The 3M bookshelf game series is a set of strategy and economic games published in the 1960s and early 1970s by 3M Corporation. The games were packaged in leatherette-look large hardback book size boxes in contrast to the prevalent wide, flat game boxes. The series grew to encompass over three dozen games. Most were multi-player board games or card games; a few were trivia games or two-handed board games. Acquire and TwixT were among the best-selling titles. The series later became part of the Avalon Hill Bookcase games. Very few of these games are still being published.
The line consisted of republished classics such as Go, chess and backgammon as well as original games. The Bookshelf games were originally in large boxes that were 8.5 by 12 by 2.25 inches (216 mm × 305 mm × 57 mm); later, a series in smaller boxes called "gamettes" was introduced. The early ones were packaged in a different shape box called a "butterbox".
History
In 1962, 3M commissioned game designers Alex Randolph and Sid Sackson to design the early games and they were largely responsible for shaping the direction of the line towards abstract strategy and economic games. Randolph eventually produced TwixT, Oh-Wah-Ree, Breakthru, Evade, Jati and Mad Mate. Sackson contributed Acquire, Bazaar, Monad, Executive Decision, Sleuth, and Venture. 3M thereafter relied extensively on freelance designers for the later bookshelf games. Between 400 and 600 submissions were received every year by the company. A few of the more popular games with established sales were acquired from other companies.
The games were produced by 3M from 1962 to 1975, under the complete company name, The Minnesota Mining & Manufacturing Company.
By the mid-1970s, gaming trends had shifted to pen-and-paper role playing games and the 3M game division was suffering losses. In 1976, the entire line was sold to Avalon Hill, which produced a competing line of bookcase games.[1][2] Avalon Hill discontinued most of them, but continued to publish some until 1998, when it was sold by its parent company to Hasbro.[3] While Acquire was mildly re-themed and published by Hasbro/Avalon Hill in 2000,[4] the company has indicated that they have no plans to publish any of the 3M or Avalon Hill bookshelf games.
Since 2008, Acquire has been published by the Hasbro subsidiary Wizards of the Coast. TwixT has been published by a succession of German companies including Schmidt Spiele and Kosmos under license.
A few of the games that were not acquired by Hasbro, such as Facts in Five and Executive Decision, have since been published by University Games in a bookshelf format. Like the 3M series, they are designed to mimic the appearance of a large hardcover book, but instead of a slip-case, the games use a magnetic closing flap.
