The Board Game Toolkit: Getting Started in the Game World
Which games to start with? Where to buy them? Tips to guide you through your first steps in the world of board games.
then more than 13 years that our blog exists, at the rate of one article per day, we published articles! While some are fine where they are, in the gut, in the blog archives, others, on the other hand, deserve our attention, that we come back to it. This is what we will now offer you, every Wednesday, an article that appeared on our blog more or less long ago. This is what we will now call the “board game toolbox”, topics, analyzes that might (re) interest you. Timeless, practical and useful subjects.
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| The Board Game Toolkit: Getting Started in the Game World |
But we’re not just going to cut and paste, pulling them out of their lethargy. We will take the opportunity to offer them a little facelift, an update that is sometimes necessary, since these articles have been lying around and gathering digital dust.
After last week’s Toolkit, How to Organize Your Games Better, today we revive another article. Almost six years ago, in May 2015, we published: What games to buy, where to play. The complete guide for your first steps in the world of board games.
With an industry booming in 2021, and this despite the pandemic, – because of the pandemic? – this article is still meaningful and relevant to anyone interested in board games and who would like to get started. We are counting on you to share your advice in the comments.
When was the last time you walked into a hard-core game store? With the containment measures that have shaken our countries for a year, these shops are suffering from an infernal broom, between openings and closings. The case in 16 departments in France today. Because no, obviously, according to the government, board games are not… essential.
In short.
And when you were in the store, did you ever overhear the conversation of people walking through the threshold of the store, that real Ali Baba cave, for the very first time?
Multicolored boxes stacked. Crowded. Ordered. Varied. Which one to choose ? For people who have never been to a board game store, one can imagine a flood, a mixture of curiosity and bewilderment. And paralysis, above all. Abundance of goods night. Which box to buy. Why this game over any other. Is this the right choice. Why pay 20-30 euros more for a game than for another game? So many questions that freeze, especially when you do not know anything and you want to get into the so-called modern board game.
The world of board games is seething. In all of human history there have never been so many board games released as in the past 10-15 years. Between the crowdfunding which turns everything upside down and certain authors and publishers who strafe the market, how do you navigate it?
Here’s our guide to help you get started in the board game world. Because yes, the board game is indeed a universe. With its codes. Its peculiarities. His personalities.
Where to play
You want to discover board games but you don’t know how or where. And you don’t want to buy it right away.
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3 options are available to you:
1. Each large town (village?) Has an association, an MJC, a municipal game library, a game bar that can welcome you. Often, you will be asked for a small fee to participate. Who will be worth paying to experience games.
2. Are your friends already playing? Get a transplant at one of their game night.
3. The annual fun calendar has many meetings of passionate players. Toulouse, La Chaux-de-Fonds, Martigny, Brussels, Paris, etc. etc. Find out and you might find a big festival or a small event not far from where you live. The perfect opportunity. Tables. Selecting. Animators ready to welcome you to explain the games to you.
Yes well, all these ideas are very … “the world before … Today, how to come together to play in the midst of the health crisis that has rocked the planet for a year? Yes, we can continue to play, remotely.
How can you find out?
Want to know the next releases? Read reviews to find out which game is worth it? Find out about board games in general?
4 options are available to you:
1. Online: the internet is full of sites and blogs dedicated to board games. Including Gus & Co. You have already made the right choice to come and see us. Also check out Ludovox. Otherwise TricTrac. The largest French-speaking board game site owned by Asmodee, the largest French game distributor. Otherwise, the net is full of other great sites and blogs from enthusiasts.
If you read English, otherwise there is BoardGameGeek. The biggest board game site in the world. Yes, to the world.
2. Podcast: Still on the internet, you can find sites offering audio shows that focus on board games. Proxigames, in French. The Dice Tower, in English, to name a few.
3. Press: Plato is the biggest and oldest pro French-speaking monthly board game review.
4. YouTube: On YouTube you’ll find tons of rule explanation videos and open-the-box as they say, game box openings. Do a search for “board games” on YouTube and you will find what you are looking for!
What games to buy?
You have tried a few games. You have informed yourself. You are ready to go. But you don’t know which game to buy yet.
Ask yourself 3 questions:
1. For what occasion do you intend the game? A crazy evening with friends? For parties with your partner? With rather calm friends who like to think?
2. What is your budget? The price of the games varies between 10 and 100 euros. With an average of 50 euros. How much are you willing to invest? And yes, there are a lot of good games for less than 20 euros!
3. Have you ever heard of a game? And if so, which one? And if so, why ?
All of these questions will help you narrow down your choice. Fun evenings? 2 player games only? Richer games?
In fact, your best bet is to start with Gateway Games. Some titles to discover modern board games. We have some ideas for you below.
Or buy ?
If you can find the most … classic modern board games, in major brands and on the internet, it is still best to go to a specialized game store or go through its website if you live far away or it is closed. , hello COVID.
3 options are available to you:
1. The “hard” shops. Those that are in your city. The obvious advantage is that you will be able
to see the games, touch them, smell them, and ask the merchant’s opinion. He can advise you.
2. Online. Sometimes a bit cheaper than the “hard” shops. Online stores often have impressive catalogs. What you lose in customer advice you gain in choice. Try Philibertnet in France or Play-in, for example, the two shops that support Gus & Co.
3. The second-hand market. You can still find games that are already used on resale sites. Ebay. Okkazeo.
And now ? How to continue? Start your game library.
You have already purchased your first 2-3 games. You spent your first evenings, IRL or online. And now ? If you’re new to the board game community and want to start your first board game collection, we’ve got some tips and recommendations on the first games you should add to your collection.
When starting your board game collection, you want to make sure you choose easy-to-learn board games, as well as “cult” games that we consider “must-have” in your new board game collection. But also, fluid, short, nervous games that make you want to re-play.
Here’s our list of must-have games to start your board game collection! A few titles, not a lot, just to “get your feet wet.”
