I’m taking a course titled Collection Development (SP19IS508AO) as part of my Master of Science in Library and Information Science program this semester. Our instructor had us write up introduction posts the first week of class and then from those posts she made a topic list with some of the common hobbies we all mentioned. We all had to opt-in to a topic without knowing the reason (and each topic had an unknown limited number of spots) and once we’d all chosen, she told us that we have to develop a collection of 20 items for chosen topic. We have to bring our list to class and defend it – explain why we chose the 20 things on our list instead of any other options. “Board games” was on the topic list and luckily I was able to select it before the option was gone. And we are not allowed to collaborate with the other folks who have the same topic.
Here’s the thing: I cannot just make a list of my 20 favorite board games and call it a day. In fact, I’ll likely need to include some games that I personally would not choose to play. This has to be a curated collection for a public library. A library that has patrons from all walks of life coming through its doors to check out various things for education and entertainment. Patrons who will have varied levels of exposure to and experience with board games. Some folks will know exactly what it means if a game is described as “a medium-weight game with drafting, set collection, and asymmetrical player powers” and some folks will read that description and not have a clue what those mechanisms are. (For more on jargon in the board game industry/hobby, check out this post by Meeple Like Us.)
I need games that span a variety of themes, mechanisms, and complexities. I want games that will generate enough interest that I’ll get a budget increase to add more games to the collection – so I can listen to patron requests for games.
I need some kid-friendly games that a parent with a 5-year-old could bring home and play with their kid. Something that will engage the 5-year-old and the parent.
I need some classics and some mainstream games that are recognizable by folks who remember the occasional family game night as a kid and might use that nostalgia as a road into the modern hobby OR they recall seeing the game at Target and want to try it before they buy it.
And I need some designer hobby games that will appeal to someone who might have a group that they play with at a friend’s house or who might be part of a local board game Meetup or GameFor group but are looking for a new space for play.
If you’re wondering “Why board games?”, take a look here for some benefits of board games, read this article about the golden age of board games, and take a look at these talking points about tabletop games in libraries from the Games & Gaming Round Table of the American Library Association.
My comments about each game will be in the notes section at the bottom of each table table. For anyone unfamiliar with BoardGameGeek (BGG), it’s a game database where community members can rate games and get information about player counts, play times, designers, publishers, themes, mechanisms, and more for most published or soon-to-be published games. The tables below (created with a WordPress plugin from Meeple Like Us) pull information from BGG, so the ratings (1-10, the number in brackets next to rank) are based on BGG user ratings. The complexity scale goes from 1 (light) to 5 (heavy), where light games are generally easier to learn and play than heavy games.
ONLY 20 GAMES. Everyone’s list will be different (that’s the point of the assignment), but this list is mine. Here we go!
#1-5 Kid-Friendly Games
#6-12 Classics & Mainstream Games
#13-20 Hobby Games
The Outcome (in class)
Edit to add: After our class discussion about this assignment, we discovered that three of us chose board games as our topic. Across our lists, we had 45 unique game titles. Only 4 titles were on all three lists (7 Wonders, Splendor, Catan, and Monopoly). There were 11 titles that were on at least 2 lists. We had to work with our group to reduce our list to 10 titles. After my group talked, this was our final 10:
- 7 Wonders
- Splendor
- Catan
- Monopoly
- Carcassonne
- Ticket to Ride
- King of Tokyo
- Dominion
- Codenames
- Scrabble
Interesting list – two games I expected and aren’t on this list are Ticket to ride and Pandemic.
I eel like both are iconic enough to deserve a spit and they are also quite friendly for newer gamers.
I would probably drop Dead of winter and Mansions, because of complexity, but that is just my opinion 🙂
Another game that I could see arguments for is Azul.
I wanted to include a wide variety of genres/themes, mechanisms, and complexity. Ticket to Ride and Azul were games I considered, and there are several others that could work for a list like this, too. In any list of this nature, there are going to be differences of opinion because there isn’t any one right answer. I chose Dead of Winter over Pandemic because I think DoW is more flexible. With Mansions, I wanted an example of a well done app integration.
Hmmm, I didn’t really consider trying to show a good app integration, but I really like it in hindsight 🙂 Maybe I’m just to focused on having beginner friendly games in such a list (in the end if 17 games are on the lighter side it would be nice to offer a little bit for people who are prepared for a bit more rules).
And yeah such lists will always be different, I’m just in love with Pandemic 🙂
I certainly understand that the 20 games limit is set by the assignment (I would guess in an actual situation there would be either a limit to combined price or a limit for space or both).
Out of curiosity – what are your opinions about calssic games such as Chess on a list like this (I certainly get that we want to show off all the hobby games, but at the same time I could see a reason to include the true old games)?
I didn’t want to be too focused on beginner friendly because I wanted things that would entice folks who are already avid gamers, as well. If I had to use the collection to start a gaming club at the library, I’d definitely want to appeal to folks who already game and might be looking for a regular group. A lot of folks don’t feel comfortable bringing their own games until they know people, so I’d need some medium to heavy games to get them interested. Their enthusiasm for gaming would hopefully draw in more people, new gamers included.
There’s definitely room for things like Chess, Checkers, Othello, and Go. The reason they aren’t on this list, and I probably should have mentioned in the post, is that, in my experience, libraries tend to have those games available even if they don’t have a circulating game collection (especially Chess and Checkers). They’ll receive copies as donations and keep them available either on a shelf where folks can just grab them and play in the library or they can request them from the reference desk.
Oh, and twenty games was the limit for the assignment. If I could have included more, I would have, haha!
Oh man – I think you forgot The Grimm Forest! Otherwise great list! 🙂
Haha! Thanks!
2 essential games that always seem to be missed in my opinion are smallworld and tsuro, both easy to learn with tons of strategy
Both would work on a list like this. I love Tsuro! 20 games is pretty restrictive when it comes to ideas for public libraries, and nearly everyone will have a different list. There isn’t any one right list.