Bored Games

Recently, I've been a bit obsessed with board games and card games, especially of the newer generation (so none of that endlessly rehashed Monopoly malarkey). Through thorough review research, multiple games shop visits and convention trips, and prolonged perusing for price comparison, I've just started my collection with a few games. Namely, they are: the dungeon-crawling, friendly back-stabbing card game, Munchkin (and subsequent, awesome gift from a friend of the spin-off Axe Cop version); the co-operative, medical countdown-to-doom board game, Pandemic; and finally - my personal favourite - king-of-the-hill-style, dice-rolling mayhem, King of Tokyo (and the two expansion packs - and eagerly waiting the standalone sequel game). It's a tiny collection, but each one was the culmination of a lot of elimination and hunting.

Mandatory 'rawr rawr rawr' to be said throughout the course of the game.

So why board games? Surely when it comes to gaming, the modern day has a lot more to offer. I myself love to play video games, on consoles and the PC (calluses on my hands are from all-nighter Street Fighter IV sessions at a friend's, and the broken mouse was the result of a few bad games on League of Legends), so surely board games are a bit boring and backwards by now? No groundbreaking graphics, no fancy animations, and no advanced tech to boot. But isn't it odd how social gaming has to be put back into video games (Candy Crush Life Requests, I'm looking at you)? You don't see many games nowadays that only boast a purely one-player experience; they all include some sort of social element to share your gaming experience with others, however minute or core it may be. I only played League of Legends so that I could team up with my friends, and I only played Street Fighter IV so that I can kick said friends' asses. "Come at me, bro." 

However, as we all started getting jobs, moving to different time zones, and generally just getting busier with life, gaming together online slowly started to fall by the wayside - and so did my interest in it. Chalk it up to growing up, but if you know me well enough, that's probably not the case. Even when online gaming means we can still play together no matter where we are in the world (pending working out time differences), I just don't game that much any more - not even on my own. But on the other hand, board games at its essence demands to be played together. I also love the strategic thinking, the expansive imagination, and the engaging role-playing. But at the core of it, the togetherness is why I still love board games.

And I've had this easily excitable passion of mine since I was a little kid, as I'm sure is the case for most of you. Why? Because back then we didn't have access to all the video games we do now. We couldn't just take out our smartphones from our pockets and jump right into a first-person shooter. But more importantly, it was a family thing. I remember how excited I was as a kid, opening up a box of Risk and having the family gather 'round the table for games night. It was never a routinely thing, but boy, was I hyped when it was announced that we'd play - even though I lost every time. My dad would nonchalantly pretend to not care about the game (before suddenly turning the game with a surprise strategy), my brothers would gang up to eliminate me as quickly as possible (...the jerks), and my mum would comfort and cheer me up when I got massacred. But I loved it in all its entirety, because we were all present in the room and present in the experience.

Nowadays, it's too easy to be distracted. There's always a notification to check on our phones, always a page that needs refreshing, and always a show to watch on TV (as a side note, turn off your damn TV when you're on team chat!). We're so used to multitasking, that we never really actually do any one thing. Your eyes are staring at one thing, your fingers are clicking on another, your listening to something else, and who knows where your mind is at? We don't actually do four different things; we just end up doing none of them. But with a board game, you're all gathered around the same table, in the same room. Whether you're competing against one another, or working as a team to win the game, you're all present in the moment and your attention is on one objective. And that is a rare thing nowadays - all with just a bit of cardboard and plastic.

I gifted Summoner Wars, a mage-duelling card game, to a friend at my job so that we could always have an excuse to catch up after work. I recently played King of Tokyo with my brother, his girlfriend and her brother, late into the evening, instead of watching a movie. I'm currently trying to hunt down a way to get a copy of the card game, Boss Monster, possibly before Christmas time so that I'll have a chance to play with the family. But I know very well that just owning these board games won't mean that I'll be magically transported to where my friends and family are, or that we'll all suddenly have a summer holiday's worth of time to burn. I'll be the first to admit that I rarely get the chance to play any of the games from my collection. But for me, they're the representation of that childlike excitement that lives in me, and the hope that when I do get the chance to hang out with my family and friends (which is quite sad to say, rare), I'll have something for us to do together whilst we chat and catch up - without all the distractions pulling us in different directions.

I'm the Alienoid - fear my tentacles! 

But I get it; board games and card games aren't for everyone. After all, I am a bit of a geek. So I've included here a game I can suggest for you all to play. I read about it somewhere, and have played it on a few occasions, with great results. There aren't many requirements, and there'll be many opportunities for you to play, so give it shot when you next get the chance:

Stacking

Requirements:
- A sturdy table
- A meal (the more courses, the riskier!)
- Phones from players

Players:

- 2 - Unlimited (the more players, the more exciting!) 

Play length:

-Time of meal

Instructions for play:
The next time you're out with family or friends for a meal, everyone is to take out their phones (or handheld gaming devices, if applicable). Everyone then stacks their devices, facedown one on top of the other, at the centre of the table at the beginning of the meal. Despite any ringing, vibrating or blinking, you're not allowed to use your device (in fact, I highly encourage turning all devices on loud, as it makes it that much more tempting). If anyone cannot resist the urge to take their device, they can do so - at the cost of that meal's entire bill. The game ends when someone does so, or the bill is paid as per usual. As an optional side objective, you may want to partake in actual conversation with others at the table - maybe even enjoy the food and company! This game also makes for excellent thief bait.

Game variations:
- As a special rule, you may nominate one person before the game begins to be "Designated Instagrammer". That person is allowed exclusive access to their phone solely for the purpose of taking pictures of food and/or the party. Photos are to be shared later. Any other use of the phone will result in loss of the game, and a public stoning and humiliation.

- Make it into a continuous drinking game throughout the evening. Every time your phone sounds an alert, you must take a shot. You're allowed to then respond to that text or call if you want, but you must first take another shot before you take your phone from the stack. Your phone is then returned to the stack, and the fun continues.

Give it a try next time! I guarantee the first time you play this with your friends, you will be able to see people at the table literally squirm with the need to check their phones - it's hilarious. But at least it's not Monopoly, right? I mean honestly: who ever plays to the end of a game of Monopoly!?