Game:POG Surf 'n Toss Game

Toy fads often blaze for a moment and then fizzle out. Such was the case for pogs, a type of gaming system and name for the implements used in the game as well. Officially, the pogs game probably began in the 1920s, when Hawaiians played the game with cardboard bottle caps. The caps came from a mixture of pomegranite, orange and guava juice, hence the name "pog." The traditional game involved throwing heavier pogs, "slammers" at a stack of regular pogs, in an attempt to turn them over. Pogs were collectible too and if playing "for keeps" the winner won the loser's pogs. A teacher in Hawaii initially re-introduced the game to her students as a teaching tool, and it caught on rapidly. Several game producers made special versions of games played with pogs. Of course, players could play the traditional game with their pogs as well. The fad was over as the 1990s ended.