board game#Common terms
{{Short description|Genre of seated tabletop social play}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2021}}
File:US Navy 110713-N-NT881-124 Personnel Specialist 2nd Class James Vail, left, and Boatswain's Mate 2nd Class Nathaniel Eaton play board games with ch.jpg is licensed in 103 countries and printed in 37 languages.{{cite web|date=20 February 2008|title=You can choose cities for new Monopoly game |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna23238096|work=NBC News|access-date=16 September 2023}}]]
File:Pelipäivä Iisalmen kaupunginkirjastossa.jpg library in Finland, 2016]]
A board game is a type of tabletop game{{Cite book|last=Woods|first=Stewart|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xgmjCHxSxvoC&q=history+of+board+games&pg=PP1|title=Eurogames: The Design, Culture and Play of Modern European Board Games|date=16 August 2012|isbn=9780786490653|page=5|publisher=McFarland|df=dmy}} [https://ia801801.us.archive.org/5/items/woods-2012-eurogames-p-5/Woods%20%282012%29%20Eurogames%20-%20p5.pdf Alt URL] that involves small objects ({{boardgloss|pieces|game pieces}}) that are placed and moved in particular ways on a specially designed patterned game board,{{cite web|title=Board game|website=Merriam Webster (www.merriam-webster.com)|language=en|url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/board%20game|access-date=3 January 2025|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241009142052/https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/board%20game|archive-date=9 October 2024|url-status=live|df=dmy}}{{cite web|title=Board game|website=Cambridge (www.dictionary.cambridge.org)|language=en|url=https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/board-game|access-date=1 January 2025|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241213204013/https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/board-game|archive-date=13 December 2024|url-status=live|df=dmy}}{{cite web|title=Board game|website=Oxford Learners Dictionary (www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com)|language=en|url=https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/definition/english/board-game|access-date=1 January 2025|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230808181909/http://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/definition/english/board-game|archive-date=8 August 2023|url-status=live|df=dmy}}{{cite web|title=Board game|website=Oxford English Dictionary (www.oed.com)|language=en|url=https://www.oed.com/dictionary/board-game_n?tab=factsheet&tl=true#1410500690|access-date=18 January 2025|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250118074145/https://www.oed.com/dictionary/board-game_n?tab=factsheet&tl=true#1410500690|archive-date=18 January 2025|url-status=live|df=dmy}}{{cite web|title=Board game|website=Collins Dictionary (www.collinsdictionary.com)|language=en|url=https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/board-game|access-date=1 January 2025|archive-url=https://archive.today/20250103131400/https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/board-game|archive-date=3 January 2025|url-status=live|df=dmy}}{{cite web|title=Board Game|website=Dictionary.com (www.dictionary.com)|language=en|url=https://www.dictionary.com/browse/board%20game|access-date=7 January 2025|archive-url=https://archive.today/20250107093506/https://www.dictionary.com/browse/board%20game|archive-date=7 January 2025|url-status=live|df=dmy}}{{cite web|title=Board game|website=Britannica Dictionary|language=en|url=https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/board-game|access-date=18 January 2025|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221208030134/https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/board-game|archive-date=8 December 2022|url-status=live|df=dmy}} potentially including other components, e.g. dice. The earliest known uses of the term "board game" are between the 1840s and 1850s.
While game boards are a necessary and sufficient condition of this genre, card games that do not use a standard deck of cards, as well as games that use neither cards nor a game board, are often colloquially included, with some referring to this genre generally as "table and board games" or simply "tabletop games".{{Cite book|last=Engelstein|first=Geoffrey|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OpEIEAAAQBAJ&dq=%22tabletop+games%22+%22game+board%22&pg=PP10|title=Game Production: Prototyping and Producing Your Board Game|page=1|date=21 December 2020|publisher=CRC Press|isbn=978-1-000-29098-1|language=en|df=dmy}} [https://ia600707.us.archive.org/32/items/engelstein-2020-game-production-p-1/Engelstein_2021_game-production_p1.pdf Alt URL]
Eras
{{Further|History of games}}
=Ancient era=
Board games have been played, traveled, and evolved in most cultures and societies throughout history{{Cite book|last1=Livingstone|first1=Ian|title=Board games in 100 moves|last2=Wallis|first2=James|publisher=Dorling Kindersley|year=2019|isbn=978-0-241-36378-2|location=London|oclc=1078419452}} Board games have been discovered in a number of archeological sites. The oldest discovered gaming pieces were discovered in southwest Turkey, a set of elaborate sculptured stones in sets of four designed for a chess-like game, which were created during the Bronze Age around 5,000 years ago.{{Cite web|last=Solly|first=Meilan|title=The Best Board Games of the Ancient World|url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/best-board-games-ancient-world-180974094|access-date=6 February 2020|website=Smithsonian Magazine|language=en|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241001091826/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/best-board-games-ancient-world-180974094|archive-date=1 October 2024|url-status=live|df=dmy}}{{cite web|title=Oldest Gaming Tokens Found in Turkey|website=Discovery News (www.news.discovery.com)|date=14 August 2013|first=Rossella|last=Lorenzi|language=en|url=http://news.discovery.com/history/archaeology/oldest-gaming-tokens-found-130814.htm|access-date=13 April 2025|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140214203403/http://news.discovery.com/history/archaeology/oldest-gaming-tokens-found-130814.htm|archive-date=14 February 2014|url-status=dead|df=dmy}} Numerous archaeological finds of game boards exist that date from as early as the Neolithic period including, as of 2024, a total of 14 Neolithic sites reporting 51 game boards, ranging from mid-7th millennium to early 8th millennium.{{cite journal|title=What are the odds? Neolithic "game boards" from the Levant|journal=Journal of Arid Environments|volume=225|number=105257|date=December 2024|first=Gary|last=Rollefson|language=en|url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S014019632400137X|access-date=18 April 2025|df=dmy}}{{cite web|title=La Prehistoire des jeux|trans-title=The Prehistory of Games|number=33|date=December 2012|first=Gary|last=Rollefson|pages=18–21|journal=Histoire Antique & Médiévale|language=fr|url=https://www.faton.fr/dossiers-dhistoire/numero-33/art-jeu-jeu-l-art/prehistoire-jeux.32646.php#article_32646|access-date=18 April 2025|df=dmy}}
==Oldest game==
The Royal Game of Ur, estimated to have originated from around 4,600 years ago in ancient Mesopotamia, an example of which was found in the royal tombs of ancient Mesopotamia ({{Circa|2600 BC}} – {{Circa|2400 BC}}),{{cite web|title=game-board: Museum number 120834|website=British Museum (www.britishmuseum.org)|language=en|pages=11–15|url=https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/W_1928-1009-378|access-date=15 April 2025|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250415000000/https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/W_1928-1009-378|archive-date=15 April 2025|url-status=live|df=dmy}} [https://ia600704.us.archive.org/16/items/the-royal-game-of-ur-british-museum/The%20Royal%20Game%20of%20Ur%2C%20British%20Museum.pdf Alt URL]{{cite book|title=Ancient board games in perspective {{!}} Papers from the 1990 British Museum colloquium, with additional contributions|editor=I.L. Finkel|publisher=British Museum Press|publication-place=London|date=2007|first=Irving L.|last=Finkel|language=en|url=https://annas-archive.org/md5/189bf3233143e3aa74a521089bae39dc|access-date=17 April 2025|df=dmy}}{{Cite journal|last=Depaulis|first=Thierry|date=1 October 2020|title=Board Games Before Ur?|journal=Board Game Studies Journal|language=en|volume=14|issue=1|pages=127|doi=10.2478/bgs-2020-0007|issn=2183-3311|doi-access=free|url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/350710812_Board_Games_Before_Ur|access-date=17 April 2025|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250417000000/https://www.researchgate.net/publication/350710812_Board_Games_Before_Ur|archive-date=17 April 2025|url-status=live|df=dmy}} [https://ia601508.us.archive.org/14/items/depaulis-2020-board-games-before-ur/Depaulis%20%282020%29%20Board%20Games%20Before%20Ur.pdf Alt URL] is considered the oldest playable boardgame in the world, with well-defined game's rules discovered written on a cuneiform tablet by a Babylonian astronomer in {{Circa|177 BC}} – {{Circa|176 BC}}.{{cite web|title=Top 10 historical board games|website=British Museum (www.britishmuseum.org)|date=26 February 2021|language=en|url=https://www.britishmuseum.org/blog/top-10-historical-board-games|access-date=3 January 2025|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231027133607/https://www.britishmuseum.org/blog/top-10-historical-board-games|archive-date=27 October 2023|url-status=live|df=dmy}}{{cite book|title=Ancient Board Games in Perspective {{!}} Papers from the 1990 British Museum colloquium, with additional contributions|chapter=3. On the Rules for the Royal Game of Ur|page=16|year=2007|first=Irving L.|last=Finkel|language=en|publisher=British Museum Press|publication-place=London|url=https://csclub.uwaterloo.ca/~pbarfuss/On_the_Rules_for_the_Royal_Game_of_Ur.pdf|access-date=17 April 2025|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250417000000/https://csclub.uwaterloo.ca/~pbarfuss/On_the_Rules_for_the_Royal_Game_of_Ur.pdf|archive-date=17 April 2025|url-status=live|df=dmy}} [https://ia600704.us.archive.org/32/items/finkel-2007-on-the-rules-for-the-royal-game-of-ur-p-16/Finkel%20%282007%29%20On%20the%20rules%20for%20the%20Royal%20Game%20of%20Ur%20-%20p16.pdf Alt URL]
Currently, Senet is argued to be the oldest known board game in the world, with possible game board fragments ({{circa|3100 BC}}) and undisputed pictorial representations ({{circa|2686;BC}} – {{circa|2613 BC}}){{cite journal|last=Sebbane|first=Michael|year=2001|title=Board Games from Canaan in the early and intermediate Bronze Ages and the origin of the Egyptian Senet game|journal=Tel Aviv|volume=28|issue=2|pages=213–230|doi=10.1179/tav.2001.2001.2.213|s2cid=162219908}} having been found in Predynastic and First Dynasty burials dating as far back as 3500 BC. However, while Senet was played for thousands of years, it fell out of fashion sometime after 400 A.D. during the Roman period; the rules were never written down, therefore they are not decisively known.{{cite web|title=How Senet Works|website=How Stuff Works (www.entertainment.howstuffworks.com)|first=Laurie L.|last=Dove|language=en|url=https://entertainment.howstuffworks.com/leisure/brain-games/senet.htm#pt1|access-date=13 April 2025|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250207171850/https://entertainment.howstuffworks.com/leisure/brain-games/senet.htm#pt1|archive-date=7 February 2025|url-status=live|df=dmy}} Similarly, Mehen is one of the oldest games dated with reasonable confidence, i.e., {{circa|3000 BC}} – {{circa|2300 BC}},{{Cite book|title=Ancient Egyptians at Play: Board Games Across Borders|last=Crist|first=Walter|display-authors=etal|publisher=Bloomsbury|year=2016|isbn=978-1-4742-2117-7|location=London|pages=15–38}} with some estimating it dates back to {{circa|3500 BC}}. The rules, scoring system, and game pieces, however, are unknown or speculative.
The title of the oldest known board game has been difficult to establish.{{cite web|title=The Oldest Games in the World|website=Good Games (www.goodgames.com.au)|date=31 July 2023|language=en|url=https://www.goodgames.com.au/articles/the-oldest-board-games-in-the-world|access-date=7 January 2025|archive-url=https://archive.today/20250106224937/https://www.goodgames.com.au/articles/the-oldest-board-games-in-the-world|archive-date=6 January 2025|url-status=live|df=dmy}} An example of this is mancala, which includes a broad family of board games with a core design of two rows of small circular divots or bowls carved into a surface, which has had numerous estimations of its generic age due to the many variants that have been discovered in different locations across Africa, the Middle East, and southern Asia. These are dated across many different historical periods, from archeological sites dating the game at {{Circa|800 BC}} – {{Circa|200 BC}} (Roman Settlements); {{Circa|2500 BC}} – {{Circa|1500 BC}} (Egypt); and even {{Circa|7000 BC}} – {{Circa|5000 BC}} (Jordan). The later based on divots carved out of limestone in a Neolithic dwelling from {{Circa|5870 BC}} ± 240 BC,{{cite book|title=Ancient Board Games in perspective: Papers from the 1990 British Museum colloquium, with additional contributions|publisher=British Museum Press|publication-place=London|editor=I.L. Finkel|year=2007|first=St John|last=Simpson|chapter=1. Homo Ludens: The Earliest Board Games in the Near East|pages=5–10|language=en|url=https://www.academia.edu/3584121/Homo_Ludens_The_Earliest_Board_Games_in_the_Near_East|access-date=17 April 2025|df=dmy}}{{cite web|title=Mancala|url=https://www.savannahafricanartmuseum.org/2020-workshops/05-2#:~:text=There%20is%20archeological%20and%20historical,floor%20of%20a%20Neolithic%20dwelling|website=Savannah African Art Museum|access-date=10 December 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241210045650/https://www.savannahafricanartmuseum.org/2020-workshops/05-2|archive-date=10 December 2024|url-status=live|df=dmy}} although this later dating has been disputed.{{Cite journal|last=Depaulis|first=Thierry|date=1 October 2020|title=Board Games Before Ur?|journal=Board Game Studies Journal|language=en|volume=14|issue=1|pages=127–144|doi=10.2478/bgs-2020-0007|issn=2183-3311|doi-access=free}} Furthermore, when considering the Neolithic period game boards discoveries, caution has been given against considering these finds as representing earliest human game playing, as the absence of evidence of such games does not equate to evidence that no games were played during earlier periods.{{cite journal|title=A Neolithic Game Board from CAin Ghazal, Jordan|journal=Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research|date=May 1992|number=286|first=Gary O.|page=3|last=Rollefson|language=en|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/pdf/1357113.pdf|access-date=18 April 2025|publisher=University of Chicago Press|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250419000000/https://www.jstor.org/stable/pdf/1357113.pdf|archive-date=19 April 2025|url-status=live|df=dmy}} [https://ia601504.us.archive.org/20/items/rollefson-1992-a-neolithic-game-board-from-ain-ghazal-jordan-p.-3/Rollefson%20%281992%29%20A%20Neolithic%20Game%20Board%20from%20%CA%BFAin%20Ghazal%2C%20Jordan%2C%20p.3.pdf Alt URL]
File:Men Playing Board Games.jpg| Men Playing Board Games, from The Sougandhika Parinaya Manuscript
File:-3000 Abydos Spiel der Schlange Mehen anagoria.JPG|Mehen game with game stones, from Abydos, Egypt, 3000 BC, Neues Museum
File:Maler der Grabkammer der Nefertari 003.jpg|Painting in tomb of Egyptian queen Nefertari (1295–1255 BC) playing senet
=Golden era=
The 1880s–1920s was a board game epoch known as the "Golden Age", a term coined by American art historian Margaret Hofer where the popularity of board games was boosted through mass production making them cheaper and more readily available.{{Cite book|last=Hofer|first=Margaret|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=icYtGRUZrZUC|title=The Games we Played: The Golden Age of Board and Table Games|date=1 March 2003|publisher=Princeton Architectural Press|isbn=978-1-56898-397-4|language=en}}{{rp|11}} The most popular of the board games sold during this period was Monopoly (1935), with 500 million games played as of 1999.{{cite web|title=Most popular board game|website=Guinness World Records (www.guinnessworldrecords.com)|language=en|url=https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/72473-most-popular-board-game|access-date=6 January 2025|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220426181116/https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/72473-most-popular-board-game|archive-date=26 April 2022|url-status=live|df=dmy}}
=Renaissance era=
File:Board_games_with_expansions_1944-2017.svg. Expansion sets for existing games are marked in orange.]]
In the late 1990s, companies began producing more new games to serve a growing worldwide market.{{Cite web|last=Smith|first=Quintin|date=October 2012|title=The Board Game Golden Age|url=http://www.shutupshow.com/post/34426556753/su-sd-present-the-board-game-golden-age|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130601124655/http://www.shutupshow.com/post/34426556753/su-sd-present-the-board-game-golden-age|archive-date=1 June 2013|access-date=10 May 2013}}{{Cite web|title=A look into the golden age of boardgames {{!}} BGG|url=https://boardgamegeek.com/thread/1943195/look-golden-age-boardgames|access-date=11 December 2024|website=BoardGameGeek|language=en|archive-url=https://archive.today/20241211111105/https://boardgamegeek.com/thread/1943195/a-look-into-the-golden-age-of-boardgames|archive-date=11 December 2024|url-status=live|df=dmy}} The early 21st century saw the emergence of a new "Golden Age" for board games called the "Board Game Renaissance".{{Cite news |date=25 November 2014 |title=Board games' golden age: sociable, brilliant and driven by the internet |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2014/nov/25/board-games-internet-playstation-xbox |author-last=Duffy |author-first=Owen}}{{Cite journal|last=Konieczny|first=Piotr|date=2019|title=Golden age of tabletop gaming: Creation of the social capital and rise of third spaces for tabletop gaming in the 21st century|url=http://bazekon.icm.edu.pl/bazekon/element/bwmeta1.element.ekon-element-000171561541|journal=Polish Sociological Review|language=en|issue=2|pages=199–215|issn=1231-1413|doi=10.26412/psr206.05|df=dmy}} This period of board games industry development, of which board games such as Ticket to Ride (2004) and were a major part, saw a shift away from the 20th-century domination by well-established standby Golden Era board games like Monopoly (1935) and Game of Life (1960).{{cite web|title=Ticket to Ride: Europe 15th Anniversary Edition Review|website=IGN (www.ign.com)|date=12 July 2024|first=Chris|last=Reed|language=en|url=https://www.ign.com/articles/ticket-to-ride-europe-15th-anniversary-edition-review|access-date=19 November 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240716192906/https://www.ign.com/articles/ticket-to-ride-europe-15th-anniversary-edition-review|archive-date=16 July 2024|url-status=live|df=dmy}}
Regional history
{{Further|History of games}}
=Europe=
{{further|Eurogame#History}}
Board games have a long tradition in Europe. The oldest records of board gaming in Europe date back to Homer's Iliad (written in the 8th century BC), in which he mentions the Ancient Greek game of petteia.{{Cite web|last=Brouwers|first=Josho|title=Ancient Greek heroes at play|url=https://www.ancientworldmagazine.com/articles/ancient-greek-heroes-play|access-date=6 March 2020|website=Ancient World Magazine|date=29 November 2018|language=en|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241111205115/https://www.ancientworldmagazine.com/articles/ancient-greek-heroes-play|archive-date=11 November 2024|url-status=live|df=dmy}} This game of petteia would later evolve into the Roman game of ludus latrunculorum.
{{ublist
|Germany
:{{lang|de|Kriegsspiel}} is a genre of wargaming developed in 19th century Prussia, to teach battle tactics to officers.{{Cite journal|last=Asbury|first=Susan|date=Winter 2018|title=It's All a Game: The History of Board Games from Monopoly to Settlers of Catan|url=https://www.journalofplay.org/sites/www.journalofplay.org/files/pdf-articles/10-2-Book-review2.pdf|url-status=dead|department=Book Reviews|journal=American Journal of Play|volume=10|issue=2|page=230|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200711112435/https://www.journalofplay.org/sites/www.journalofplay.org/files/pdf-articles/10-2-Book-review2.pdf|archive-date=11 July 2020|access-date=5 March 2020}}
|Ireland
:Fidchell boards dating from the 10th century has been uncovered in Ireland,{{Cite book|first=Kenneth Hurlstone|last=Jackson|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pkTUotRW8_AC&q=the+oldest+irish+tradition|title=The Oldest Irish Tradition: A Window on the Iron Age|date=28 February 2011|isbn=9780521134934|page=23|publisher=Cambridge University Press|access-date=28 December 2024|df=dmy}} [https://ia600105.us.archive.org/1/items/hurlstone-2011-the-oldest-irish-tradition/Hurlstone%20%282011%29%20The%20Oldest%20Irish%20Tradition.pdf Alt URL] with the game said to date back to at least 144 AD.{{Cite journal|last=Harding|first=Timothy|date=2010|title='A Fenian pastime'? Early Irish board games and their identification with chess|journal=Irish Historical Studies|volume=37|issue=145|page=5|doi=10.1017/S0021121400000031|issn=0021-1214|jstor=20750042|hdl-access=free|hdl=2262/38847|s2cid=163144950}}
|Scandnavia
:The ancient Norse game of hnefatafl was developed sometime before 400 AD.{{Cite web|last=Schulte|first=Michael|title=Board games of the Vikings – From hnefatafl to chess|url=http://ojs.novus.no/index.php/MOM/article/download/1426/1411|page=5}}
|United Kingdom
:In the United Kingdom, the association of dice and cards with gambling led to all dice games except backgammon being treated as "lotteries by dice" in the Gaming Acts of 1710 and 1845.{{Cite web|last=Neilson|first=W Bryce|title=Gaming history and Law|website=Gamesboard.org|url=https://www.gamesboard.org.uk/articles/gaming-law-bryce-neilson-aug-2020.pdf|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201001082026/https://www.gamesboard.org.uk/articles/gaming-law-bryce-neilson-aug-2020.pdf|archive-date=1 October 2020|access-date=15 February 2022}} One of the most prolific publishers of board games of the late 18th and early 19th centuries was the English board game publisher John Wallis and his sons (John Wallis Jr. and Edward Wallis).{{Cite book|last=Adam|first=Gottfried|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Lb6ZEAAAQBAJ&dq=John+Wallis++publishers+of+board+games&pg=PA177|title=Thumb Bibles: The History of a Literary Genre|date=31 October 2022|publisher=Brill|isbn=978-90-04-52588-7|language=en}} The global popularisation of board games, with special themes and branding, coincided with the formation of the global dominance of the British Empire.{{Cite journal|last=Kentel|first=Koca|date=Fall 2018|title=Empire on a Board: Navigating the British Empire through Geographical Board Games in the Nineteenth Century|url=http://dx.doi.org/10.17613/M6JW86M71|journal=The Portolan|volume=102|pages=27–42|doi=10.17613/M6JW86M71}} Examples of british empire games included:
}}
File:Attic Black-Figure Neck Amphora - Achilles and Ajax playing a board game overseen by Athena.jpg|Achilles and Ajax playing a board game overseen by Athena, Attic black-figure neck amphora, {{circa|510 BC}}
File:German - Box for Board Games - Walters 7193 - Bottom.jpg|Box for Board Games, {{Circa}} 15th century, Walters Art Museum
File:Clevelandart 1953.284.jpg|An early games table desk (Germany, 1735) featuring chess/draughts ({{em|right}}) and nine men's morris ({{em|left}})
=Americas=
The board game patolli originated in Mesoamerica and was played by a wide range of pre-Columbian cultures such as the Toltecs and the Aztecs.
{{ublist
|United States
:Due to a number of factors, such as the decrease of industrial working hours and the implementation of a Saturday half-day holiday, United States shifted from agrarian to urban living in the nineteenth century, which provided greater leisure time and a rise in middle class income.{{cite web|title=America at Leisure|website=Library of Congress (www.loc.gov)|language=en|url=https://www.loc.gov/collections/america-at-work-and-leisure-1894-to-1915/articles-and-essays/america-at-leisure/|access-date=3 January 2025|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240710085054/https://www.loc.gov/collections/america-at-work-and-leisure-1894-to-1915/articles-and-essays/america-at-leisure|archive-date=10 July 2024|url-status=live|df=dmy}}{{cite web|title=Board game|website=Gambiter (www.gambiter.com)|language=en|url=https://gambiter.com/tabletop/Board_game.html|access-date=3 January 2025|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240520082329/https://gambiter.com/tabletop/Board_game.html|archive-date=20 May 2024|url-status=live|df=dmy}} The American home, once an economic production focus, started to become one for entertainment, enlightenment, and education under maternal supervision, where children were encouraged to play board games that developed literacy skills and provided moral instruction.{{pb}}The first board games published in the United States were Travellers' Tour Through the United States and its sister game Traveller's Tour Through Europe, published in 1822 by New York City bookseller F. & R. Lockwood.{{cite web|title=What America’s First Board Game Tells Us About the Aspirations of a Young Nation|website=Smithsonian Magazine (www.smithsonianmag.com)|date=21 May 2024|first=Matthew Wynn|last=Sivils|language=en|url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/what-americas-first-board-game-tells-us-about-the-aspirations-of-a-young-nation-180984338|access-date=3 January 2025|archive-url=https://archive.today/20250103225012/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/what-americas-first-board-game-tells-us-about-the-aspirations-of-a-young-nation-180984338|archive-date=3 January 2025|url-status=live|df=dmy}} Margaret Hofer described this period, from 1880s–1920s, as "The Golden Age" of board gaming in America.{{Cite book|last=Hofer|first=Margaret|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=icYtGRUZrZUC|title=The Games we Played: The Golden Age of Board and Table Games|date=1 March 2003|publisher=Princeton Architectural Press|isbn=978-1-56898-397-4|language=en}} Board game popularity was boosted, like that of many items, through mass production, which made them cheaper and more easily available. In the 19th century, the industry itself was still developing, albeit significantly more rapidly; however, the games manufactured in America were still primarily for children. Beginning in the late 20th century, during the period known as board game renaissance, games started to evolve considerably, from a strategic play standpoint and also in terms of increased advertising and marketing. In modern day United States, board game venues have recently grown in popularity. In 2016 alone, more than 5,000 board game cafés opened in the United States.{{Cite web|title=The Board Game Biz is Booming, and Chicago's Ready to Play|url=https://news.wttw.com/2020/02/11/board-game-biz-booming-and-chicago-s-ready-play|access-date=1 March 2020|website=WTTW News|language=en|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241111205114/https://news.wttw.com/2020/02/11/board-game-biz-booming-and-chicago-s-ready-play|archive-date=11 November 2024|url-status=live|df=dmy}}
}}
File:Macuilxochitl Patolli.png|Patolli game being watched by Macuilxochitl as depicted on page 048 of the Codex Magliabechiano
File:FirstAmericanPrintrunOfThe MansionOfHappiness.jpg|The Mansion of Happiness (1843)
=Asia=
{{ublist
|Mesopotamia
: A version of the 4,600-year-old board game of the Royal Game of Ur, was found in the ancient Mesopotamian royal tombs of Ur ({{Circa|2600 BC}} – {{Circa|2400 BC}}), is the oldest discovered playable board game.{{Cite web|last=Edwards|first=Jason R.|title=Saving Families, One Game at a Time|url=http://visionandvalues.org/docs/familymatters/Edwards_Jason.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160205071220/http://visionandvalues.org/docs/familymatters/Edwards_Jason.pdf|archive-date=5 February 2016}} The game's rules of this version were written on a cuneiform tablet by a Babylonian astronomer in 177 BC, and involved two players racing their pieces from one end of a 20-square board to the other in a similar way to backgammon, with the central squares being used for fortune telling.{{cite web|title=Archaeologists Unearth 4,000-Year-Old Stone Board Game in Oman|website=Smith Sonianmag (www.smithsonianmag.com)|date=11 January 2022|first=David|last=Kindy|language=en|url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/archaeologists-unearth-4000-year-old-stone-board-game-in-oman-180979340|access-date=3 January 2025|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241216131112/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/archaeologists-unearth-4000-year-old-stone-board-game-in-oman-180979340|archive-date=16 December 2024|url-status=live|df=dmy}} Backgammon also originated in ancient Mesopotamia about 5,000 years ago.{{Cite web|title=Backgammon History|url=https://bkgm.com/articles/Bray/BackgammonHistory|access-date=12 December 2024|website=bkgm.com|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240405115545/https://www.bkgm.com/articles/Bray/BackgammonHistory|archive-date=5 April 2024|url-status=live|df=dmy}}
|China
:Though speculative, Go has been though to have originated in China somewhere in the 10th and 4th century BC.{{Cite journal|last=Potter|first=Donald L.|year=1985|title=Go in the Classics (ii): the Tso-chuan|journal=Go World|issue=42|publisher=Ishi Press|location=Tokyo|pages=19–21|url=http://www.kiseido.com/classics.htm|access-date=2 November 2007|archive-date=18 December 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101218113923/http://kiseido.com/classics.htm|url-status=dead|df=dmy}}{{Cite web|url=http://www.pandanet.co.jp/English/essay/goancientchina.html|title=Go in Ancient China|last=Fairbairn|first=John|year=1995|access-date=2 November 2007|df=dmy}} While no archeological or reliable documentary evidence exists of the exact origins of the game, according to legend, Liubo was invented in around 1728–1675 BC in China by Wu Cao, a minister of King Jie the last Xia dynasty king. China developed a number of chess variants, including xiangqi (Chinese chess), dou shou qi (Chinese animal chess), and luzhanqi (Chinese army chess), each with their own variants.{{Cite news|title=How to Play Chess from Around the World|language=en|website=Ancient Chess (www.ancientchess.com)|url=https://ancientchess.com/page/play-all.htm|access-date=12 December 2024|archive-url=https://archive.today/20241212025110/https://ancientchess.com/page/play-all.htm|archive-date=12 December 2024|url-status=live|df=dmy}} Games like mahjong, and Fighting the Landlords (Dou DiZhu) also originated in China.{{pb}}In modern-day China, board game cafes have became popular, with cities like Shanghai having more game cafés than Starbucks.{{Cite web|title=Six Reasons China Loves Board Game Cafés|url=http://flamingogroup.com/six-reasons-china-loves-board-game-cafes#|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160520043014/http://flamingogroup.com/six-reasons-china-loves-board-game-cafes|archive-date=20 May 2016|access-date=22 April 2016|website=Flamingo}}
|India
:Ashtapada, chess, pachisi and chaupar originated in India.{{citation needed|date=December 2024}} In modern day India, a community game called Carrom is popular.{{Cite web|date=12 September 2020|title=The most popular board games in non-Western cultures|url=https://boardgametheories.com/most-popular-board-games-in-other-cultures|access-date=1 October 2020|website=BoardGameTheories|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241127003628/https://boardgametheories.com/most-popular-board-games-in-other-cultures|archive-date=27 November 2024|url-status=live|df=dmy}}
|Iran
:Jiroft civilization game boards{{Cite book|last=Maǧīdzāda|first=Yūsuf|url=http://worldcat.org/oclc/249152908|title=Jiroft: the earliest oriental civilization|date=2003|publisher=Organization of the Ministry of Culture ans Islamic Guidance|isbn=964-422-478-7|oclc=249152908}}{{Verify source|date=May 2024}} in Iran, is one of several important historical sites, artifacts, and documents shed light on early board games.
|South Koean
:A board game of flicking stones (Alkkagi) became popular among people in South Korea after various Korean variety shows demonstrated its gameplay on television.{{Cite web |date=8 July 2016|title=Alkkagi: A Korean Game.|url=https://kpopjacketlady.com/2016/07/08/alkkagi-a-korean-game/|website=KPopJacketLady|access-date=20 March 2025 }}
|Oman
:A stone slab carved with a grid and cup holes to hold game pieces constituting a large 4,000-year-old stone board game was located in a prehistoric settlement dated back to the Umm an-Nar period ({{Circa|2600 BC}} to {{Circa|2000 BC}}) near the village of Ayn Bani Saidahat in the Qumayrah Valley, Oman.
}}
File:Han Pottery Figures Playing Liubo, a Lost Game (10352729936).jpg|Han dynasty glazed pottery tomb figurines playing liubo, with six sticks laid out to the side of the game board
File:British Museum Royal Game of Ur.jpg|The Royal Game of Ur, southern Iraq, about {{Circa|2600 BC}} – {{Circa|2400 BC}}
=Africa=
In Africa and the Middle East, mancala is a popular board game archetype with many regional variations.
{{ublist
|Egypt
:The first complete set of this game was discovered from a Theban tomb that dates to the 13th dynasty.{{Cite web|last=Metcalfe|first=Tom|date=10 December 2018|title=16 of the Most Interesting Ancient Board and Dice Games|url=https://www.livescience.com/64266-ancient-board-games.html|access-date=23 December 2018|website=Live Science|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241203052218/https://www.livescience.com/64266-ancient-board-games.html|archive-date=3 December 2024|url-status=live|df=dmy}} Hounds and jackals, another ancient Egyptian board game, appeared around 2000 BC.{{Cite web|last=Hirst|first=K. Kris|title=What? Snakes and Ladders is 4,000 Years Old?|url=https://www.thoughtco.com/50-holes-game-169581|access-date=23 December 2018|website=ThoughtCo.com|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240220052844/https://www.thoughtco.com/50-holes-game-169581|archive-date=20 February 2024|url-status=live|df=dmy}}{{Cite web|date=18 November 2018|title=A 4,000-Year-Old Bronze Age Game Called 58 Holes Has Been Discovered in Azerbaijan Rock Shelter|url=http://wsbuzz.com/science/a-4000-year-old-bronze-age-game-called-58-holes-has-been-discovered-in-azerbaijan-rock-shelter|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190826203339/https://wsbuzz.com/science/a-4000-year-old-bronze-age-game-called-58-holes-has-been-discovered-in-azerbaijan-rock-shelter|archive-date=26 August 2019|access-date=23 December 2018|website=WSBuzz.com|language=en-US}} This game, originating {{Circa|2600 BC}} – {{Circa|2400 BC}} was also popular in Mesopotamia and the Caucasus.{{Cite web|last=Bower|first=Bruce|date=17 December 2018|title=A Bronze Age game called 58 holes was found chiseled into stone in Azerbaijan|url=https://www.sciencenews.org/article/bronze-age-game-found-chiseled-stone-azerbaijan|access-date=23 December 2018|website=Science News|language=en}} Senet, originating from {{Circa|2600 BC}} – {{Circa|2400 BC}}, was found in Predynastic {{Circa|3500 BC}} and First Dynasty {{Circa|3100 BC}} burials of Egypt,{{Cite journal|first=Peter A.|last=Piccione|date=July–August 1980|title=In Search of the Meaning of Senet|url=http://www.piccionep.people.cofc.edu/piccione_senet.pdf|url-status=live|journal=Archaeology|pages=55–58|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111125005541/http://piccionep.people.cofc.edu/piccione_senet.pdf|archive-date=25 November 2011|access-date=14 July 2018}} and pictured in fresco wall paintings and papyrus in Egyptian tombs, including the tombs of Merknera ({{Circa|3300 BC}}–{{Circa|2700 BC}} BC){{Cite web|date=27 April 1998|title=Okno do svita deskovych her|url=http://www.hrejsi.cz/clanky/dama1.html|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://archive.today/20121208220158/http://www.hrejsi.cz/clanky/dama1.html|archive-date=8 December 2012|access-date=12 February 2010|publisher=Hrejsi.cz}}{{Cite web|last=Pivotto|first=Carlos|display-authors=etal|title=Detection of Negotiation Profile and Guidance to more Collaborative Approaches through Negotiation Games|url=http://worldcomp-proceedings.com/proc/p2011/EEE3388.pdf|url-status=live|archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/http://worldcomp-proceedings.com/proc/p2011/EEE3388.pdf|archive-date=9 October 2022|access-date=2 October 2014}}{{better source needed|date=February 2023}}{{dubious|date=February 2023}} and Nikauhor and Sekhemhathor ({{Circa|2465 BC}}–{{Circa|2389 BC}}).{{cite web|title=West wall of the chapel of Nikauhor and Sekhemhathor|website=The Metropoletean Museum of Art (www.metmuseum.org)|language=en|url=https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/08.201.2a-g|access-date=7 January 2025|archive-url=https://archive.today/20250106232519/https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/08.201.2a-g|archive-date=6 January 2025|url-status=live|df=dmy}} An ancient games from the African region included the predynastic Egyptian board game of mehen.{{Cite web|title=Games in ancient Egypt|url=https://www.ucl.ac.uk/museums-static/digitalegypt//furniture/games.html|access-date=13 June 2020|website=Digital Egypt for Universities|publisher=University College, London|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241202104428/https://www.ucl.ac.uk/museums-static/digitalegypt//furniture/games.html|archive-date=2 December 2024|url-status=live|df=dmy}}{{cite web|title=8 Oldest Board Games in the World|website=Oldest (www.oldest.org)|language=en|url=https://www.oldest.org/entertainment/board-games|access-date=6 January 2025|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241008185958/https://www.oldest.org/entertainment/board-games|archive-date=8 October 2024|url-status=live|df=dmy}}
}}
File:Game of Hounds and Jackals MET DP264105.jpg|Hounds and jackals (Egypt, 13th Dynasty)
File:Tropenmuseum Royal Tropical Institute Objectnumber 699-2 Speelbord voor mancala spel.jpg|Mancala board and clay playing pieces
File:Gaming Board Inscribed for Amenhotep III with Separate Sliding Drawer, ca. 1390-1353 B.C.E.,49.56a-b.jpg|Senet set inscribed with the Horus name of Amenhotep III ({{r.}} 1391–1353 BC)
Luck, strategy, and diplomacy
Some games, such as chess, depend completely on player skill, while many children's games such as Candy Land (1949) and snakes and ladders require no decisions by the players and are decided purely by luck.{{Cite web|date=26 January 2009|title=The case against Candy Land|url=http://boingboing.net/2009/01/26/the-case-against-can.html|website=BoingBoing|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241120044837/https://boingboing.net/2009/01/26/the-case-against-can.html|archive-date=20 November 2024|url-status=live|df=dmy}}
File:Board game damah at Souq Waqif.jpg]]
Many games require some level of both skill and luck. A player may be hampered by bad luck in backgammon, Monopoly, or Risk; but over many games, a skilled player will win more often.{{Cite web|title=Luck vs. Skill in Backgammon|url=https://bkgm.com/articles/Simborg/LuckVsSkill/index.html |access-date=19 May 2020 |website=bkgm.com}} The elements of luck can also make for more excitement at times, and allow for more diverse and multifaceted strategies, as concepts such as expected value and risk management must be considered.{{Cite book|last=Sfetcu|first=Nicolae|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=J1aAAwAAQBAJ&dq=%22board+game%22+%22expected+value%22+and+%22risk+management%22&pg=PA78|title=Game Preview|date=4 May 2014|publisher=Nicolae Sfetcu|language=en}}
Luck may be introduced into a game by several methods. The use of dice of various sorts goes back to the one of the earliest board games, the Royal Game of Ur. These can decide everything from how many steps a player moves their token, as in Monopoly, to how their forces fare in battle, as in Risk, or which resources a player gains, as in Catan (1995). Other games such as Sorry! (1934) use a deck of special cards that, when shuffled, create randomness. Scrabble (1948) creates a similar effect using randomly picked letters. Other games use spinners, timers of random length, or other sources of randomness. German-style board games are notable for often having fewer elements of luck than many North American board games.{{Cite web|last=Kirkpatrick|first=Karen|date=27 April 2015|title=What's a German-style board game?|url=https://entertainment.howstuffworks.com/german-style-board-game.htm|access-date=20 July 2021|website=HowStuffWorks.com|quote="They feature little or no luck, and economic, not military, themes. In addition, all players stay in the game until it's over."}} Luck may be reduced in favor of skill by introducing symmetry between players. For example, in a dice game such as Ludo ({{circa|1896}}), by giving each player the choice of rolling the dice or using the previous player's roll.
Another important aspect of some games is diplomacy, that is, players, making deals with one another. Negotiation generally features only in games with three or more players, cooperative games being the exception. An important facet of Catan, for example, is convincing players to trade with you rather than with opponents. In Risk, two or more players may team up against others. Easy diplomacy involves convincing other players that someone else is winning and should therefore be teamed up against. Advanced diplomacy (e.g., in the aptly named game Diplomacy from 1954) consists of making elaborate plans together, with the possibility of betrayal.{{Cite web|last=McLellan|first=Joseph|date=2 June 1986|title=Lying and Cheating by the Rules|language=en-US|newspaper=Washington Post (www.washingtonpost.com)|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1986/06/02/lying-and-cheating-by-the-rules/78ab5e73-b64d-4448-875e-aae12ab43476|issn=0190-8286|access-date=2 January 2024|archive-url=https://archive.today/20250102092517/https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1986/06/02/lying-and-cheating-by-the-rules/78ab5e73-b64d-4448-875e-aae12ab43476|archive-date=2 January 2025|url-status=live|df=dmy}}{{cite web|first=Annie|last=Kearns Kearns|title=16 Easy Pen and Paper Games Your Family Will Love|url=https://www.thelondonmother.net/easy-pen-and-paper-games|website=The London Mother (www.thelondonmother.net)|date=16 March 2020|access-date=31 December 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240430124253/https://www.thelondonmother.net/easy-pen-and-paper-games|archive-date=30 April 2024|url-status=live|df=dmy}}
In perfect information games, such as chess, each player has complete information on the state of the game, but in other games, such as Tigris and Euphrates (1997) or Stratego (1946), some information is hidden from players.{{Cite book|last=Glassner|first=Andrew|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ksj1EAAAQBAJ&dq=%22board+game%22+hidden+information+estimating+probabilities+by+the+opponents+stratego&pg=PT74|title=Interactive Storytelling: Techniques for 21st Century Fiction|date=2 August 2017|publisher=CRC Press|isbn=978-1-040-08312-3|language=en}} This makes finding the best move more difficult and may involve estimating probabilities by the opponents.{{Cite book|last=Levine|first=Timothy R.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iRJzAwAAQBAJ&dq=finding+the+best+move+more+difficult+and+may+involve+estimating+probabilities+by+the+opponents&pg=PA403|title=Encyclopedia of Deception|date=20 February 2014|publisher=SAGE Publications|isbn=978-1-4833-0689-6|language=en}}
Software
{{main|Digital tabletop game}}
Many board games are now available as video games. These are aptly termed digital board games, and their distinguishing characteristic compared to traditional board games is they can now be played online against a computer or other players. Some websites (such as boardgamearena.com, yucata.de, etc.){{Cite web |date=25 February 2019 |title=6 Best Sites to Play Board Games Online for Free |url=https://mykindofmeeple.com/play-modern-board-games-online/ |access-date=23 January 2021 |website=Mykindofmeeple.com}} allow play in real time and immediately show the opponents' moves, while others use email to notify the players after each move.{{Cite web |title=U3a International Chess by Email |url=http://www.u3abroadbeach.com/chess-by-email.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141015070203/http://www.u3abroadbeach.com/chess-by-email.html |archive-date=15 October 2014 |access-date=8 October 2014}} The Internet and cheaper home printing has also influenced board games via print-and-play games that may be purchased and printed.{{Cite web |title=Print & Play |url=http://boardgamegeek.com/boardgamecategory/1120/print-play |access-date=8 October 2014 |website=Boardgamegeek.com}} Some games use external media such as audio cassettes or DVDs in accompaniment to the game.{{Cite web |title=DVD Board Games |url=http://boardgamegeek.com/boardgamefamily/7348/dvd-board-games |access-date=8 October 2014}}{{Cite web |title=Audio Cassette Board Games |url=http://boardgamegeek.com/boardgamefamily/7477/audio-cassette-board-games |access-date=8 October 2014 |website=Boardgamegeek.com}}
{{anchor|Virtual tabletop}}There are also virtual tabletop programs that allow online players to play a variety of existing and new board games through tools needed to manipulate the game board but do not necessarily enforce the game's rules, leaving this up to the players. There are generalized programs such as Vassal, Tabletop Simulator and Tabletopia that can be used to play any board or card game, while programs like Roll20 and Fantasy Grounds are more specialized for role-playing games.{{Cite web |last=Hall |first=Charlie |date=22 April 2015 |title=D&D now on Steam, complete with dice and a Dungeon Master |url=http://www.polygon.com/2015/4/22/8470473/dungeons-dragons-virtual-tabletop-fantasy-grounds |access-date=10 April 2017 |website=Polygon}}{{Cite web |last=Hall |first=Charlie |date=1 December 2016 |title=Tabletopia is slick as hell, and it's free on Steam |url=https://www.polygon.com/2016/12/1/13806190/tabletopia-steam-board-games-free-to-play |access-date=7 September 2017 |website=Polygon}} Some of these virtual tabletops have worked with the license holders to allow for use of their game's assets within the program; for example, Fantasy Grounds has licenses for both Dungeons & Dragons and Pathfinder materials, while Tabletop Simulator allows game publishers to provide paid downloadable content for their games.{{Cite web |title=SmiteWorks USA, LLC |url=http://www.fantasygrounds.com/press/ |access-date=21 July 2017 |website=Fantasy Grounds |publisher=SmiteWorks}}{{Cite web |last=O'Conner |first=Alice |date=1 October 2015 |title=Cosmic Encounter Officially Invades Tabletop Simulator |url=https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2015/10/01/cosmic-encounter-tabletop-simulator/ |access-date=1 August 2016 |website=Rock Paper Shotgun}} However, as these games offer the ability to add in the content through user modifications, there are also unlicensed uses of board game assets available through these programs.{{Cite web |last=Wawro |first=Alex |date=3 July 2015 |title=Mod Mentality: How Tabletop Simulator was made to be broken |url=https://www.gamedeveloper.com/business/mod-mentality-how-i-tabletop-simulator-i-was-made-to-be-broken |access-date=8 July 2015 |website=Gamasutra}}
Market
File:Nepomuk 280 - Osadníci z Katanu.jpg is printed in 30 languages and sold 15 million by 2009.]]
While the board gaming market is estimated to be smaller than that for video games, it has also experienced significant growth from the late 1990s. A 2012 article in The Guardian described board games as "making a comeback".{{Cite news |date=9 December 2012 |title=Why board games are making a comeback |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2012/dec/09/board-games-comeback-freeman |author-last=Freeman |author-first=Will}} Other expert sources suggest that board games never went away, and that board games have remained a popular leisure activity which has only grown over time.{{Cite web |date=1 August 2018 |title=Not Bored Of Board Games |url=https://www.toyindustryjournal.com/not-bored-of-board-games/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210302164229/https://www.toyindustryjournal.com/not-bored-of-board-games/ |archive-date=2 March 2021 |access-date=5 January 2021 |website=Toyindustryjournal.com}} Another from 2014 gave an estimate that put the growth of the board game market at "between 25% and 40% annually" since 2010, and described the current time as the "golden era for board games". The rise in board game popularity has been attributed to quality improvement (more elegant mechanics, {{boardgloss|components}}, artwork, and graphics) as well as increased availability thanks to sales through the Internet. Crowd-sourcing for board games is a large facet of the market, with $233 million raised on Kickstarter in 2020.{{Cite web |last=Hall |first=Charlie |date=22 December 2020 |title=Games broke funding records on Kickstarter in 2020, despite the pandemic |url=https://www.polygon.com/2020/12/22/22195749/kickstarter-top-10-highest-funded-campaigns-2020-video-games-board-games |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201222221453/https://www.polygon.com/2020/12/22/22195749/kickstarter-top-10-highest-funded-campaigns-2020-video-games-board-games |archive-date=22 December 2020 |access-date=8 August 2021 |website=Polygon}}
A 1991 estimate for the global board game market was over $1.2 billion.{{Cite book |last=Scanlon |first=Jennifer |title=The Guide to United States Popular Culture |publisher=Popular Press |year=2001 |isbn=978-0-87972-821-2 |editor-last=Browne |editor-first=Ray Broadus |page=103 |chapter=Board games |editor-last2=Browne |editor-first2=Pat |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=U3rJxPYT32MC&pg=PA103}} A 2001 estimate for the United States "board games and puzzle" market gave a value of under $400 million, and for United Kingdom, of about £50 million.{{Cite web |title=So you've invented a board game. Now what? |url=http://www.amherstlodge.com/games/reference/gameinvented.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141115210052/http://www.amherstlodge.com/games/reference/gameinvented.htm |archive-date=15 November 2014 |access-date=26 November 2014}} A 2009 estimate for the Korean market was put at 800 million won,{{Cite news |date=22 July 2009 |title=Educational Games Getting Popular |work=The Korea Times |url=https://koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2009/07/113_48931.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160105035853/https://koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2009/07/113_48931.html |archive-date=5 January 2016}} and another estimate for the American board game market for the same year was at about $800 million.{{Cite web |title=Monopoly, Candy Land May Offer Refuge to Families in Recession |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=a2HEzwndjrVQ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20141126045211/http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=a2HEzwndjrVQ |archive-date=26 November 2014 |website=Bloomberg News}} A 2011 estimate for the Chinese board game market was at over 10 billion yuan.{{Cite web |title=Chinese Board Game Market Overview |url=http://www.lpboardgame.com/board-games-simple-chinese-board-game-market-overview/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160221075513/http://www.lpboardgame.com/board-games-simple-chinese-board-game-market-overview/ |archive-date=21 February 2016 |website=LP Board Game}} A 2013 estimate put the size of the German toy market at 2.7 billion euros (out of which the board games and puzzle market is worth about 375 million euros), and Polish markets at 2 billion and 280 million zlotys, respectively.{{Cite web |date=16 April 2013 |title=Pamiętacie Eurobiznes? Oto wielki powrót gier planszowych, dla których oni zarywają noce |url=http://menstream.pl/wiadomosci-reportaze-i-wywiady/pamietacie-eurobiznes-oto-wielki-powrot-gier-planszowych-dla-ktorych-oni-zarywaja-noce,0,1288179.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160105041205/http://menstream.pl/wiadomosci-reportaze-i-wywiady/pamietacie-eurobiznes-oto-wielki-powrot-gier-planszowych-dla-ktorych-oni-zarywaja-noce%2C0%2C1288179.html |archive-date=5 January 2016 |website=Menstream.pl}} In 2009, Germany was considered to be the best market per capita, with the highest number of games sold per individual.{{Cite magazine |date=23 March 2009 |title=Monopoly Killer: Perfect German Board Game Redefines Genre |url=http://archive.wired.com/gaming/gamingreviews/magazine/17-04/mf_settlers?currentPage=all |url-status=dead |magazine=WIRED |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150510075137/http://archive.wired.com/gaming/gamingreviews/magazine/17-04/mf_settlers?currentPage=all |archive-date=10 May 2015 |access-date=23 April 2015}}
= Hobby board games =
Some academics, such as Erica Price and Marco Arnaudo, have differentiated "hobby" board games and gamers from other board games and gamers.{{Cite journal |last=Price |first=Erica |date=2020-10-01 |title=The Sellers of Catan: The Impact of on the United States Leisure and Business Landscape, 1995-2019 |journal=Board Game Studies Journal |language=en |volume=14 |issue=1 |pages=61–82 |doi=10.2478/bgs-2020-0004|doi-access=free }}{{Cite web |last=Arnaudo |first=Marco |date=2017-11-29 |title=The Experience of Flow in Hobby Board Games |url=https://analoggamestudies.org/2017/11/the-experience-of-flow-in-hobby-board-games/ |access-date=2023-09-03 |website=Analog Game Studies |language=en-US}} A 2014 estimate placed the U.S. and Canada market for hobby board games (games produced for a "gamer" market) at only $75 million, with the total size of what it defined as the "hobby game market" ("the market for those games regardless of whether they're sold in the hobby channel or other channels") at over $700 million.{{Cite web |title=Hobby Games Market Hits $700M |url=https://icv2.com/articles/games/view/29326/hobby-games-market-hits-700m |access-date=2023-09-03 |website=icv2.com |language=en}} A similar 2015 estimate suggested a hobby game market value of almost $900 million.{{Cite web |title=Hobby Games Market Climbs to $880 Million |url=https://icv2.com/articles/markets/view/32102/hobby-games-market-climbs-880-million |access-date=2023-09-03 |website=icv2.com |language=en}}
Research
{{multiple image|align=right|total_width=400
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|footer=Board games serve diverse interests. {{em|Left:}} kōnane for studious competition. {{em|Right:}} kōnane for lighthearted fun.}}
A dedicated field of research into gaming exists, known as game studies or ludology.{{Citation |last=Fernández-Vara |first=Clara |title=Adventure |url=https://www.taylorfrancis.com/chapters/edit/10.4324/9780203114261-33/adventure-clara-fern%C3%A1ndez-vara |journal=The Routledge Companion to Video Game Studies |date=3 January 2014 |pages=232–240 |doi=10.4324/9780203114261-33 |access-date=2022-08-21 |archive-date=21 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220821035254/https://www.taylorfrancis.com/chapters/edit/10.4324/9780203114261-33/adventure-clara-fern%C3%A1ndez-vara |url-status=dead }}
While there has been a fair amount of scientific research on the psychology of older board games (e.g., chess, Go, mancala), less has been done on contemporary board games such as Monopoly, Scrabble, and Risk,{{Cite book |last1=Gobet, Fernand |title=Moves in mind: The psychology of board games |last2=de Voogt, Alex |last3=Retschitzki, Jean |publisher=Psychology Press |year=2004 |isbn=978-1-84169-336-1 |author-link=Fernand Gobet}} and especially modern board games such as Catan, Agricola, and Pandemic. Much research has been carried out on chess, partly because many tournament players are publicly ranked in national and international lists, which makes it possible to compare their levels of expertise. The works of Adriaan de Groot, William Chase, Herbert A. Simon, and Fernand Gobet have established that knowledge, more than the ability to anticipate moves, plays an essential role in chess-playing ability.{{Cite web |last=Simons |first=Daniel |date=15 February 2012 |title=How experts recall chess positions |url=http://theinvisiblegorilla.com/blog/2012/02/15/how-experts-recall-chess-positions/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171201041450/http://theinvisiblegorilla.com/blog/2012/02/15/how-experts-recall-chess-positions/ |archive-date=1 December 2017 |access-date=21 November 2017 |website=The Invisible Gorilla}}
Linearly arranged board games have improved children's spatial numerical understanding. This is because the game is similar to a number line in that they promote a linear understanding of numbers rather than the innate logarithmic one.{{Cite news |title=Playing Linear Number Board Games—But Not Circular Ones—Improves Low-Income Preschoolers' Numerical Understanding |url=http://www.psy.cmu.edu/~siegler/sieg-ram09.pdf |url-status=dead |access-date=30 May 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110524170555/http://www.psy.cmu.edu/~siegler/sieg-ram09.pdf |archive-date=24 May 2011}}
Research studies show that board games such as Snakes and Ladders result in children showing significant improvements in aspects of basic number skills such as counting, recognizing numbers, numerical estimation, and number comprehension. They also practice fine motor skills each time they grasp a game piece.{{Cite web |last=LeFebvre |first=J.E. |title=Parenting the preschooler |url=http://parenting.uwex.edu/parenting-the-preschooler/documents/board_games.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140521002940/http://parenting.uwex.edu/parenting-the-preschooler/documents/board_games.pdf |archive-date=21 May 2014 |access-date=10 March 2015 |website=UW Extension}} Playing board games has also been tied to improving children's executive functions{{Cite web |last=Lahey |first=Jessica |date=16 July 2014 |title=How Family Game Night Makes Kids into Better Students |url=https://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2014/07/how-family-game-night-makes-kids-into-better-students/374525/ |access-date=13 May 2019 |website=The Atlantic}} and help reduce risks of dementia for the elderly.{{Cite journal |last1=Dartigues |first1=Jean François |last2=Foubert-Samier |first2=Alexandra |last3=Le Goff |first3=Mélanie |last4=Viltard |first4=Mélanie |last5=Amieva |first5=Hélène |last6=Orgogozo |first6=Jean Marc |last7=Barberger-Gateau |first7=Pascale |last8=Helmer |first8=Catherine |date=2013 |title=Playing board games, cognitive decline and dementia: a French population-based cohort study |journal=BMJ Open |language=en |volume=3 |issue=8 |pages=e002998 |doi=10.1136/bmjopen-2013-002998 |issn=2044-6055 |pmc=3758967 |pmid=23988362}}{{Cite journal |last1=Altschul |first1=Drew M |last2=Deary |first2=Ian J |year=2020 |editor-last=Taler |editor-first=Vanessa |title=Playing Analog Games Is Associated With Reduced Declines in Cognitive Function: A 68-Year Longitudinal Cohort Study |journal=The Journals of Gerontology: Series B |language=en |volume=75 |issue=3 |pages=474–482 |doi=10.1093/geronb/gbz149 |issn=1079-5014 |pmc=7021446 |pmid=31738418}} Related to this is a growing academic interest in the topic of game accessibility, culminating in the development of guidelines for assessing the accessibility of modern tabletop games{{Cite journal |last1=Heron |first1=Michael James |last2=Belford |first2=Pauline Helen |last3=Reid |first3=Hayley |last4=Crabb |first4=Michael |date=27 April 2018 |title=Meeple Centred Design: A Heuristic Toolkit for Evaluating the Accessibility of Tabletop Games |journal=The Computer Games Journal |language=en |volume=7 |issue=2 |pages=97–114 |doi=10.1007/s40869-018-0057-8 |issn=2052-773X |doi-access=free|hdl=10059/2886 |hdl-access=free }} and the extent to which they are playable for people with disabilities.{{Cite journal |last1=Heron |first1=Michael James |last2=Belford |first2=Pauline Helen |last3=Reid |first3=Hayley |last4=Crabb |first4=Michael |date=21 April 2018 |title=Eighteen Months of Meeple Like Us: An Exploration into the State of Board Game Accessibility |url=http://discovery.dundee.ac.uk/ws/files/27828635/Heron2018_Article_EighteenMonthsOfMeepleLikeUsAn.pdf |url-status=live |journal=The Computer Games Journal |language=en |volume=7 |issue=2 |pages=75–95 |doi=10.1007/s40869-018-0056-9 |issn=2052-773X |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/http://discovery.dundee.ac.uk/ws/files/27828635/Heron2018_Article_EighteenMonthsOfMeepleLikeUsAn.pdf |archive-date=2022-10-09 |s2cid=5011817}}
Additionally, board games can be therapeutic. Bruce Halpenny, a games inventor said when interviewed about his game, The Great Train Robbery:
With crime you deal with every basic human emotion and also have enough elements to combine action with melodrama. The player's imagination is fired as they plan to rob the train. Because of the gamble, they take in the early stage of the game there is a build-up of tension, which is immediately released once the train is robbed. Release of tension is therapeutic and useful in our society because most jobs are boring and repetitive.{{Cite news |date=December 1976 |title=Stealing the show |volume=2 |page=2 |work=Toy Retailing News |issue=4}}
Playing games has been suggested as a viable addition to the traditional educational curriculum if the content is appropriate and the gameplay informs students on the curriculum content.{{Cite magazine |last=Harris |first=Christopher |date=n.d. |title=Meet the New School Board: Board Games Are Back – And They're Exactly What Your Curriculum Needs |url=http://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ850549 |magazine=School Library Journal |volume=55 |issue=5 |pages=24–26 |issn=0362-8930 |access-date=23 April 2015}}{{Cite journal |last1=Mewborne |first1=Michael |last2=Mitchell |first2=Jerry T. |date=3 April 2019 |title=Carcassonne: Using a Tabletop Game to Teach Geographic Concepts |url=https://doi.org/10.1080/19338341.2019.1579108 |journal=The Geography Teacher |volume=16 |issue=2 |pages=57–67 |doi=10.1080/19338341.2019.1579108 |bibcode=2019GeTea..16...57M |issn=1933-8341 |s2cid=181375208}}
Categories
=Historical development=
Harold Murray's A History of Board Games Other Than Chess (1952){{Cite book|last=Murray|first=Harold James Ruthven|author-link=H. J. R. Murray|title=A History of Board Games Other Than Chess|publisher=Oxford [USA], Clarendon Press, and Hassell Street Press|year=2021|isbn=978-1-015-00305-7|edition=Reprint|orig-year=1st Pub. 1952, Clarendon Press, Oxford}} has been called the first attempt to develop a "scheme for the classification of board games", in which he separated board games into five categories: "race", "war", "hunt", "alignment" / "configuration", and "mancala" games.{{Cite web|title=SFE: Board Game|website=sf-encyclopedia.com|url=https://sf-encyclopedia.com/entry/board_game|access-date=18 January 2025|archive-url=https://archive.today/20250118122450/https://sf-encyclopedia.com/entry/board_game|archive-date=18 January 2025|url-status=live|df=dmy}} Robert Bell's Board and Table Games from Many Civilizations (1869){{Cite book|last=Bell|first=Robert Charles|author-link=Robert Charles Bell|title=Board and Table Games from Many Civilizations|publisher=Dover Publications|year=1979|isbn=978-0-671-06030-5|edition=Revised|volume=I|orig-year=1st Pub. 1960, Oxford University Press, London}} similarly espoused a classification of board games, this time divided into four categories, "race", "war", "positional", and "mancala" games. In David Parlett's The Oxford History of Board Games (1999),{{Cite book|first=David|last=Parlett|author-link=David Parlett|title=The Oxford History of Board Games|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=1999|isbn=978-0-192-12998-7}} based on the work of Murray and Bell, he described a "classical" categorization of board games which consisted of four primary categories: "race", "space", "chase", and "displace" games.{{Cite book|last=Woods|first=Stewart|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xgmjCHxSxvoC&q=history+of+board+games&pg=PP1|title=Eurogames: The Design, Culture and Play of Modern European Board Games|date=16 August 2012|isbn=9780786490653|page=15|publisher=McFarland|df=dmy}} [https://ia601907.us.archive.org/9/items/woods-2012-eurogames-p-15/Woods%20%282012%29%20Eurogames%20-%20p15.pdf Alt URL]{{rp|page=17}}
Modern board games have been classified in a variety of ways, a classification that can be based on the board game's mechanics, theme, age range, player number, and promotion. The diversity of board games means that some games belong to several categories.{{Cite thesis|last=Edwards|first=Jason R.|title=Saving Families, One Game at a Time |url=http://visionandvalues.org/docs/familymatters/Edwards_Jason.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160205071220/http://visionandvalues.org/docs/familymatters/Edwards_Jason.pdf|archive-date=5 February 2016}}{{rp|13}}
=Mechanics=
A board game's mechanics usually involves an assessment of a player or player/s achievements while adhering to a series of pre-established {{boardgloss#rule set|rules}}, i.e. {{boardgloss|gameplay}}, such as capturing opponents pieces; calculation of a final score; or achieving an outcome.{{citation needed|date=December 2024}} Board games have a range of rule complexity but also a range of strategic depth, both of which determine the ease of mastering the game, i.e., hard-to-master games like chess possess a relatively simple rule set but have great strategic depth.{{Cite book|last=Pritchard|first=D.B.|title=The Encyclopedia of Chess Variants|publisher=Games & Puzzles Publications|year=1994|isbn=978-0-9524142-0-9|page=84|quote=Chess itself is a simple game to learn but its resulting strategy is profound.|author-link=David Pritchard (chess player)}} Examples of categories based on a modern categorization of a board game's mechanics include:
=Theme=
Parlett also distinguishes between abstract and thematic games, the latter having a specific genre or frame narrative, for examples regular chess versus Star Wars-themed chess. The board games often have themes that emulate concepts in real-life situations or fictional scenario, but can also have no evident theme.{{Citation needed|date=January 2025}}
Such games have come under criticism, usually when trending thematic concepts, such as those based on popular television show licenses, have been used to supplement deficiencies in the game mechanics. When discussing this practice, Edwards wrote "A bad game, however, remains a bad game even if it has been themed to a favorite television show."{{rp|11}} Parlett went so far as to describe these promotional and television spin-off games as being “of an essentially trivial, ephemeral, mind-numbing, and ultimately soul-destroying degree of worthlessness".{{rp|7}}
The prominent themes found in board games of the Golden Era included: travel, sports, courtship, racism, city life, war, education and capitalist enterprise".{{cite book|title=The Games We Played: The Golden Age of Board and Table Games|via=Google Books|date=1 March 2003|first=Margaret|last=Hofer|language=en|url=https://www.google.com.au/books/edition/The_Games_we_Played/icYtGRUZrZUC?hl=en|access-date=10 January 2025|archive-url=https://archive.today/20250114024717/https://www.google.com.au/books/edition/The_Games_we_Played/icYtGRUZrZUC?hl=en|archive-date=14 January 2025|url-status=live|df=dmy|publisher=Princeton Architectural Press|isbn=978-1-56898-397-4}} Common modern thematic game categories include:
=Components=
Board games can also be categorized by their components, including:
=Age range=
The recommended age range of board game’s target player market impacts of the categorization of that board game:
=Player number=
Board games can be characterised by the number of players they are designed for. Board games can be; solitaire puzzle games, where a player's performance is assessed against a specified target; or multiplayer games such as competitive games, where a comparison is made between two or more players' achievements, or Cooperative board game where players all players win or lose as a team.{{citation needed|date=December 2024}} :
class="wikitable sortable static-row-numbers"
|+ Board game categorization by player number |
Board Game Audience
! Examples ! Ref |
---|
Large multiplayer
| Take It Easy; Swat | {{citation needed|date=December 2024}} |
Multiplayer
| Risk; Monopoly; Four-player chess | {{citation needed|date=December 2024}} |
Two-player
| En Garde; Dos de Mayo | {{citation needed|date=December 2024}} |
=Promotion type=
The following categories of board games are not board game types but rather paths board game creators take to promote their game:
Glossary <span class="anchor" id="Common terms"></span>
{{further|Glossary of board games}}
Although many board games have a jargon all their own, there is terminology that is recognized and widely shared by gamers and the gaming industry.
See also
- Board game awards
- BoardGameGeek – a website for board game enthusiasts
- Going Cardboard – a documentary movie
- History of games
- Interactive movie – DVD games
- List of board games
- List of game manufacturers
- Mind sport
References
{{reflist}}
Further reading
{{refbegin|30em}}
- {{Cite journal|last=Austin|first=Roland G.|title=Greek Board Games|journal=Antiquity|date=14 September 1940|volume=14|issue=55|pages=257–271}}
- {{Cite book|last=Bell|first=Robert Charles|author-link=Robert Charles Bell|title=Board and Table Games From Many Civilizations|publisher=Dover Publications|year=1979|isbn=978-0-671-06030-5|edition=Revised|volume=I|orig-year=1st Pub. 1960, Oxford University Press, London}}
- {{Cite book|first=Robert Charles|last=Bell|author-link=Robert Charles Bell|title=The Boardgame Book|publisher=Exeter Books|year=1983|isbn=978-0-671-06030-5}}
- {{Cite book|first=Edward|last=Falkener|title=Games Ancient and Oriental and How to Play Them|publisher=Dover Publications Inc|year=2020|orig-year=1892|isbn=978-93-5415-754-7|author-link=Edward Falkener|url=https://books.google.com.au/books?id=RI5UugEACAAJ&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false|access-date=21 July 2017|df=dmy}} [https://archive.org/details/gamesancientorie00falkuoft/page/10/mode/2up Alt URL]
- {{Cite book|first=Willard|last=Fiske|author-link=Willard Fiske|title=Chess in Iceland and in Icelandic Literature—with historical notes on other table-games|url=https://archive.org/details/chessinicelandin00fiskuoft/page/172/mode/2up|publisher=Florentine Typographical Society|year=1905}}
- {{Cite book|first1=Fernand|last1=Gobet|author-link=Fernand Gobet|first2=Alex|last2=de Voogt|author-link2=Alexander de Voogt|first3=Jean|last3=Retschitzki|title=Moves in mind: The psychology of board games|publisher=Psychology Press|year=2004|isbn=978-1-84169-336-1|name-list-style=amp}}
- {{Cite thesis|first=Sonja Musser|last=Golladay|title=Los Libros de Acedrex Dados E Tablas: Historical, Artistic and Metaphysical Dimensions of Alfonso X's Book of Games|url=http://etd.library.arizona.edu/etd/GetFileServlet?file=file%3A%2F%2F%2Fdata1%2Fpdf%2Fetd%2Fazu_etd_2444_1_m.pdf&type=application%2Fpdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110717133812/http://etd.library.arizona.edu/etd/GetFileServlet?file=file%3A%2F%2F%2Fdata1%2Fpdf%2Fetd%2Fazu_etd_2444_1_m.pdf&type=application%2Fpdf|url-status=dead|archive-date=2011-07-17|degree=PhD|publisher=University of Arizona|year=2007}}
- {{Cite magazine|first=Stewart|last=Gordon|date=July–August 2009|title=Saudi Aramco World : The Game of Kings |url=http://www.saudiaramcoworld.com/issue/200904/the.game.of.kings.htm|url-status=dead|magazine=Saudi Aramco World |location=Houston|publisher=Aramco Services Company|volume=60|issue=4|pages=18–23|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090720035407/http://www.saudiaramcoworld.com/issue/200904/the.game.of.kings.htm|archive-date=20 July 2009}}
- {{Cite book|first=Frederic V.|last=Grunfeld|url=https://archive.org/details/gamesofworldhowt0000unse|title=Games of the World |publisher=Holt, Rinehart and Winston|year=1975|isbn=978-0-03-015261-0|url-access=registration}}
- {{Cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/waytoplayillustr00diag|title=The Way to Play|publisher=Paddington Press Ltd |year=1975|isbn=978-0-8467-0060-9|editor-first=Ruth|editor-last=Midgley}}
- {{Cite book|first=Merilyn Simonds|last=Mohr|url=https://archive.org/details/newgamestreasury0000mohr|title=The New Games Treasury|publisher=Houghton Mifflin Company|year=1997|isbn=978-1-57630-058-9|url-access=registration}}
- {{Cite book|first=Harold James Ruthven|last=Murray|author-link=H. J. R. Murray|title=A History of Chess|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=2007|orig-year=1913|isbn=978-0-19-827403-2|edition=Reissued}}
- {{Cite book|first=D. B.|last=Pritchard|title=Brain Games|publisher=Penguin Books Ltd|year=1982|isbn=978-0-14-005682-2 |author-link=David Pritchard (chess player)}}
- {{Cite book|first=David|last=Pritchard|title=The Family Book of Games|publisher=Brockhampton Press|year=1994|isbn=978-1-86019-021-6|author-link=David Pritchard (chess player)}}
- {{Cite journal|first=Gary O.|last=Rollefson|author-link=Gary O. Rollefson|title=A Neolithic Game Board from Ain Ghazal, Jordan|journal=Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research|volume=286|number=1|date=May 1992|pages=1–5|url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/271790491_A_Neolithic_Game_Board_from_Ain_Ghazal_Jordan}}
- {{Cite book|first=Sid|last=Sackson|title=A Gamut of Games|year=1983|isbn=978-0-09-153340-3|author-link=Sid Sackson|orig-year=1969|publisher=Random House|publication-place=New York}}
- {{Cite book|first=R. Wayne|last=Schmittberger|title=New Rules for Classic Games|url=https://archive.org/details/newrulesforclass00rway|publisher=John Wiley & Sons Inc|year=1992|isbn=978-0-471-53621-5}}
{{refend}}
External links
{{commons category|Board games}}
- {{URL|http://www.boardgamegeek.com|BoardGameGeek}}
- {{URL|https://www.boardgametheories.com|BoardGameTheories}}
- {{URL|https://www.parlettgames.uk/games/bgs.html|International Board Game Studies Association}}
{{Tabletop games by type}}
{{Portal bar|Games|Chess|Dungeons & Dragons}}
{{Authority control}}