We've got hundreds of different brands of toys and games here at Blickenstaff's! You see the great products and fun packaging but probably don't know too much about the people behind the creative side of these products. We've decided to introduce you to some of our favorite toy/game makers. We want to show you how the best in the business got their start and continue to create quality toys for all of us!

Have you heard of Spot It?
Yeah, it was our #1 selling game last year. Spot It is the creation of Blue Orange Games.

Who founded the company and what was the story behind its creation?
Blue Orange Games was founded nearly 12 years ago in San Francisco by two French natives, Thierry Denoual and Julien Mayot. Thierry had the idea for their first game, Gobblet, while having his coffee at a local coffee shop in Mill Valley, CA. He was day dreaming while looking at different size coffee cups when the concept stuck him. Immediately, he asked the baristas for some cups and started playing right there in the coffee shop. When Thierry showed Julien his inventive new game, the pair recognized an opportunity for a unique enterprise that incorporated their “back to basics” values and creativity. Wasting no time, Julien loaded a beat-up jeep with hundreds of Gobblet games, and took to the open road to discover the market first-hand. In just 3 months he managed to make over 600 visits to specialty stores to meet shop owners and game devotees all across the country. Charmed by their moxie and the undeniable fun of the game, retailers jumped onboard, resulting in the sales of 10,000 Gobblets during that single road trip!

Why the name Blue Orange?
Blue Orange™ Hot Games Cool Planet is named after the Paul Eluard surrealist poem “The Earth is Blue like an Orange.” Not only does the poem’s genre reflect the creativity that drives our company, but it evokes our dedication to eco-friendly production practices, as the poem’s imagery praises the earth.

What is your favorite Blue Orange game to play?
We are incredibly proud of our best-seller, Spot it! Its endlessly entertaining and we love hearing people exclaim in wonderment over how we managed to create one match between any two cards in the deck. We agree with our customers; Spot it! is always fun to show people and all of us at the company play at home with our family and friends.

How do you guys come up with new games? What's the process?
Thierry mainly works alone in the creative stage, testing out ideas and prototypes with friends and family. If they pass that first stage, we then test them at Blue Orange. Julien and Thierry work closely with the marketing team to finalize the themes and the rules of the games. Finally, if they are still good to go, we start to test them with kids in selected schools and key accounts.

With every game, we strive to achieve a balance between challenge and simplicity. Blue Orange games are easy to learn, mentally stimulating and often provoke peals of laughter. But most importantly, they encourage kids & families to sign-off, unplug, and gather around for good ‘ole fashioned fun.

We LOVE Blue Orange Games. Spot It, Tell Tale, Trigger, Dragon Face and a variety of others continually fly off the shelves because they are such family friendly games.

Just in case you've never gotten to experience the joy of a Blue Orange game, we're going to give away a free copy of Spot It, Tell Tale and Trigger to one lucky commenter! That's 3 awesome games!!! Leave a comment answering this question: What was the first game created by Blue Orange Games? (hint, the answer is in the paragraph introducing the founder!)