Alternative Literature: Board Games

Welcome to the first discussion of alternative literature! I know, I know, it’s all very exciting.

For this first installment we will be discussing board games. Before we begin however we do need to specify the term board game a little.

A board game is a subset of a group of games known as tabletop games, these would include tabletop RPGs, card games, war games and of course board games (which, no doubt, is the most well known version of tabletop gaming). There are two things that separate a board game from it’s tabletop brothers. The first is that the game is self contained, no other pieces must be bought, nothing has to be painted, and no one has to prepare the game in any way (other than become familiar with the rules). The second is that they generally come with a designated play area; a board , if you will. These differences mean that the games are fairly easy to pick up, cheap to produce, and, even if they are rather expensive, ensures a fairly cheap, cost/play ratio.

Now why then does the author insist that these games are literature. The answer is simple: they are story -telling and story creating devices. A board game simulates something, a romp through Candyland, the decisions involved to create a Monopoly, or the everyday problems of Life (see what I did there?) Board games have the edge over books in some ways because they engage the players to live through these dilemmas, even if they are watered down versions.

What I mean when I say they are story-creating devices is also simple. I’m sure that nearly everyone can name a time that the dice landed in their favor at the last minute, or through a shrewd play they were able to win the game. These kinds of stories don’t amount to much, but they are stories after all.

This may seem very general, and it is. In later installments we’ll be looking at rule books, the type of dice used, and even what the board looks like in order to gain a greater appreciation of this form as literature.

On a final note, those in Geekdon will notice that I have only specified very generic and in some ways some of the worst board games ever produced as examples. Rest assured that I play plenty of different games, I’m not limited to Milton-Bradley.