our adult pastimes? After a while, the game play felt like it was getting in the way and, in the end, you’d find yourself building the thing up just to knock it down.

Hmmm… that’s got us thinking. Although we said it was a great game back up there at the start, we’re beginning to realise that it wasn’t all that hot at all. In fact,all things considered, we’ve come to the conclusion that it was a bit rubbish all along. But then, that’s the problem with being too positive about nostalgia, sometimes it can seem a bit one-sided. Here at TVC Towers, we always strive to strike the right balance.

D’oh!