Why Boardgames Matter to Me: An Introduction

Today is my boardgaming group's monthly GameDay -- interestingly, I formed the group way back in 2003, during my last unemployment stint (and, remarkably, a few months after the formation, I landed). Since then, the group has gone through some changes -- we published an online magazine for a few years, and, sadly, for the past couple of years, the database that drives a lot of the group's information has been in serious need of repair; something I haven't had a chance to fix.

At some point, I might consider doing a far longer piece on boardgames; but today is just an introductory post. The gaming group, effectively, keeps me sane because it's social interaction, obviously; and, because running/organizing it continues to keep certain skills of mine 'fresh', which can be useful when you're not working.

But, for me, boardgames encompass more than just my group -- a great deal of my free time is spent in that realm; whether researching or just communicating with others. In fact, the two websites I visit the most on a personal level are this one (Facebook) and Boardgamegeek.

Each site serves a different purpose for me, obviously. Facebook is great for keeping up with friends and contacts. But, Boardgamegeek is a collective of like-minded individuals, and -- I don't mind saying -- probably one of the more unique collections of people on the 'Net.

Boardgaming is certainly a niche hobby, and it appeals to a niche group of people. It's social; but there's a purpose to the social interaction, so even introverts can appear extroverted during a game. And, because a great many of the games are somewhat complex, the overall level of intelligence may be higher than other niche groups (which is not to say every participant is a Rhodes Scholar -- this is just a broad generalization).

For example, however, check out this thread on the growing economic crises (written in March 2008). If you want to make it easier on yourself, about halfway down the page, towards the right hand side, you'll see a link to "hide all comments" - that will make it easier to read. The first 7 items were part of the original posting and -- quite honestly -- it's one of the most succinct, educated reads you could ask for. When I convinced my last company to speak openly about their views on the crisis and their plans for overcoming it, this post played heavily in my approach.

Although boardgames are -- without a doubt -- my number one hobby; I doubt I'll write about them here too often. It just doesn't fit the mold of what I've envisioned for this blog. Still, it would seem almost dishonest to not have mentioned them at least once this month -- the hobby is that important to me.