Getting Started with Board Gaming
About 6 minutes
So you've heard about the new board games and want to get involved.
That's great, welcome! This article you everything you
need to get started.
The New Games
Hey, remember
Monopoly?
You'll be pleased to learn we've come a long way from there.
You may be surprised to learn that many of today's games hail from
Germany. We're not sure why – maybe it's bad German TV – but their wide range of
board games have twice as many fans than we do in our much more populous United States.
What makes the games different? Remember the four S's:
Short:
Forget about those games that take the whole evening and only end because
someone throws in the towel. The new games often last only forty-five minutes.
Someone wins
and then you can play it or another game and maybe someone else can win too. There's more
fun for everyone and none of that being knocked out and waiting around bored while others
finish. Everyone stays in the game with a chance to win right up until the end.
Simple:
That forty-five minutes also includes explanation of the rules.
Unlike the innumerable rules found in war games, in the new games everything is easily
understood with but a few elegant concepts. Understanding the rules is no longer the
challenge: picking the best strategy to win is.
Smart:
While not party or word games – although some use those
features too – they manage to challenge the problem-solving abilities of two to five
players without ever being boring or making them wait. The games include small portions
of luck so they never devolve into long analytical sessions in the way that, say,
Chess
does. They also eschew the combat and elimination that can make games so unpleasant for
many of us. At the same time they aren't passive experiences like
The Game of Life
or
Candy Land
with players simply along for the ride. Decisions are called for and by
the end players win and lose on their own merits rather than according to the vagaries
of a spinner or dice.
Chic:
The physical presentation is truly superb. The artwork, often depicting
historical cultures, is done with a high degree of quality and care. The components
are of the highest quality as well. Tiles and boxes are large and feature a sturdiness
that's made to last. Wooden components, often custom made, are preferred over generic
plastic pieces. It's as if the publishers actually care about the products they're making
rather than just sticking something out there to catch the Christmas crowd.
Which Games?
There are a few different avenues you can explore here. I'll
describe each of the more common ones so you can decide the one
that's best for you. Or you can pursue multiple ones as I do.
Casual/Party:
These games are ideal for large groups, that is, more than
five, and always ensure general hilarity. They go over well,
for example, when visiting extended family for birthdays and holidays.
Best in class:
Telestrations
– like the old game of Telephone we used to
play in school, but with drawings
Dixit
– can you think of a single word to describe a picture
that some people will guess, but not all?
The Mind
– test your abilities to think in sync in this very
easy to learn card game
Apples to Apples
– for a given topic, who can play the funniest card
describing it?
Cards Against Humanity
– not for everyone, but an edgy, fast-paced game of raunchy humor
If none of these appeal, or when you are ready to explore further,
I've curated an
additional list
of such games.
Strategy:
I play these types of games with my gaming buddies, that is, other
gaming "addicts". Generally they require a bit more thinking, although
not universally so.
Best in class:
The Settlers of Catan
– one of the pioneers of the new games
Carcassonne
– players work together to build a quaint French medieval town
Ticket to Ride
– draft and play cards to build railroads across America
Pandemic
– all players win or lose together in this game of
fighting worldwide diseases
Hanabi
– all players win or lose together here also, but in a
small package card game format, making it easier to try and
see if you like this sort of game
Two-player:
These are small package games that are easy to take along and play
in a cafe or wherever a table's handy. We break these out when
traveling and need a coffee break. It's a fun way to spend time
while the coffee's brewing.
Lost Cities
– uncover the treasure of five lost civilizations in
this push-your-luck card game
7 Wonders Duel
– build up your civilization via card drafting to
create several of the wonders
The Fox in the Forest
– a trick-taking card game with simple rules, but clever play
Coloretto
– push-your-luck to collect various types of colorful chameleons
Rat Hot
– a tile-laying game where you must consider the third dimension
Morels
– can you collect the beautiful forest mushrooms before they go away?
If you want to explore more, see
Top Ten games to try on the lovely person you've just started dating.
Finding Games
You won't find these games at major department stores, mostly.
The place to look is on-line. You're on-line
already so you're in luck!
BoardGamePrices.com
is a great place to start. Not only do they tell you which on-line
board game specialty shops carry each title, they indicate the price at each.
Increasingly you can also find them at
Amazon.com – Board Games.
Researching Games
If you want to explore more, in particular to see what other kinds
of game types there are, see
The Well-rounded Player.
There are also over 1700 game reviews
on this site.
For even more, the site
BoardGameGeek.com
(BGG) has a plethora of resources. In particular, look for lists of
gateway games.
Finding Players
Now that you have some games, what about players?
The great thing about the games is that they can appeal to a wide
audience, old and young, male and female, analytical or otherwise.
But when you're first starting out there's nothing like
participating with an experienced group. And groups are sprouting up
all over. A good place to find some of them is
MeetUp.com.
It's free to register and use.
Just search for "board games".
Should there not be any in your area, have a look at the BGG website
I mentioned earlier. It has a
database of users
based on geographical location.
For more ideas, read on to learn about stores and board game cafes.
Although board games are a great way to meet new people,
don't forget your existing friends and family. Since the games are a
lot more accessible now, you'll find a lot more of them would like
to play now.
Space
Now that you've got games, and players, where are you going to play?
If you've managed to find a
MeetUp.com
group as suggested above, you've got this solved. The group already
has a place to play.
The traditional board game store used to be a place to play, but
unfortunately they are disappearing as game sales move on-line. But
the good news is that in its place an upcoming trend is that of the
board gaming cafe. This is a place where you can get coffee and
maybe some light food, but also check board games out of their
library – or bring your own – to play.
Search to see if there is one in your area.
Board game stores and cafes are great ways to find opponents as well.
But even if you don't find game cafes, many regular cafes these days
are welcoming to board game players. Since the games don't tend to
have a large tableprint, this can work quite well. Just be sure you
do two things:
ask the cafe in advance, and be sure to buy something.
Failing all these, consider starting your own group in your own
home. If you need opponents try contacting some of those listed in your
area on the BGG
database of users.
What's Next
After you play your games, head over to
BoardGameGeek.com
and give them a rating. You will also find that for those games you
like, the site recommends other games you will probably also like.
Play and rate those and keep going.
Eventually you may like to attend some
game conventions,
where you
can find many new games, players and get a larger sense of the wider
gaming world. The largest one in the world happens every October in
Essen, Germany, and attracts over two hundred thousand visitors from
all over the world in its four days. Here are some images from the
2010 edition.
Happy gaming!