Board game

A shelf of board games. The left stack contains Carcassonne, La Città, Party & Co, and Monopoly. Carcassonne is a tile-based German-style Board game for two to five players designed by Klaus-Jürgen Wrede and published in 2000 Monopoly is a Board game published by Parker Brothers, a subsidiary of Hasbro. The right stack contains Risk, Drakon, Trivial Pursuit, The Seafarers of Catan, and Cities and Knights of Catan, some in Dutch editions. Risk is a commercial strategic Board game, produced by Parker Brothers (now a division of Hasbro) Trivial Pursuit is a Board game in which progress is determined by a player's ability to answer general knowledge and Popular culture questions The Seafarers of Catan ( German: Die Seefahrer von Catan) is an expansion of the Board game Settlers of Catan for three The Cities and Knights of Catan (Städte und Ritter is an expansion to the Board game Settlers of Catan for three to four players (five to six

A board game is a game which played with counters or pieces that are placed on, removed from, or moved across a "board" (a premarked surface, usually specific to that game). A game is a structured activity, usually undertaken for Enjoyment and sometimes also used as an Educational tool Simple board games often make ideal family entertainment since they are often appropriate for all ages. Some board games, such as chess, go/weiqi, xiangqi, shogi, or oware, have intense strategic value and have been classics for centuries. Chess is a recreational and competitive Game played between two players. or Japanese chess (literally "generals' chess" ˈʃoʊɡiː in English is the most popular of a family of Chess variants native to Japan. Oware is an Abstract strategy game and is the variant of Mancala most widely considered suitable for serious adult competition

There are many different types of board games. Many games simulate aspects of real life. Popular games of this type include:

Monopoly, which simulates the real estate market
Cluedo/Clue, which simulates a murder mystery
Risk, which simulates warfare
Life, which simulates major life decisions and milestones

Other games only loosely, or do not at all, attempt to imitate reality. Monopoly is a Board game published by Parker Brothers, a subsidiary of Hasbro. Real estate is a legal term (in some jurisdictions notably in the USA, United Kingdom Cluedo ( Clue in North America) is a Mystery Crime fiction Board game originally published by Murder is the unlawful killing of another human person with Malice aforethought, as defined in Common Law countries Risk is a commercial strategic Board game, produced by Parker Brothers (now a division of Hasbro) LIFE, also known as The Game of Life, is a Board game originally created in 1861 by Milton Bradley, as The Checkered These games include:

abstract strategy games like chess, checkers, Arimaa, irensei or go
race games like parchisi or backgammon
word games, like Scrabble
trivia games, like Trivial Pursuit. An abstract strategy game is a board or card game with Perfect information, no chance and (usually two players or teams Chess is a recreational and competitive Game played between two players. Arimaa is a two-player Abstract strategy Board game that can be played using the same equipment as Chess. Irensei (囲連星 is an Abstract strategy Board game. It is traditionally played with Go pieces (black and white stones on a Go board (19x19 intersections Race games are a large category of Board games, in which the object is to move all of one's pieces to the end of the board Parcheesi is an American adaptation of the Indian Cross and Circle game Pachisi. Backgammon is a Board game for two players in which the playing pieces are moved according to the roll of Dice. The verb "to scrabble" also means to scratch scramble or scrape about see Wiktionaryscrabble. Trivia (singular trivium) are unimportant (or "trivial" items especially of information Trivial Pursuit is a Board game in which progress is determined by a player's ability to answer general knowledge and Popular culture questions
combination games, like Brain Chain, which mix abstract strategy with trivia. Brain Chain is a strategy-driven Trivia Board game played by 2 or 3 Players or Teams. An abstract strategy game is a board or card game with Perfect information, no chance and (usually two players or teams Trivia (singular trivium) are unimportant (or "trivial" items especially of information

1 History
- 1.1 Timeline
- 1.2 See also
2 Psychology
3 Luck, strategy and diplomacy
4 Common terms
5 References
- 5.1 Further reading
6 See also
7 External links

History

Senet is believedto be the oldest board game

Board games have been played in most cultures and societies throughout history; some even pre-date literacy skill development in the earliest civilizations. A number of important historical sites, artifacts and documents exist which shed light on early board games. Some of these include:

This game can be the oldest board game too, (found in Jiroft civilization)

The Jiroft civilization Game Boards
Senet has been found in Predynastic and First Dynasty burials of Egypt, c. Senet (or senat) a board game from predynastic and ancient Egypt, is the oldest board game whose ancient existence has been confirmed dating The Predynastic Period of Egypt (prior to 3100 BC is traditionally the period between the Early Neolithic and the beginning of the Pharaonic monarchy beginning with King The first dynasty of Ancient Egypt is often combined with the second dynasty under the group title Early Dynastic Period of Egypt. This article is about the country of Egypt For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Egypt topics. 3500 BC and 3100 BC respectively. ^[1] Senet is the oldest board game known to have existed, having been pictured in a fresco found in Merknera's tomb (3300-2700 BC). Events The Great God "Krishna" who is worshiped in all forms as a boy lover warrior brother king teacher son husband etc The 27th century BC is a Century which lasted from the year 2700 BC to 2601 BC ^[2]
Mehen is another ancient board game from Predynastic Egypt. In Ancient Egypt, Mehen is both what appears to be a mythological character Snake - God The character Texts which do not The Predynastic Period of Egypt (prior to 3100 BC is traditionally the period between the Early Neolithic and the beginning of the Pharaonic monarchy beginning with King
Go is an ancient strategic board game originating in China
Patolli is a board game originating in mesoamerica and played by the ancient mayans. China ( Wade-Giles ( Mandarin) Chung¹kuo² is a cultural region, an ancient Civilization, and depending on perspective a National Patolli (the Nahuatl name or patole (the Spanish form is one of the oldest Games in America Mesoamerica or Meso-America (Mesoamérica is a Region extending approximately from central Mexico to Honduras and Nicaragua, defined The Maya civilization is a Mesoamerican Civilization, noted for the only known fully developed written language of the Pre-Columbian Americas
The Royal Tombs of Ur contained, among others, the Royal Game of Ur. Ur ( Sumerian:urim; Akkadian: ?) is modern Tell el-Mukayyar, Iraq, and was a city in ancient Sumer. The Royal Game of Ur refers to two game boards found in Royal Tombs of Ur by Sir Leonard Woolley in the 1920s They were excavated by Leonard Woolley, but his books document little on the games found. Sir Charles Leonard Woolley ( 17 April 1880 &ndash 20 February 1960) was a British Archaeologist best known for his Excavations Most of the games he excavated are now housed in the British Museum in London. The British Museum is a Museum of human history and culture in London. London ( ˈlʌndən is the capital and largest urban area in the United Kingdom.
Buddha games list is the earliest known list of games. The Buddha games list is a list of Games which it is reputed that Gautama Buddha said that he would not play

Timeline

c. 3500 BC - Jiroft civilization The lay-out of the "holes" on the "eagle" boards is also identical to the lay-out of some twenty squares boards used in ancient Egypt, where the game, known as "Aseb," was sometimes put on the other side of case-style Senet boards.
c. 3500 BC - Senet found under Predynastic Egyptian burials;^[1] also depicted in the tomb of Merknera. Senet (or senat) a board game from predynastic and ancient Egypt, is the oldest board game whose ancient existence has been confirmed dating The Predynastic Period of Egypt (prior to 3100 BC is traditionally the period between the Early Neolithic and the beginning of the Pharaonic monarchy beginning with King
c. 3000 BC - Mehen, board game from Predynastic Egypt, played with lion-shaped game pieces and marbles. In Ancient Egypt, Mehen is both what appears to be a mythological character Snake - God The character Texts which do not The Predynastic Period of Egypt (prior to 3100 BC is traditionally the period between the Early Neolithic and the beginning of the Pharaonic monarchy beginning with King The lion ( Panthera leo) is a member of the family Felidae and one of four Big cats in the Genus Panthera. A marble is a small spherical toy usually made from Glass, Clay, or Agate.
c. 3000 BC - Ancient backgammon set, found in the Burnt City in Iran^[3]
c. Backgammon is a Board game for two players in which the playing pieces are moved according to the roll of Dice. Shahr-e Sukhte "Burnt City" (شهر سوخته is an archaeological site of a sizable Bronze Age urban settlement associated with the Jiroft culture. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Iran topics. 2560 BC - Board of the Royal Game of Ur (found at Ur Tombs)
c. The Royal Game of Ur refers to two game boards found in Royal Tombs of Ur by Sir Leonard Woolley in the 1920s 2500 BC - Paintings of senet and han being played made in the tomb of Rashepes
c. Senet (or senat) a board game from predynastic and ancient Egypt, is the oldest board game whose ancient existence has been confirmed dating 2000 BC - Drawing in a tomb at Benihassan depicting two unknown board games being played (depicted in Falkner). It has been suggested that the second of these is tau. Tau (uppercase Τ, lowercase τ; Ταυ) is the 19th letter of the Greek alphabet.
c. 1500 BC - Liubo carved on slab of blue stone. Liubo or liupo ( is an ancient Chinese Board game. History The earliest surviving remnant of liubo dates from circa 1500 BC, Also painting of board game of Knossos. Knossos (alternative spellings Knossus, Cnossus, Greek Κνωσός kno̞ˈso̞s also known as the Knossos Palace is the largest ^[4]
c. 1400 BC - Game boards including alquerque, three men's morris, nine men's morris, and a possible mancala board etched on the roof of the Kurna temple. Alquerque (also known as Quirkat) is a Board game that is thought to have originated in the Middle East. Nine Men's Morris is an abstract Strategy board game for two players that emerged from the Roman Empire. Nine Men's Morris is an abstract Strategy board game for two players that emerged from the Roman Empire. Mancala is a family of board games played around the world sometimes called " Sowing " games or "count-and-capture" games which describes the The Mortuary Temple of Seti I is the Memorial temple (or mortuary temple of Pharaoh Seti I. (Source: Fiske, and Bell)
548 BC The earliest written references to Go/Weiqi come from the Zuo Zhuan, which describes a man who likes the game. The Zuo Zhuan ( translated as the Chronicle of Zuo or the Commentary of Zuo, is the earliest Chinese work of narrative history and
c. 500 BC - The Buddha games list mentions board games played on 8 or 10 rows. The Buddha games list is a list of Games which it is reputed that Gautama Buddha said that he would not play
c. 500 BC - The earliest reference to Chaturaji or Pachisi written in the Mahabharata. Chaturaji (means " four kings " also known as " Choupat " IAST Caupāṭ, caupaʈ is a four player version of Chaturanga Pachisi is a Board game that originated in ancient India; it is described as the national game of India.
c. 200 BC - A Chinese Go/Weiqi board pre-dating 200 BC was found in 1954 in Wangdu County. China ( Wade-Giles ( Mandarin) Chung¹kuo² is a cultural region, an ancient Civilization, and depending on perspective a National This board is now in Beijing Historical Museum. ^[5].
116-27 BC - Marcus Terentius Varro's Lingua Latina X (II, par. Marcus Terentius Varro (116 BC &ndash 27 BC also known as Varro Reatinus to distinguish him from his younger contemporary Varro Atacinus, was a Roman 20) contains earliest known reference to latrunculi^[6] (often confused with ludus duodecim scriptorum, Ovid's game mentioned below). Ludus latrunculorum, latrunculi, or simply latrones (“the game of brigands” from latrunculus, Diminutive of latro, Mercenary Ludus duodecim scriptorum, or XII scripta, was a tables game popular during the time of the Roman Empire. Publius Ovidius Naso ( March 20, 43 BC – 17 AD was a Roman poet known to the English -speaking world as Ovid who wrote on many topics including
1 BC-8 AD - Ovid's Ars Amatoria contains earliest known reference to ludus duodecim scriptorum and the smaller merels. Publius Ovidius Naso ( March 20, 43 BC – 17 AD was a Roman poet known to the English -speaking world as Ovid who wrote on many topics including Ludus duodecim scriptorum, or XII scripta, was a tables game popular during the time of the Roman Empire.
220-265 - Nard enters China under the name t'shu-p'u (Source: Hun Tsun Sii). Backgammon is a Board game for two players in which the playing pieces are moved according to the roll of Dice. China ( Wade-Giles ( Mandarin) Chung¹kuo² is a cultural region, an ancient Civilization, and depending on perspective a National
c. 400 onwards - Tafl games played in Northern Europe.
c. 600 The earliest references to Chaturanga written in Subandhu's Vasavadatta and Banabhatta's Harsha Charitha
c. This article is about two-handed ancient game Chaturanga For the four-handed version played with dice see Chaturaji. Bāṇabhaṭṭa, also known as Bāṇa, was a Sanskrit scholar of 7th century India. Harshacharita ( IAST:Harṣacarita Sanskrit: हर्षचरित "The Deeds of Harṣa" is the Biography of Indian Emperor Harsha 600 - The earliest reference to Chatrang written in Karnamak-i-Artakhshatr-i-Papakan. Shatranj is an old form of Chess, which has been popular in Persia and the Middle East for almost 1000 years

See also: Timeline of chess

Board games first became widely popular among the general population early in the 20th century when the rise of the middle class with disposable income and leisure time made them a receptive audience to such games. This is a timeline of Chess. Early history See also History of chess 6th century - The game Chaturanga probably The middle class, in colloquial usage consists of those who have some economic independence but not a great deal of social Influence or power. This popularity expanded after the Second World War, a period from which many classic board games date. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including

Many board games are now available as computer games, including the option to have the computer act as an opponent; and many acclaimed computer games such as Civilization were originally based upon board games. A personal computer Game (also known as a computer game or simply PC game) is a Video game played on a Personal computer, rather Sid Meier's Civilization is a Turn-based strategy computer game created by Sid Meier for MicroProse in 1991 The rise of computers has also led to a relative decline in the most complicated board games, as computers require less space, and the games don't have to be set up and cleared away. With the Internet, many board games can now be played online against a computer or other players. The Internet is a global system of interconnected Computer networks Some web sites allow play in real time and immediately show the opponent's moves, while most use e-mail to notify the players after each move (see the links at the end of this article).

Some board games make use of additional components, aside from the board and playing pieces. Some games use CDs, video cassettes and more recently DVDs to provide an accompaniment to the game. PLEASE BEAR IN MIND THAT THIS IS A GENERAL ARTICLE ABOUT VCRs/VIDEOCASSETTE RECORDERS A genre of DVD games makes use of the interactive features of DVDs, often to provide a "quizmaster" for trivia games. A DVD TV game (or DVDi, "DVD interactive" is a standalone game that can be played on a set-top DVD player.

The modern board game industry is rife with corporate mergers and acquisitions, with large companies such as Hasbro owning many subsidiaries and selling products under a variety of brand names. Hasbro ( is an American Toy company It is one of the largest toy makers in the world second only to the toy giant Mattel. It is difficult to successfully market a new board game to the mass market. Retailers tend to be conservative about stocking games of untested popularity, and most large board game companies have established criteria that a game must meet in order to be produced. If, for instance, Monopoly were introduced as a new game today, it might not meet the criteria for production. Monopoly is a Board game published by Parker Brothers, a subsidiary of Hasbro.

Psychology

While there has been fair amount of scientific research on the psychology of traditional board games (e. g. , chess, Go, mancala games), much less has been done on more recent board games such as Monopoly, Scrabble, or Risk. Chess is a recreational and competitive Game played between two players. Mancala is a family of board games played around the world sometimes called " Sowing " games or "count-and-capture" games which describes the Monopoly is a Board game published by Parker Brothers, a subsidiary of Hasbro. The verb "to scrabble" also means to scratch scramble or scrape about see Wiktionaryscrabble. Risk is a commercial strategic Board game, produced by Parker Brothers (now a division of Hasbro) ^[7]. Most of the research has been carried out on chess, in part because chessplayers are ranked in national and international rating lists, which makes it possible to compare their level of expertise precisely. The classical works of Adriaan de Groot, William Chase and Herbert Simon have established that knowledge plays an essential role in chessplaying, more than the ability to anticipate moves. Adrianus Dingeman (Adriaan de Groot ( Santpoort, 26 October 1914 &ndash Schiermonnikoog, 14 August 2006 was a Dutch Chess master and Psychologist Herbert Alexander Simon ( June 15, 1916 February 9, 2001) was an American Political scientist whose research ranged This seems to be the case in other traditional games such as Go and oware (a type of mancala game), but data are lacking with more recent board games.

Luck, strategy and diplomacy

One way to categorize board games is to distinguish those based primarily upon luck from those that involve significant strategy. Luck (also called fortunity) is a chance happening, or that which happens beyond a person's control. A Strategy is a long term plan of action designed to achieve a particular goal, most often "winning Some games, such as chess, are entirely deterministic, relying only on the strategy element for their interest. Chess is a recreational and competitive Game played between two players. Children's games, on the other hand, tend to be very luck-based, with games such as Sorry!, Candy Land and Chutes and ladders having virtually no decisions to be made. Sorry!, the slide pursuit game is a Board game based on Pachisi, sold by Parker Brothers. Snakes and ladders, or Chutes and ladders, is a classic children's Board game. Most board games involve both luck and strategy. A player may be hampered by a few poor rolls of the dice in Risk or Monopoly, but over many games a player with a superior strategy will win more often. For other uses see either Die or Dice (disambiguation. Dice (the Plural of Die, from Old French Risk is a commercial strategic Board game, produced by Parker Brothers (now a division of Hasbro) Monopoly is a Board game published by Parker Brothers, a subsidiary of Hasbro. While some purists consider luck to not be a desirable component of a game, others counter that elements of luck can make for far more diverse and multi-faceted strategies as concepts such as expected value and risk management must be considered. For non-business risks see Risk or the disambiguation page Risk analysis. Still, adult game players prefer to make decisions during play and find purely luck based games such as Snakes and ladders quite boring. Snakes and ladders, or Chutes and ladders, is a classic children's Board game.

The third important factor in a game is diplomacy, or players making deals with each other. Diplomacy is the art and practice of conducting Negotiations between representatives of groups or states A game of solitaire, for obvious reasons, has no player interaction. Solitaire, also called patience, is any of a family of single-player Card games of a generally similar character but varying greatly in detail Two player games usually do not have diplomacy, with Lord of the Rings being a notable exception where players compete against an automatic opponent (see cooperative games). Lord of the Rings is a family board game designed by Reiner Knizia based on The Lord of the Rings by J This article is about a part of a game theory For video gaming see Cooperative gameplay. Thus, this generally applies only to games played with three or more people. An important facet of Settlers of Catan, for example, is convincing people to trade with you rather than with other players. Settlers of Catan is a multiplayer Board game designed by Klaus Teuber. In Risk, one example of diplomacy's effectiveness is when two or more players team up against others. Risk is a commercial strategic Board game, produced by Parker Brothers (now a division of Hasbro) Easy diplomacy consists of convincing other players that someone else is winning and should therefore be teamed up against. Difficult diplomacy (such as in the aptly named game Diplomacy) consists of making elaborate plans together, with possibility of betrayal. Diplomacy is a strategic Board game created by Allan B Calhamer in 1954 and released commercially in 1959.

Luck is introduced to a game by a number of methods. The most popular is using dice, generally six-sided. For other uses see either Die or Dice (disambiguation. Dice (the Plural of Die, from Old French These can determine everything from how many steps a player moves their token, as in Monopoly, to how their forces fare in battle, such as in Risk, or which resources a player gains, such as in Settlers of Catan. Settlers of Catan is a multiplayer Board game designed by Klaus Teuber. Other games such as Sorry! use a deck of special cards that, when shuffled, create randomness. Scrabble does something similar with randomly picked letters. Other games use spinners, timers of random length, or other sources of randomness. Trivia games have a great deal of randomness based on the questions a person gets. German-style board games are notable for often having rather less of a luck factor than many North American board games. German-style board games are a broad class of games produced in recent decades in Germany and other countries

Common terms

Carcassonne tokens, or meeples

Although many board games have a jargon all their own, there is a generalized terminology to describe concepts applicable to basic game mechanics and attributes common to nearly all board games. Carcassonne is a tile-based German-style Board game for two to five players designed by Klaus-Jürgen Wrede and published in 2000 For Wikipedia jargon see WikipediaGlossary. For hacker slang see Jargon File. Terminology is the study of terms and their use Terms are Words and Compound words that are used in specific contexts A game mechanic is a construct of rules intended to produce an enjoyable Game or Gameplay.

Game board (or board)—the (usually quadrilateral) surface on which one plays a board game; the namesake of the board game, gameboards are a necessary and sufficient condition of the genre. In Geometry, a quadrilateral is a Polygon with four sides or edges and four vertices or corners. Namesake (sometimes "name's sake" is a term used to characterize a person place thing quality action state or idea that is called after or named out of regard to A genre (ˈʒɑːnrə also /ˈdʒɑːnrə/ from French "kind" or "sort" from Latin: genus (stem gener-) is a loose set
Game piece (or token or bit)—a player's representative on the game board. Each player may control one or more game pieces. In some games that involve commanding multiple game pieces, such as chess, certain pieces have unique designations and capabilities within the parameters of the game; in others, such as Go, all pieces controlled by a player have the same essential capabilities. In Mathematics, Statistics, and the mathematical Sciences a parameter ( G auxiliary measure) is a quantity that defines certain characteristics In some games, pieces may not represent or belong to a particular player.
Jump—to bypass one or more game pieces and/or spaces. Depending on the context, jumping may also involve capturing or conquering an opponent's game piece. (See also: Game mechanic: capture)
Space (or square)—a physical unit of progress on a gameboard delimited by a distinct border. A game mechanic is a construct of rules intended to produce an enjoyable Game or Gameplay. Borders define geographic boundaries of political entities or legal jurisdictions such as Governments States or subnational administrative (See also: Game mechanic: Movement)
Hex In hexagon-based board games, this is the common term for a standard space on the board. A game mechanic is a construct of rules intended to produce an enjoyable Game or Gameplay. This is most often used in war games.

References

^ ^a ^b Peter A. Piccione
^ Okno do svita deskovych her
^ "Iran's Burnt City Throws up World’s Oldest Backgammon." Persian Journal. December 4, 2004. "December 4th" redirects here For the song by Jay-Z, see December 4th (song. Retrieved on November 15, 2006. Events 655 - Battle of Winwaed: Penda of Mercia is defeated by Oswiu of Northumbria.
^ Robert S. Brumbaugh
^ John Fairbairn's Go in Ancient China
^ Varro: Lingua Latina X
^ Gobet, Fernand, de Voogt, Alex, & Retschitzki, Jean (2004). Moves in mind: The psychology of board games. Psychology Press. ISBN 1841693367.

External links

Boardgames in the Open Directory
BoardGameGeek - A board game database with discussion forums.
rec.games.board - A Usenet newsgroup dedicated to board games
Board Games at LoveToKnow - Game overviews, strategies, and tips, including information on educational board games

This is a list of Board games This page classifies board games according to the concerns which might be uppermost for someone organizing a gaming event or party This list includes manufacturers of Card games Board games miniatures games wargames Role-playing games and Collectible card games A DVD TV game (or DVDi, "DVD interactive" is a standalone game that can be played on a set-top DVD player. A card game is any Game using Playing cards either traditional or game-specific Tabletop game is a general term used to refer to Board games Card games Dice games Miniatures wargames Tile-based games and other A wargame is a Game that simulates or represents a Military operation. German-style board games are a broad class of games produced in recent decades in Germany and other countries Usenet, a Portmanteau of "user" and "network" is a world-wide distributed Internet discussion system A newsgroup is a Repository usually within the Usenet system for messages posted from many users in different locations

Dictionary

-noun

(games, board games) Any of many games of strategy or chance played on a specially designed board; often involves two or more opponents moving pieces and using dice or cards.

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