Scrabble, Monopoly and Cluedo are games which have stood the test of time and probably appear in most families' games collections.

Tonga Bonga, The Great Dalmuti and the intriguing Devil Bunny Needs A Ham are probably not quite so well-known.

But all are in the hoard of board games owned by fanatic Mike Bliss.

His home in Grove Road, Burgess Hill, is crammed full with boxes, dice, cards and rule books.

He owns more than 400 games, many of which are German and have been translated using the internet and a dictionary.

Strangely, his interest was sparked when his wife, Angie, threw out the collection he had gathered as a young child.

Mike, 50, said: "I used to be into them when I was younger but didn't play with them for a while after my wife gave them all to a charity shop.

"I had 40 or 50 at that stage and some were quite rare and I decided to get them back again.

"I then found some people to play games with regularly and I have kept buying them from there.

"I get some from a games shop in Germany and there are various places on the internet to buy them by mail order."

Mike's favourite game at the moment is Stimmt So!, a German stock-buying competition.

Germany is the capital of the games-playing world and next week is the annual board game fair in Essen, which Mike has been to for the past two years.

He said: "Each time I have gone, I come back with 30 or 40 games.

"I know if I went again this year, I would come back with a few more and I don't really have the space or the money.

"A couple of friends are going and I have a couple of games on order so I won't be totally bereft. I don't tend to play anything like Scrabble or chess.

"There is such a variety of games out there although when most people think of board games they tend to think of things like Monopoly.

"Some games are very strategic and you know if someone hasn't played it before, they have no chance.

"Others like snakes and ladders are luck.

"I like some sort of chaotic element in games, like my Hawaiian shirts, which I have about 85 of.

"You also need to have some skill but I don't really like 20-page rule books.

"I like games which are fun and that you can come from behind in.

"The ideal time for a game to last is about 90 minutes but many take much, much longer."

Last year, Mike, who works in computers, set up his web site www.theblisspages.com where he gives a rundown of his latest game-playing adventures.

He said: "I put a review of each games event on to the internet and if I don't put a report up, I tend to get emails asking where it is.

"We usually meet once a week and start at 8pm and play games until midnight or 1am.

"Sometimes it can go on until 4am or 5am and occasionally we have a whole weekend when we play."

Mike's three children are also starting to become involved in board games.

He said: "However, my wife is still totally uninterested, which is why she gave my games away in the first place."