The Red Box Smells Weird...

[Scribble]

No- not in some metaphorical sense.

I picked one up the other night, and I've noticed it smells... weird. Not bad, or like there's something wrong or anything.

It just has a definite, I guess- "New Box Smell."

 

[No Name]

I noticed the taste was a little off too.

 

[McFluff]

One of the vendors I deal with at work brought us a new vodka they wanted us to start carrying the other day. The box it came in smelled funny too. It's a conspiracy.

 

[JohnSnow]

I noticed the smell, but it didn't seem at all odd to me.

However, I asked my wife, who has a much more acute sense of smell than I. She assures me it's the plastic pouch the dice come in. In other words, the box has a slight odor of cheap plastic.

If you're enough of an old-timer to be familiar with the original Red Box, the smell is that of nostalgia: because it's almost the same as the scent of a crayon, like the one that used to be included in every set.

 

[AngryMojo]

It might be past it's shelf life. I'd avoid eating it, you might get salmonella.

 

[Vartan]

My first impression, which was shared by a friend who hasn't gamed in ears, is that it smelled like MtG card circa the Mirage expansion. This lead to a long, drunken conversation about how strongly we associate memories with the distinct smells of new NES cartridges, TSR-era books, and Marvel comics.

 

[Scribble]

My first impression, which was shared by a friend who hasn't gamed in ears, is that it smelled like MtG card circa the Mirage expansion. This lead to a long, drunken conversation about how strongly we associate memories with the distinct smells of new NES cartridges, TSR-era books, and Marvel comics.

Ugh... no denying the smell/memory thing...


My parents had a septic tank, and every so often when those things are old you have to get a truck to come by and suck out all the poo...

When it gets really bad, sometimes they put this acid stuff in it to eat away at the surrounding clay, and make it a little better at draining again...

Anyway it smells horrifying during the whole process, and when they were having it done I'd just gotten my Hollow World boxed set.

to this day every time I open that boxed set I can remember that smell.

 

[hutchback]

It could be the varnish they use on their materials. Some of the brochures I've gotten back from printers stink to the high heavens until the varnish is done evaporating.

 

[Scribble]

However, I asked my wife, who has a much more acute sense of smell than I. She assures me it's the plastic pouch the dice come in. In other words, the box has a slight odor of cheap plastic.

Actually I think this is correct... It kind of smells similar to the new car smell, and I heard a thing on NPR where they mentioned the new car smell was actually the plastic... And it's actually not that great for you, so you should open your windows a lot when you get a new car (or a new redbox I guess...)

 

[YourSwordIsMine]

It's not the rank stench of the Fiend Folio....

but yes, it does have a smell.