Board/tabletop games, their virtual counterparts and their effects on each other

Computer games and their roots in the tabletop

When we talk about modern computer games, the first things that come to mind are massive, visually pleasing AAA titles, incredibly complex in both development and maintenance. Doubly so, if you consider the fact that most of them feature some kind of online multiplayer system. Their ancestors, board games, continue to exist to this day though, and keep evolving, influencing and taking influence from video games constantly.

The early days

A lot of the games from the infancy of the video game era were similar to tabletop games, with a lot of text-based roleplaying games and MUDs that took inspiration from classics like D&D, borrowing elements like dice rolls and various cards that each affected gameplay in its own way. Many games also use hexagonal or chessboard-like grids for their playing field.

Early text-based LOTR RPG, with a surprising amount of player freedom. Image source

A surprising development

It would be fairly expected, then, that video games would eventually push board games out of the market, especially with the advent of smartphones and their convenience – and for a while, that was the case. When smartphones came around, the "casual" board games like Scrabble, Pictionary, Uno etc. did see a major drop in popularity, and have not recovered since. It should be noted, though, that while the physical form of these board games might be dying, it's not like the games themselves are "dead" – the tabletop form is just used less because the same simple games are available as apps, some even official (and if you don't like the official ones, hundreds of clones exist).

Unexpectedly though, the interest in the more strategical, thoughtful (also known as German style) board games like Settlers of Catan and Carcassonne actually increased. With deeply strategic video games being fairly large players in today's entertainment market, many people that enjoy this type of game tend to also like strategic board games. The experience of chatting with friends over an engaging tabletop game is something you can't quite achieve or emulate in video games. These games can vary, with some being co-op, while others make the players compete against each other (with varying degrees of frustration, with the scale varying from "mildly frustrating" to "a hellish chimera of Monopoly and UNO").

In the world of games, the student has become the teacher. While in the early days video games drew inspiration from board games, the opposite is now true. With many board games adopting video game mechanics to varying degrees of success, the market has become truly colorful. From board game adaptions of popular video games like DOOM, The Witcher, and Fallout, to somewhat original titles like Terraforming Mars, there is something for almost everyone.

DOOM board game. Who could've guessed? Going on the bucket list. Image source

Personal experience

While I haven't ventured into the world of board games much myself (haven't bought them, that is), a lot of my friends are enthusiasts and have introduced me to their world. I have to say, I really enjoyed the Lovecraftian Cthulhu: Death May Die, a fairly classical dungeon crawler-type game. In the game, the players co-operate to clear out a dungeon and stop one of the Old Ones. I enjoyed the difficulty of it, and the possibilities of coming up with weird and outlandish strategies, that might be stupid enough to work.

Box art. Image source

I also enjoyed city(stable?)-building games like Unstable Unicorns, Citadels and Everdell. Their competitive nature is very fun, once the basics/game mechanics become clear, and they aren't nearly as frustrating for the fellow players as some classics. Looking at you, Monopoly.

Conclusion

The history of these two distinct, yet connected types of entertainment is heavily intertwined. While video games have mostly taken over the market, board games still fill a niche that is nigh impossible to achieve virtually, and thankfully are here to stay.

References:

https://www.mcvuk.com/development-news/how-video-games-both-killed-and-improved-the-board-game/