I’ve been obsessed with lists since as far back as I can remember.
I can’t remember much before the age of 7 but that’s a near lifetime obsession …
Which in turn means that whilst 3ology might be a new and exciting board game due for release in late 2024, it’s a game that’s been fermenting for near half a century.
Let me take you back …
The first FA Cup Final I recall watching in real time was in May 1974.
Newcastle United — in those days still remembered as cup specialists — turned up at Wembley Stadium to be rolled over by the increasingly mighty Liverpool Football Club.
The Magpies weren’t to reappear in a FA Cup Final for almost 25 years when they were rolled over again in consecutive years (1998, 1999).
Now, you might have spotted a level of insight about English Cup Finals that’s uncannily nerdy and you’d be right, because Cup Finals became my first true list obsession.
My playground party piece became an ability to name every Cup Final team, score and scorer since the Second World War. Impressive, but appreciated rather more by the local boys than the dismissive girls.
I was however soon confronted by Paul Simon offering me “50 Ways To Leave Your Lover”.
Whilst unsure aged 8 what a lover was and feeling very misled that Paul offered only 5 unique methods to ditch one, the song only deepened my love affair with lists.
They became a central pillar of my lonely childhood, emerging friendships, regular pub conversations and occasional chat-up lines.
For me, lists could make or break relationships.
If Hitler, Trump or Beckham emerged as a Top 5 dinner party guest then it was unlikely that early stage friendship had legs.
Conversely, any young woman dropping All Mod Cons into their Top 5 albums was IMO a keeper, until back at her flat I spotted the Rio vinyl awaiting its next play on the turntable.
Lists break the ice.
Reduce small talk.
They’re the conversational equivalent of “Move Fast, and Break Things”
And what’s more, no list is ever fixed in stone … apart from the 10 Commandments which don’t actually exist. Whereas The EdStone most certainly did.
But the great thing about personal lists is that they are just a snapshot in time; the emotional equivalent of a financial balance sheet; Capturing the you of then, but rarely the you of now.
Ask me to list my favorite films today.
Ask me again in 6 months.
Then tut to yourself about what a turncoat and bundle of contradictions I’ve become.
Obviously there’s a judgment call about when to introduce lists into a conversation.
Dropping a list too early into a first date is high risk, but could save you a long night and/or failed marriage.
And the ugly, modern flip side of my/our obsession with lists are those clickbait scoundrels and lazy Channel 5 TV producers delivering …
“The 7 secrets behind making your Ponzi a success”
“WOW — 10 farts that changed the world”
But overall it’s clear that lists deliver a net benefit to the world and from that premise emerged an idea around creating a game that takes the humble list and gives it a competitive twist.
I piloted an early version in the early 2000’s based around “Top 5” lists — thanks here to my good friend Nick Denny who helped me whiteboard the concept.
But life took over and it was then parked until the beginning of this year (2024) when I decided that one new year’s resolution I planned to keep was … “Launching Top 5”.
Joined this time by another great friend Alan Montague, who shares a similar lifetime affection for lists, we iterated Top 5 into Top 3 which evolved to become 3ology.
A game that will be new to the market, but has been 50 years in the making.
Andrews’s Top 3 Films (as at August 2024)
1. Pulp Fiction