Il ~ By Gavin Crisp With Halloween on our door- ste ps, rnany stores are net only making room for the usùal asort- ment of costumes and candy associated with the festive holi- day, but are also reserving space for a relative nowcomor to the horror scone -- board games. Following the succoss of the VCR/Interactive board game, 'Nightmare,' many entrepreneurs can see a future for such a genre as horror in the. board, game industry. One such astute believer of the latter is Whitby's Rvyan Parfitt. He is now in chare of pro- motions at Dark ùore ncorpora- ted, a Whitby-based business and manufacturer of the Dark Lore board game created by Par- fitt. "I used ' to work at a video store. 1 saw the sales of the horror movios and knew there was potential in horror-related items. "I then had a dream about the board game. I wrote the idea down and brought it in to a girl at work the next day.» Approximately five months and many, many, questions later, Parf»itt devised a rotYpe. The game, which celebrated its fifth anniversary last summer, is, in Parflitt's opinion, "a horror trivia game.» The object of the game is for -playors to ýmove tokens which are, fittingly enough, based on the classic spooks and spectres we are ail familiar with, to the top of a castle which makes up tho board. Players reach their quarry.by answening questions concerning -- you guessed it -- horror. More specifically, the game is comn- posed of six categories: horror movies, monsters and magic, the supernatural, superstitions, mixed macabre, and cemedy hor- rer. The gamo aise includes 'Full Moon' cards -- the equivalent of 'Chance' cards in Monopoly -- and, according to Parfitt; they 'spice up the game.' Pin area whero there might be some dism ay on bohal* of parents is the age group at which the game is focused. The manufac- turers recommend that the game ho played by children aged 12 and oer. This could bo acquittod on the basis of the game's emphasis on horror-related matt r. On the iighter side of the game, one will bo able to identifý theogame by its spokosporson, Elvira, who aIse dons the cover of the game. Best known for showing the iighter side of horror, Elvira met with Dark Loro ropresontatives south of the border. Agreeing on the notion that her character would suit the game and best represent what it stood for -- a fun look at horror -- the company agreod to fly Elvira north for the photo shoot. Now that Dark Lore has become establishod, Parfitt hopes to branch off in the board game industry. One such game that you may find in stores in the future is a board gamo based upon horror author Stephen King and his novels, short storios and screen- plays. Parfitt féeos he owes his busi- ness's. success to the buzz con- cerning horror produced in other modiums. Such writers as King and Anne Rice are rejuvenating a genre thà t depicted the 'life' o f the' 'dead .' And with a considerable amount of these novels being turned into movies, more anad more people are being attuned to the ways of inonsters and may- hem says Parfitt. "FIiror has been a lifelong interest of mine. (Horror) is Iget- ting biggor and botter as tîme progresses," says Parfitt. I n moies, budgets are gatting bigger. Before these, many people with whom I had talked were worried for the lack of interest.» As it turned eut, their worries were unnecessary. 'Dark Lore is selling for $34.99 at ail Dufferin and Leisure World game stores. Country &Wctrn Wcckcnd 1 Brougham Hall: Saturday & Sunday November 5th & 6th, 7:30 pm SING us A soNS...n $350.00 in CASH in the Karaoke Contest Country & Western Dance and Karaoke Contest with D.J. Brian Ponting of Newmarket --~Sunday Night<~~ Karaoke Contest Finals Live Country & Western Concert with Cheryl Privit and Durham County Line with Special Guests and M.C. Blair Ravenhili of Country Music Canada ADVANCE TICKETS: $8.00 Nightly or $1 4.00 Weekend Avalable at Rita's Restaurant 'FOR MORS DETAILS GALL (905) 649-5943 jDinfing Room Specials1 m Buy one entrée à t regular price ATI1/2PICE dg Equai or lesser value. Not lo be used wfth Chter * specials. Expires November 30,1994. q - - - -- - - - - -- - - PARK LORE creator Ryan Pari itt with his horror trivia board game, which is manufac- tured in Whitby. The gae is even endorsed by Elvira, Mis- tress of the Dark.' Photo by Mark Reesor, Whitby Free Press .POOLL TRALE EVERY. WEEK .0*"PEËN 7D1YAbWEM- Buy toys that are builit to, Iast and other familles or ahospitals wMen your children outgrow them. Whitby Free Press, Wecinesday, October 26, 1994 ,Page 17 I)4I1C 1,01jj~ Whltby resident's board game DARKI-jREis a 'fun' look at orror bu 1 lopkilis St.. 0(iO-S(ii7 Wiliquci - l"11.1\ kooli) Opéi l 7 (1,1\ ', Il \ý ý:A M - lumu h w v s, <1~ 'i Il I. lii 'i 'i 'I H