Board game
The Jeu of company is a play which is practiced with several people, in opposition to the plays which are only practiced, the solitary plays or headache.
Definition
There is no satisfactory definition nor universally allowed. One generally excludes from them the primarily physical activities, which one more readily calls “Sport S”, although some call upon the capacities of reaction, reflection or address.Moreover, one uses sometimes the term to indicate plays which do not form part of the traditional big games - failures, Bridge - or of the plays belonging to a branch experiencing an important development, like the war games or the sets of figurines. One can however consider that the term board game gathers all the plays gathering at least two players, in which case, all these plays form well part of the family of the board games.
The board games are generally intellectual plays, often calling upon the reflection. But they can also call upon the address, the observation, promptness. They are characterized by a payment - the rule of the play - more or less complex and rather call according to the case with the good sense, or the memory, or randomly… One however notes a recent tendency, since the years 1990, with convivial plays in which the essential goal is to spend one good moment rather than to exert its capacities of reflection.
Most of the time they require a support: charts, adventure playground, Die S, pawns, etc This material is sometimes standard, sometimes specific to the play.
The number of participants (at least two) variable, but is generally limited to some people.
Synonyms
To try to raise ambiguities related to the name, several ludologists proposed other denominations for the family of the board games.Were thus proposed Jeu of rule or Jeu of table , without one of these terms not managing to really be essential.
Other synonyms come from the Francization of expression Anglo-Saxon.
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the expression Play of plate , Francization of the English term Boardgame is sometimes employed, recently of years, and primarily by players of Card deck to collect or Roleplay to distinguish the board games different from those which they pratiquent.
Cette even expression is also sometimes used to distinguish the plays being played with pawns on an apron out of wooden or paperboard from the plays being played without surface of play with ordinary or special charts. A classification only based on appearances is prone to guarantee since many plays known as of plate are played aves of the charts or that conversely of many plays of charts are played on a plate.
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One speaks about German Jeu . It is there too about a Francization of the term German Boardgame which defines, in the United States, the plays with the simple rules, of limited time, in opposition to the American tendency of plays to the longer rules and the duration, even if they were conceived out of Germany and by authors of other countries.
Recent history
The board games knew upheavals since the Années 1930.
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the first of these revolutions is incarnated by the Monopoly, created in the years of the economic crisis of 1930. This play becomes the prototype of the “economic” plays. Imitated with very many recoveries (Richnesses of the World, Mad…), there has remained the uncontested best-seller for more than 70 years.
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In the Years 1950 the, most known of the sets of letters, the Scrabble, supplants the too simple Lexicon. Patented in the United States in 1948, it knows its French-speaking edition in 1955. There remains him also the leader in his field. The Play of the thousand terminals, created in 1954, is one of the first specific card decks.
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In 1957 appears a board game not like the others: the conquest of the World , which will quickly become Risk . This play, which is an illustration of military combat simplified to the extreme, opens the way with a considerable ludic universe: sets of warlike simulations and the wargames. Even if it is not one, far is necessary oneself some, Risk contributed to make known with the general public the existence and the ludic potential of the wargames.
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In 1961 is published a play whose repercussion will be considerable: Diplomacy. It is presented in the form of a play of combat on a chart of Europe divided into zones, where the chance after the attribution of the country was completely eliminated. Diplomacy counts federations, national championships, competitions by Internet, of the theorists and the specialized magazines…
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One of the greatest evolutions of the play is the arrival, in 1974, of Donjons and Dragons, which invents the Roleplay. The play becomes the occasion to create imaginary adventures without another material support that paper, pencils and some Des.
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1984 . A new handset unloads, and causes a world success, the Trivial Pursuit. The play with the “Camembert cheeses” which is not that a simple set of questions/answers renews the play of “company”: a play of which the part begins instantaneously after the opening from the box without any preparation nor training from rules, which makes it possible to join together all the generations, with a key of chance. Beside Commonplace Pursuit, a whole generation of plays of questions and answers fleurit.
Après Commonplace Pursuit, the time is with user-friendliness: let us quote in particular the Pictionary, another world success, consisting in making guess with its team of the words by drawings or Taboo of which the goal consists in making guess words without employing a list of prohibited terms.
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With the turning of the years 1990, the strategy games change; the plays “étatsuniens” with the increasingly complex rules, the increasingly long parts which aim at a primarily young and male public, succeeds the “German” plays: the rules are purified, the parts are shorter (the standard is two hours to the maximum) in order to attract a larger, and in particular female audience. The plays of warlike simulation where the victory often passes by the crushing of the adversary pass the hand to plays of co-operation between the players, with the studied rules so that no defeat is too crushing. The play emblematic of this new wave is the Colonists of Catane, with the multiple versions published since its publication in 1995.
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With the beginning of the year 1990 also, appears the Card decks to collect like Magic: the assembly (1993). Resulting from the universes of roleplays, then of cartoons and finally of the cinema. These card decks propose a strategic duel with a share of chance; it is a new version of the battles or of the Jeu of the thousand terminals.
The roleplays appeared also rather early and knew one big hit near the young people.
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Among the plays which marked the years 2000, one can note a revival of the plays abstracted with for example Blokus, at the same time fast family play and strategy game. The sets of questions or tests more and more often integrates a support DVD. The plays develop according to two rather opposite directions. On a side one finds more and more plays fast and interactive like Citadelles, even of the little games , which often hold in the pocket and make it possible to animate a many assembly, conquer an important public, like the Wolves-garous of Thiercelieux or Unanimo. On another side, one sees appearing more complex plays and requiring a more important personal investment, like Puerto Rico or Caylus.
Examples of board games
The Classification of the plays of company is difficult. The plays often have several characteristics and of this fact can belong to several families. The battles is at the same time a Card deck and a Game of chance. The Jeu of failures is at the same time a Strategy game and a combinative play abstracted.
Domino or card deck
These card decks can use traditional charts, like the Belote, the Bridge, the Poker, the Rami, or the Tarot. They are then available in the form of a rule.Games use charts to be played specific. Certain plays are traditional, like the Jeu of the 7 families. Others were created by authors or editors like Stupide vulture or Speed.
The plays of Domino S or Mah jong are often attached to the card decks.
Strategy games
Everyone does not grant the same significance to the expression. For the ones, they are video games, for others of war games, others still of abstract plays.In term of board games, there exist several traditional strategy games like the Backgammon, the battles naval (also play of deduction) or the Trictrac. One can also quote the Puluc of South American origin.
During last years, one saw appearing many sets of authors whom one can describe as strategy games. They can be plays of conquest like Risk, Stratego or Tigre & Euphrate. Other plays simulate economies or civilizations like the Colonists of Catane or Puerto Rico. Full Métal Planet puts the players in the skin of colonists exploiting the mineral richnesses of a distant planet.
Certain strategy games call upon the capacities of influence and handling of the players, sometimes decorated votes. One speaks then about plays of negotiation of which most known are Diplomatie, Nomic or Junta.
abstract combinative Plays
When the reflection is the only engine of the play and that the chance does not have a place, generally in plays opposing two players what excludes any diplomatic character, one speaks about strategy games combinative abstracted.Certain plays are traditional or traditional, like the Awélé, the Jeu of ladies, the Jeu of failures, the Shôgi, the Xiangqi or the Jeu of go. Others were created these last years by the authors or of the editors, like Abalone, GIPF, Othello or Puissance 4. Some very simple plays, completely solved, are to be attached to this type of plays like the play of Nim.
The last years saw arriving of many sets of authors of which some became almost the traditional ones like Gobblet or Othello.
Sets of letters
Calling most of the time upon Anagram S, They can be played with dice like the Boggle, of the plates or tokens like the Jarnac or the Scrabble, or with charts to be played special like the Lexicon.
Games of chance
In the games of pure chance, the result of the play depends only on the chance: Play of the goose, battles or Loto.The games of chance reasoned call upon the reflection and the probabilities: Backgammon, Trictrac, Play of the small horses, Monopoly.
Plays of address
They call upon the physical skill. One knows traditional the Mikado, but also the Tiddlywinks. Some sets of recent authors call upon the address, like Villa Paletti. The Carrom is initially a play of address before becoming a strategy game starting from a certain level.
Plays of assembly
The purpose of these plays are to make play together a great number of players. The rules are often very simple and the goal is primarily to spend one pleasant moment in family or with friends. It often call upon knowledge like the Trivial Pursuit or Time' S Up!. Moreover, they can simply constitute in roleplays, like the wolves-garous of Thiercelieux, which has been a resounding success at the groups of eight players and more for a few years.
Price and rewards
There is several prices rewarding the new handsets for company. Most important are:- Spiel of Jahres (Play of the year) : German price allotted by a jury of journalists;
- Deutscher Spiele Preis (Price of the German Play) : German price allotted by players;
- Play of the year: French price which amalgamated with the As of Gold of the Festival of the plays of Cannes, allotted by a jury of personalities;
- Origins Award : several prices allotted by categories, with American plays essentially;
- Speelgoed van het jaar (Play of the year in the Netherlands) : price allotted by players.
Authors of modern plays
Starting from the Years 1960, the authors of plays start to leave anonymity. Their name more and more often appears on the face of the boxes of plays.See the article devoted to with the authors of board games. All the articles of Wikipédia devoted to the authors are gathered in the category “Author of board games”.
External bonds
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Simple: Board range
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