“Everybody loves to play Turn On!”
In 1977, Kenner released Turn On!, a quirky dexterity game based on the human body’s ability to conduct electricity.
The game board consisted of an electronic unit powered by 3 D-batteries that featured an integrated timer and two metal bars protruding from opposite sides.
GAMEPLAY
Players started a game by dividing themselves into multiple teams of two.
Each turn, a team set the timer and drew a card from the deck. Each card contained a list of sequential actions for the duo to complete while the timer ticked away.
While the instructions varied per card, all followed the same theme — teammates attempted to complete a circuit by touching each other and touching either the red or blue metal bar. Turn On! buzzed to indicate a successful connection and the team was rewarded the points indicated on the card.
Each team tackled as many cards as possible until the timer hit zero. After four rounds of play, the team with the highest point total was declared the winner.
FROM KIDS GAME TO ADULT PARTY GAME
Turn On! appears to have been a game in search of an audience, largely due to the risqué nature of some of the action prompts on its cards. Several cards involved one player forming a connection by kissing another, clutching another player’s neck, or standing cheek-to-cheek.
The box art for the initial release featured a photo of a young group of children, an age indicator of 8 to adult, and a tagline of “Fun Game for Everyone…”. Kenner eventually recalibrated the packaging to feature a photo of adults enjoying Right On!, an age reclassification of 10 to adult, and a slightly revised “Party Game for Everyone…” tagline.
IN THE BOX
A complete Turn On! game included the electronic unit with a timer and bell, 54 cards, and a score pad. Printed instructions were included in the box.
COLLECTOR CONSIDERATIONS
Despite its lack of popularity and limited shelf-life, finding copies of Right On! on the secondary market is relatively easy. Many copies of the game can even still be found in unused condition. Collectors looking to amass key versions of the game should focus on the original 1977 release and the version with the reissued packaging also released the same year.
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