About the Funfair Odd One Out Game
The smell of candy floss, the lights of the waltzers, winning a teddy bigger than you are — the funfair has been making memories for generations. Step right up and match the fairground deck.
What's on the Funfair board
The tiles in play — 12 in all, one of which keeps being the odd one out: 🎡 Ferris Wheel🎠 Carousel🎢 Roller Coaster🎪 Big Tent🎈 Balloon🍭 Lollipop🧸 Prize Teddy🎯 Hook-a-Duck🎟️ Ticket🍿 Popcorn🤹 Juggler🎆 Fireworks
Study tip: the odd one out is chosen by difference, so learn the board as groups. If you know the first three tiles — ferris wheel, carousel and roller coaster — belong together, anything that breaks that set stands out instantly.
How to memorise a retro board
Retro decks come with nostalgia hooks already installed. For each item, tag it with a memory — the cassette you unwrapped, the console a friend had, the sweet shop on the way home. Tagging takes one glance per card and converts abstract pictures into personal souvenirs, which survive the memory test dramatically better.
If the nostalgia is not yours (you did not live the decade), anchor on design instead: chunky shapes, bright plastics, pixel art. Retro items are deliberately exaggerated, and exaggeration is memorable — notice what makes each item ridiculous and the board remembers itself.
How to Play
- Press Start. A grid appears — almost every tile shows the same picture.
- Scan the grid for the one tile that is different.
- Tap it before the timer runs out.
- Each round adds more tiles and less time. Three misses ends the run.
Fun Facts About Funfair
- The first Ferris wheel was built by George Ferris for the 1893 World's Fair in Chicago.
- Carousel horses were traditionally hand-carved from wood and painted by specialist artists.
- Travelling fairs in Britain date back over 800 years, beginning as medieval trading fairs.
- Early roller coasters were inspired by Russian ice slides built in the 1600s.
Retro deck questions
Good theme for a mixed-age family game?
The best one on the site. The adults recognise the 80s and 90s items on sight, the children meet them as new discoveries, and both sides think they have the advantage. Best-of-five settles it.
Do the retro decks differ much between themes?
Yes — the decades decks, the arcade deck and the sweets deck share a mood but almost no items. If one feels too easy, the others will not.