Perfection (board game) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Perfection

Game pieces burst up from a Perfection board
Type	Board game
Company	Milton Bradley Lakeside
Country	United States
Availability	1973–
Slogan	Get Rockin' before the pieces start Poppin'!

Perfection is a fun and fast-paced game created by the Milton Bradley company. The main goal is to fit all the different shapes into their matching holes on the game board. You have to do this quickly before a timer runs out! If you don't finish in time, the board suddenly springs up. This makes most, or even all, of the pieces fly out! In the most common version of Perfection, you need to place 25 shapes into a 5x5 grid in just 100 seconds.

How to Play Perfection

In the original game, one player at a time tries to fit all 25 shapes into the holes. First, you mix up the shapes and place them next to the game board. Make sure their handles are facing up. Then, you push the pop-up tray down and set the timer to 60 seconds.

Once you move the switch to "START", the timer begins. You must quickly fit each shape into its correct hole. If you finish before the time runs out, you move the switch to "STOP". You then record how long it took you. If the timer reaches zero, the tray pops up, scattering all the pieces! The player who fills the tray in the shortest amount of time wins the game.

The First Version (1973)

The very first Perfection game, released in 1973, had a red and yellow board with 25 shapes. Its "pop-up" feature worked with a special plate under the holes. You pushed a "PUSH" button to lower it. This original board also came with a scoreboard. It had four colorful pegs that you could stack.

Players earned one point for each shape they placed correctly. If all 25 shapes were put in before the 60 seconds were up, you also got one point for every second remaining on the clock. If players had the same score, they stacked their pegs on top of each other.

The 1973 version also included red "block-out" squares. These could be used in two ways. For new or younger players, you could cover some holes and remove their matching shapes. This made the game easier. For advanced players, you could cover some holes, but still keep all the shapes in play. This made it harder! In 1975, the game changed to the "pop-up tray" style we know today. The scoreboard, pegs, block-out squares, and a four-point star shape were removed.

Other Versions of Perfection

• Superfection (1975): This is a more advanced version of Perfection. In this game, you have to put together 16 two-piece puzzle cubes. Then, you place them into the tray within two minutes.
• Challenge Perfection (1978): In this version, two to four players race against each other. The goal is to be the first to fill your own base of 18 shapes. However, each player's base is different. This means one player might accidentally take a piece another player needs! This version does not have the famous pop-up feature.
• Head-To-Head Perfection (1987): This game lets two players compete directly. They both try to insert 25 shapes into their own pop-up tray. It's similar to Superfection. The player who finishes their board first presses a bar. This makes the opponent's tray pop up and scatter their pieces!

Perfection Around the World

A version of the game was also released in Japan. It is known as Time Crash (タイムクラッシュ). This Japanese version has a wider board and includes even more pieces to place!