Chicago Toy & Game Week

05/22/2026

Tim Walsh's latest in Boundless Play: On 7 December 1941, Japan attacked Pearl Harbor. But it was what happened the day after the “day that will live in infamy” that led, in time, to a timeless toy.

On 8 December 1941, Japan captured Singapore for the Axis powers, the place where 90% of the world’s natural rubber was produced. As a result, the strategic war material needed to make gas masks, boots, tires, and surgical equipment was severed from the US and its Allies. If what Winnicott said was true, then our ability to create and recreate was never more needed than on that day in 1941. The fate of the world depended on it.

https://boundlessplay.substack.com/p/play-unplanned?r=7vo22&utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web&triedRedirect=true

05/06/2026

Introspective & Fun Interview! Thierry Bourret talks about running Konomocha, learning from Asobi, his blue scooter, Scrooge McDuck, zombies, Bangkok, a washing-up job in his parents' restaurant that he'd rather forget and much more! (Thank you, Thierry!)

https://peopleofplay.com/blog/thierry-bourret-talks-running-konomocha-learning-from-asobi-and-more

04/14/2026

Saturday was National Board Game Day. Big thanks to Peggy Brown for a fun Milwaukee TV segment featuring games from our Chicago Toy & Game Fair!

Some of the fun titles were: Smart Toys and Games's Candy Adventure, The Op Games's Qork, Crazy Aaron's "Pinchies", invented by Tim Walsh, Gray Matters Games's Cross the Line, a collab with David Yakos, Brady Peterson, Grant Lyon, and Danielle Standring and... Mindware, A Berkshire Hathaway Company's Q-Bitz and Count Your Chickens invented by Peggy Brown.!

MindWare Gray Matters Games

In celebration of National Toy and Game Day on April 11, local game inventor Peggy Brown shares her experience at the Chicago Toy and Game Fair last year. the world of games is better than ever before

04/09/2026

We had a blast on WGN TV Spotlight Chicago with Ji & Amy today featuring Young Inventor Challenge winner Tansey Hendrickson and her award-winning game "Ready Set GOAT!" 🐐

There's no better time to get inspired—this Saturday is National Board Game Day! Gather the family, pull out your favorite games...or better yet, start inventing your own. It might just be the next big hit! 💡

Registration for the Young Inventor Challenge opens this August, but you can sign up for alerts now so you don't miss a thing: chitag.com/yic

Who knows? You could be our next spotlight story!

A competition inspiring the next generation to use creativity, critical thinking and steam skills to create their own toy or game. Tansey Hendrickson is the 2025 winner in the “Best Pitch& #82…

03/11/2026

POP Week 2026 Registration is open! Chicago Toy & Game Fair, Toy & Game Inventor Pitch and Innovation Conferences, Toy and Game Innovation Awards, the TAGIEs!

People of Play’s Annual Fall Events Will Bring Together Inventors, Influencers, Consumers, Media, and Industry Leaders from Around the World. The events will run from November 5 - 8 in Rosemont, Illinois. See you there!



https://www.peopleofplay.com/blog/registration-is-open-for-pop-week-2026

02/02/2026

01/14/2026

Goliath acquires Crazy Aaron’s in global deal!

“Since day one, I’ve chased that ‘I have to touch this’ feel for putty,” commented Aaron Muderick, founder and executive chairman of Crazy Aaron's. “This partnership means more opportunities to invent, to delight and to introduce remarkable toys into more hands around the world.”

Congratualtions to Goliath and Crazy Aaron's!

The move builds on Goliath’s previously announced European distribution partnership, with proprietary formulas and fan-favourite lines to accelerate under the new ownership. Goliath has announced the acquisition of Crazy Aaron’s, home of the original Thinking Putty, Land of Dough and Slime Charm...

01/13/2026

The 25 POP Top Profiles of 2025!!!

These are the 25 most-visited POP profiles of the year, representing inventors, executives, creatives, media, storytellers, and connectors whose work (and stories) continue to inspire our global play community.
CONGRATULATIONS ALL!

Nick Metzler Elizabeth Werner Peggy Brown Dougal Grimes Richard Gill Dan Klitsner Nancy Zwiers Robert Fuhrer Michael Kohner Tim Walsh Adi Golad Martin Nedergaard Andersen Kedar Narayan David Fuhrer Marty Abrams Joseph Kling Andreas Hoenigschmid Rachel Griffin Leslie Scott Christopher Byrne Angus Walker Catherine McMillen - Gill Tanya Thompson David Norman Matt Nuccio

The Top 25 POP Profiles of 2025 ( ) Every year, we love seeing which People of Play profiles rise to the top—and 2025 did not disappoint. These are the 25 most-visited POP profiles of the year, representing inventors, executives, cre...

12/16/2025

Interview! Catching up with Eric Olsen, The Inventor of Flip 7 and Co-Creator of Messy Table Games.

Eric, it was great to meet you in person at the Chicago Toy & Game Fair and the Toy and Game Innovation Awards, the TAGIEs! Congratulations on your extraordinary success. Can you share with our readers when and how you got into game design?

I got into games in the summer of 2020, right in the middle of Covid. I grabbed some knick-knacks on the kitchen table and arranged them into a picture. Since I take way too many pictures for no reason, I actually have a picture of the picture. Can you guess it?
Read More....

https://www.peopleofplay.com/blog/catching-up-with-eric-olsen-the-inventor-of-flip-7-and-co-creator-of-messy-table-games

Eric, it was great to meet you in person at the Chicago Toy and Game Fair and the TAGIEs! Congratulations on your extraordinary success. Can you share with our readers when and how you got into game design? I got into games in the summer of 2020,...

12/09/2025

We are a fan! Leslie Scott (creator of Jenga and more) announced the launch of BOUNDLESS PLAY, the Substack.

'Play' is boundless, literally. Leslie has written pieces and commissioned work from a team of guest writers that includes - award winning journalists, esteemed scholars, world-renowned game-designers, thoughtful theorists and expert play practitioners. The aim is to be seriously interesting, and playful, and fun.

READ MORE....
https://www.peopleofplay.com/blog/leslie-scott-creator-of-jenga-announces-the-launch-of-boundless-play