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NEWS


‘Embarrassing’ card game Accentuate launches in the UK


By Billy Langsworthy


Adult game sees players attempt over 90 different accents The game includes 90


ACCENTUATE, an adult card game that sees players attempt to mimic different accents, has launched in the UK. The game sees players


reading a quotation aloud in a randomly selected accent, with other gamers having to guess the dialect in queston. “People have described it as one of the most embarrassing and uncomfortable games they have ever played which is why we knew we were onto a winner,” explained Fiona Fraser-Bell, co- inventor and director of


sales and marketing at Accentuate Games. “There are very few party


games capable of reducing people to tears of laughter within seconds of opening the box – we’ve seen grown men crumble when confronted with ‘Egyptian’ on their Accent Card, while others wriggle and squirm as they struggle to mimic what should be a fairly simple ‘native’ dialect such as Geordie. “The beauty is that while


sniggering at everybody else’s attempts, every player knows it’s just a matter of time before it’s their turn so everyone is on edge throughout the entire game.”


Accent Cards featuring 30 different accents from around the globe, a third of which are British dialects such as Cockney, Mancunian and Glaswegian. Overseas accents span all continents and include Russian, German, Chinese and Mexican. Graeme Fraser-Bell,


co-inventor and CEO of Accentuate Games, added: “We already have a local independent stockist in place and have invested heavily in distinctive branding, as well as a heavyweight PR and social media campaign to really bring the brand to life.


“We think it’s the verbal equivalent of Pictionary and we’re confident that Accentuate will be on the wishlists of many Brits this Christmas – Boxing Day will be filled with the sound of thousands of people doing bad impressions of good accents.” As well as being stocked in independent store Linghams Bookshop, the firm is focusing on selling the game via its own site in the manner of Cards Agaist Humanity. The Accentuate team is


now looking at a range of routes to get the game out there into the public eye.


“The margin that we’re hoping to hold onto, we are ploughing back into social media, advertising and maybe looking at cinema investments,” he added. “It’s not really a visual


game, it’s an audible game about accents so radio could also really help.” Accentuate (£23.50) will


have a presence at an array of Christmas gift fairs and exhibitions this year, as well as at key toy and game trade fairs. Accentuate Games: 07748 184 525


Lost My Name offers services to toy sector Shops with an online element can sell the firm’s personalised kids’ books


By Billy Langsworthy


LOST MY NAME, a start-up that uses technology to create personalised story books for children, is looking for toy retailers with an online presence to get on board with the service. Lost My Name’s first


book, The Little Boy/Girl Who Lost His/Her Name, has sold over 40,000 copies in over 90 countries. The Lost My Name site


allows users to type in a name of a child, select a gender and preview a unique personalised story


before ordering a physical copy. “Any toy shop that has some kind of online element, we would love to work with them,” Lost My Name co-founder Sharabi told T


oyNews. “We can bring the whole


experience from our site onto any site. Because we are a tech company, we can help the e-tailer do interesting things with it. “Our top reseller at the moment is NotOnTheHighStreet.com. These guys sell over 1,000 books a month for us.”


The start-up is now


developing the “world’s most technologically advanced picture book” and moving forward, Lost My Name is aligning itself more with the toy sector than the publishing world. Sharabi said: “We don’t


want to be an app studio, and we’re not a publisher. I like to think we are much more in the gift and toy market than simply in the book market. “Everyone’s moving to


eBooks or story app books, but they’re not good at keeping children immersed


in a narrative. We’re keen on narrative, imagination and engagement – it’s the core


to what we’re doing.” Lost My Name: www.lostmy.name


www.toynews-online.biz


July 07


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