Pexeso (also known as Memory game, Concentration game or Pairs). You have probably all heard about this game – you have to look for and collect pairs of identical pictures, a great game for stimulating your concentration and training your memory. Meant primarily for children (but useful and possibly good fun for adults as well).

I have accidentally found one recently. I have no idea how and when I had obtained it, but I obviously forgot about it, and, without even cutting it into pieces, I put it into our family “game cupboard”. When I found it again, a nice logo of recycling immediately caught my eye.

It was a pexeso called Second Chance produced by Recycling Fond in Slovakia. First, I read the accompanying text.

It started like a nice modern fairy tale (“Once upon a time …”) about once obedient things that decided they would not be obedient any more – a light bulb stopped producing light, a newspaper stopped providing fresh news, a tire had holes … And people, who did not see any use for these things, threw them out – where a smart man found the things, crying desperately for a second chance, and told them:

“Things, I will take you from this rubbish dump and you will be useful again, but you have to obey!”

The things agreed, and thus, thanks to the good man, they got into a recycling programme.

(This is probably my favourite line of the whole story – very children-friendly and naturally-sounding …)

What does it actually mean? People will produce new things out of the old ones. A useful bottle out of a glass. Rubber boots for bad weather out of a tire. Climbing frames for children out of tools. Both light bulb and battery will be dismantled and reproduced as a new kind. And, well, newspapers might be used for production of pexeso, such as this one.

What do you think? Will we give things a second chance?

I had to admit it wasn't so bad. Yeah, aside from that weird “getting into a recycling programme” sentence, it was not bad at all. So I opened the sheet in order to have a look at the pictures.

Yuck!

All right, I know the taste differs – but, keeping in mind that these pictures are for children, not only I think the selection here is not very visually pleasant, I think it might scare a lot of children as well.

OK, there are some pictures that are … well, all right.

Then, there are those obviously in accordance with educative purpose of the game, showing how one thing can become another, still useful one, after recycling. Nice, simple. Thumbs up.

There are also some playful and creative …

 … and some over-creative, which, in my opinion, begin to have a power to possibly cause confusion, nausea or fear. I call these familiarly “Mr. How About Some Lead Poisoning?”, “Oil Leak Boy”, “Auntie Electricity Will Kill You” and “Mr. Look Deep Into My Eyes, Innocent Child, And You'll Lose Your Mind Forever”.

And here's my favourite one, “Mr. As Soon As You Fall Asleep, I'll Rip Your Stomach And Eat Your Innards, Bwahahahaha!”.

Honestly, I wouldn't give a game with such pictures to my small children (once I have some). And while the idea is very good, maybe it could be realised in other ways – as something not only original, but also intriguing, imagination-stimulating, with a clear message and nice to look at. Or a popularity of something else could be used to popularise recycling and ecology as well.

How about “Let's recycle with Hannah Montana” Pexeso?