The event starts at 1:30pm and lasts all the way until 9:00pm.  So, get ready for the largest boardgame auction to-date.  Hope to see you all there!  Happy bidding!

Winning some obscure German award may not sound impressive, but in the board game world the Spiel des Jahres is, in fact, a very, very big deal. Germans, it turns out, are absolutely nuts about board games. More are sold per capita in Germany than anywhere else on earth. The country’s mainstream newspapers review board games alongside movies and books, and the annual Spiel board game convention in Essen draws more than 150,000 fans from all walks of life.

Because of this enthusiasm, board game design has become high art—and big business—in Germany. Any game aficionado will tell you that the best-designed titles in the world come from this country. In fact, the phrase German-style game is now shorthand for a breed of tight, well-designed games that resemble Monopoly the way a Porsche 911 resembles a Chevy Cobalt.

But back in 1991, despite having designed a series of successful German-style titles, Teuber still thought of making board games as a hobby, albeit a lucrative one. “With all the games, we would sell 300,000 the first year and then next to nothing the next,” he says. So Teuber stuck with his day job selling dental bridges and implants, struggling to keep afloat the 60-person business he had inherited from his father. At night he would retreat to his basement workshop and play.

ne day Teuber began tinkering with a new theme for a game: an uncharted island. In his original vision, players would slowly discover the island by flipping over tiles, then establish colonies using the indigenous natural resources. The game incorporated elements of other ideas Teuber was working on, but for some reason this one seemed special. “I felt like I was discovering something rather than inventing it,” Teuber says.

Every once in a while, he would bring the new game upstairs to test it out on his family. They would play along, but Teuber could tell that the game wasn’t working. Sometimes, in the middle of a match, he would notice his youngest son, Benny, reading a comic under the table. Other times his wife would suddenly remember a load of laundry that needed immediate attention. After each of these sessions, Teuber would haul the game back downstairs for further refinement. He repeated this process over the course of four years.

Eventually, Teuber whittled his invention down to a standard pair of dice, a handful of colored wooden houses that represented settlements and cities, stacks of cards that stood for resources (brick, wool, wheat, and others), and 19 hexagonal cardboard tiles that were arranged on a table to form the island. He had hit on something with this combination—the enthusiasm on family game night was palpable. During nearly every session, he, his wife, and their children would find themselves in heated competition. The game was done, Teuber decided. He called it Die Siedler von Catan, German for “The Settlers of Catan.”

Released at the annual Essen fair in 1995, Settlers sold out its initial 5,000 copies so fast that even Teuber doesn’t have a first edition. That year, it won the Spiel des Jahres and every other major prize in German gaming. Critics called it a masterpiece. Fans couldn’t get enough, snapping up 400,000 copies in its first year. “It was a maturation of the form,” says Stewart Woods, a board game scholar at Curtin University of Technology in Perth, Australia. “It wasn’t until Settlers that the whole thing broke wide open.”

Since its introduction, The Settlers of Catan has become a worldwide phenomenon. It has been translated into 30 languages and sold a staggering 15 million copies (even the megahit videogame Halo 3 has sold only a little more than half that). It has spawned an empire of sequels, expansion packs, scenario books, card games, computer games, miniatures, and even a novel—all must-haves for legions of fans. And it has made its 56-year-old inventor a household name in every household that’s crazy about board games, and a lot that aren’t.

Most impressive of all, though, Settlers is actually inducting board-game-averse Americans into the cult of German-style gaming. Last year, Settlers doubled its sales on this side of the Atlantic, moving 200,000 copies in the US and Canada—almost unheard-of performance for a new strategy game with nothing but word-of-mouth marketing. It has become the first German-style title to make the leap from game-geek specialty stores to major retailers like Barnes & Noble and Toys “R” Us.

Settlers is now poised to become the biggest hit in the US since Risk. Along the way, it’s teaching Americans that board games don’t have to be either predictable fluff aimed at kids or competitive, hyperintellectual pastimes for eggheads. Through the complex, artful dance of algorithms and probabilities lurking at its core, Settlers manages to be effortlessly fun, intuitively enjoyable, and still intellectually rewarding, a potent combination that’s changing the American idea of what a board game can be.

Source: http://www.wired.com

Gloria Hackett of Florence Mattison said the school received a grant during the 2004-2005 school year for enrichment activities. The after-school program is part of what came out of the grant, as well as summer programs. The after-school program is held monthly, and a variety of topics have been touched on, reinforcing literacy, math and science skills.

“It’s been a variety of experiences for the kids. It’s been a good thing,” Hackett said.

Monday night’s program focused on parents playing board games with their children and having regular family game nights. She said playing board games teaches children higher level thinking skills, waiting their turn and being polite.

Lelia Young was the speaker for the evening. She is a teacher for the Conway School District, a parent and a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority, Chi Eta Omega chapter. She spoke on behalf of the sorority about the importance of playing board games with children because of both bonding and educational merits.

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Young said as a parent and full-time worker, she understands when parents get home from work, they do not feel like playing. However, it is important to spend quality time with children, and playing board games is a way to spend quality time without spending a lot of money and energy, she said.

“As a parent, I like to play games,” she said. “It allows me to talk with them about their day, have fun it teaches them to follow rules.”

She said she chooses games that take 15 to 20 minutes to play. She also told parents board games are available at Fred’s or Walmart that are inexpensive and that they likely already know how to play.

She said playing games helps children in school because they have to strategize to win, “and that’s problem solving. And all day long we try to teach kids to solve problems.”

Andrea Key and her husband Chris were among the parents who brought their children to the game night at the after-school program.

“I think it’s a great opportunity to take a break from the after-school rush,” said Andrea Key, who commutes to and from Camp Robinson to work. “We are in a rush to get dinner prepared and get them ready for the next day. We don’t necessarily take time to do these type of activities.”

She said of the after-school program, “It also gives them time to interact with their peers in a different setting. It’s different from recess. It’s different from class time.”

Source: http://www.thecabin.net

There are sub-genres within the broader genre of dexterity games, stacking games like Jenga – where wooden pieces are removed from a tower and stacked again on top, or Villa Paletti – similar to Jenga, where pillars are removed from lower in a structure and used to help build higher floors.

Flicking games usually involve ‘flicking’ a piece to hit a certain target – like in Crokinole, or Carrom – or flicking it to a certain spot – like in Elk Fest or Sorry Sliders.

Other types of dexterity games may involve speed – being the first to build something or being the first to grab something.  Others still may involve balancing something carefully, as in Animal upon Animal.

All these games have a relatively low barrier to entry – meaning they can be taught quickly and easily.  However, just because a game is easy to teach does not mean that it is easy to play – and many of these games subscribe to the old maxim that they take moments to learn and ages to master.  Games of this ilk are engaing, exciting, frustrating, thought provoking, thrilling, challenging and plenty of fun.  Dexterity games are often quick to play, and although often expensive, typically see a high number of plays due to their easy nature and entertaining game play.

I have found dexterity games to be entertaining for myself, but also very popular in a school environment.  Dexterity games have a way of evening the field, if chosen well they offer no advantage to age (in fact they often advantage the younger and more adroit children) – and this makes for a nice change of pace to the usual games where adults or experienced players will win more often than not.  Kids seem to love these sorts of games – games where they must be very very careful or else risk doom, and where with a crash and a rumble the game can come to an explosive and exciting end.

There are many other wonderful and fascinating dexterity games.  These are great fun, require a good deal of skill, and are usually fair game for both the young and the old. And remember – whether flicking or stacking, use just enough force to get it done right – easy does it!

Source: http://www.gamesforeducators.com

Simple dice games are fun because everyone loves rolling dice. You can use different sizes and colors to add interest. Leave the dice out on the kitchen table for impromptu games and to encourage practice. Make up your own games and rules. Adjust to grade level and abilities of the players. (Partners check answers with a calculator.)

Addition Fun: Start with two dice and have the first player roll the dice. Then add the number of dots mentally. One player gets to throw the dice and give answers until he misses and then the play moves to the next player. For super math stars add another die or two…

Subtraction Fun: Start by throwing two of the dice. Now roll the third. Subtract mentally the second number from the first. Super math stars can increase the difficulty by adding additional dice.

Please, dust off those old favorite board games, cards and dice of yours. Buy new as 2009 New Year gifts. Sit around a table with the TV off, don’t answer the phone. You are helping your child with his/her math; it’s all in the game!

Source: http://www.gamesforeducators.com

“The students designed the games after reading the books, and then they had to come up with questions about the characters and plots using game cards,” said teacher Eleanor Cox.

In an effort to have her students work together and exercise a division of labor, she split her literature class into four groups of four students each to work on the projects. They play their games daily now that they have been completed.

“We worked as a team,” said Nicole Rigby, 12, who was part of a group that read the book, “Mystery of the Crocodile Island,” and created an elaborate three-dimensional game board. Her team estimated they spent $50 building the project.

Players and game pieces advance through each board’s myriad of mazes and paths, rolling dice or spinning a game wheel, collecting clues along the way.

“Our game took about two days to design and a week to build,” said Jacob Towers, 12, whose group based their board game on the book, “The Secret of the Wild Swamp.”

“I like doing these together,” said fellow classmate, Jackie Parente.

Aside from grades received from Ms. Cox, the students will also have the opportunity to judge each others work. “I find that they sometimes learn more from doing group projects,” said Ms. Cox.

Source: http://www.eastbayri.com || Written By: Rob Merwin

Who can come to Game Crab Boardgame Cafe? Well, quite frankly, ANYONE can come at ANYTIME.

When you’re with your family [Isama si Ate, Kuya, Daddy, Mommy, pati na si Lolo at Lola]…

Or you’re with your friends [Pambarkada din 'to... The more, the merrier]…

And pwde rin pang-date!

We’ll make sure that our friendly staff will cater to whatever your needs may be. Whether it’s to help explain a game, serve you good food, or make sure na walang sisingit sa date nyo.

So whatcha waiting for? Tara na! Punta na sa Game Crab Boardgame Cafe! Where there’s fun to be had by all! See you there!

P.S.: The crab plushies come FREE when you apply for a lifetime membership.

In the 1960s a neuro-anatomist by the name of Maria Diamond and her fellow researchers at the University of California, Berkeley found that rats playing with toys – object that can be tossed, sniffed or chewed at, learned to traverse mazes better than others that were confined to their cages. When she checked their brains, she found out that the ones that were given toys to play with had a significantly thicker cerebral cortex – the part of brain largely responsible for thinking.

Based on this experiment, these researchers believe that people who challenges their mind will be able to build reserve brainpower that will be useful as they get older.

In another test, scientists also discovered that game playing also helps students with other kind of learning. Stuart Margulies, a New York psychologist had showed in his experiment that kids aged eight to nine who played chess for more than half an hour a day performed better than those who do not in their reading tests.

In University of Wisconsin, scientist even admit that video games could also be useful for the brain. Experiments conducted by James Gee, a professor of learning sciences believe that there are some cognitive benefits of playing games: pattern recognition, system thinking, even patience. He also concluded that gaming can exercise the mind the way physical activity exercises the body:

Although the above experiment seemed to be useful as an excuse for video gamers out there, most scientists and psychologist believe there are some problems with PC or video games. They believe these games lack nonverbal cues and digression compared to the traditional board games. The board games they believe help build healthy relationship, provide a sense of companionship as well as contributing to social intelligence.

The board games suggested for students are games that can stimulate their thinking process as well as one that involves face to face interaction with others. Games like chess, monopoly and other similar genre games are considered perfect choices. Apart from such games, scientists also believe that crossword puzzles, brain twisters or bridge tournaments can also help one toughen the brain cells.

So, what are you waiting for? Switch off your first person shooting game and start looking for your old monopoly board and start playing to get your brain into tip-top shape.

Source: http://www.gamesforeducators.com

The keyboard was commissioned by some guys from east New Jersey, USA who are avid Scrabble players.  Most of the keys are made from real Scrabble tiles that were all hand-beveled and built onto a USB, clicky,
mechanical-switch keyboard.  A couple of units will soon be for sale according to the site here.

You might say Ken Fonarow is doing a little spring cleaning.

After buying and selling board and role-playing games for 25 years and hawking his wares at shows around the country, the retired policeman is selling his personal collection — for $150,000.

Fonarow’s 20,000 games — from one-of-a-kind collector’s items to out-of-print rarities — is being snatched up by board and role-playing game Internet retailer TrollandToad.com, based in Barbourville, Ky.

TrollandToad.com spokesman Ryan Severin says the acquisition is the largest in the company’s 17 years of doing business. It has 75 employees and had sales of $5 million last year.

Fonarow’s collection includes items once owned by Charles Roberts, one of board game company Avalon Hill’s founders.

“We acquire a lot of collections with 50 to 200 items through eBay or when people go to the gaming conventions,” Severin says.

TrollandToad.com has more than 500,000 items — 70 percent board games and the rest role-playing games and magazines.

“This should double our board game collection,” Severin says.

Fonarow says he has been talking with TrollandToad.com owner Jon Huston for the past two years.

“His business is driven by acquisitions of hard-to-get and out-of-print board games,” Fonarow says. “He wanted to know if I knew about a very large collection that might be for sale. I told him there was only one I know about. I didn’t mention whose, but he probably figured out I was talking about my own.”

Fonarow, who finished a 27-year law enforcement career in March, bought a home outside Eagle Point in 2002 and began hauling his personal collection up from Southern California to the Rogue Valley in July 2003. He converted a structure next to his barn into a three-car garage to store it.

Last month, representatives of TrollandToad.com pored over Fonarow’s stash for three and a half days and agreed to pay $150,000 for his games.

“They underestimated how long it would take to go through my stuff,” Fonarow says. “They were up until 1:30 one night and 2:30 another. When I went to bed, they kept working.”

Fonarow figures the collection will fit into one large semitrailer — if it is packed right.

Fonarow began playing American Heritage basic-level war games in the 1960s and graduated to Avalon Hill military simulations in the 1970s.

“I bought some major collections out of New York City early on when I decided this was a good sideline for me,” he says.

He is the auctioneer at the annual Origins Game Fair in Columbus, Ohio, which features war games. For a while, he handled similar duties at the Gen Con role-playing game confab in Indianapolis. TrollandToad.com now runs that auction.

While he plans to still hit conventions and shows, Fonarow says he has no plans to open a storefront.

“So many retail stores fail,” he says. “I wouldn’t mind having a store if the overhead was reasonable, but I don’t want to tie myself down.”