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ated, and, if
known, the
place of origin, number of players, dura- tion and complexity – all written at the outside edge of the page, perpendicu- lar to the main text. The overall graphic design is of the high quality I’ve come to expect from DK (Dorling Kindersley) books.
The book is a joy to look through. And what about the information contained therein? It does not disappoint – in fact, it’s surprisingly thorough. Whether it’s the particulars about why Checkers is called Draughts in England, or the connection between checkers and a 12th-century Spanish or North-African game called Alquerque or Qirkat in which jumping and removing an opposing piece is sim- ilar, the history and details of each game are written out in a style that is effortless to absorb.
Included in the top one-hundred are a handful of games no one plays any- more and few have ever heard of, such as Hounds and Jackals (2000 BCE); Rith- momachia (invented by a mathematician monk in 1030); a Prussian wargame from 1812 called Kriegsspiel; America’s first- known published game, Traveller’s Tour Through the United States (1822); and Every Man to his Station, an 1825 British game that showcases “the new wave of English games in the early 19th century.” Though lesser-known (or unknown) and rarely (or never) played, these games rep- resent achievements and turning points in the chronology of game development. And this is illustrated and explained to different degrees in the text.
On the other hand, the book is filled with games that nearly everybody knows and has played: Chinese Checkers, Pit, Monopoly, Scrabble, Clue (Cluedo), Candy Land, Yahtzee, Risk, Mouse Trap, Acquire, Mastermind, Uno, Boggle, Con- nect 4, Trivial Pursuit, Jenga, and more recent games such as Catan, Apples to Apples, and a host of games from the 21st century. And the book tells the sto-
designer,
ries behind these popular games. For example, it compares a game from India to what became Snakes and Ladders in the U.K. and even- tually Chutes And Ladders in the U.S., showing the progression from a game of spirituality and morality to one of proper behavior, to a luck- based dice game of moving up a ladder and down a chute. Livingstone says, “... the only decision the player can make is whether to kick the board over and play something better.” Yet it’s a game of his-
torical importance, still played today. New mechanisms (such as worker placement, deck building and card draft- ing) and games of the last few years are also featured. And although the book’s title specifically mentions board games, a few card games get some coverage as
well.
Some of the most prominent inventors
and historians are given space too – from Elizabeth Magie (The Landlord’s Game, precursor of Monopoly), to Matt Leacock (Pandemic, 2008), and including the likes of Sid Sackson, Alex Randolph, and the ever-active David Parlett, winner of the first Spiel des Jahres Award for Hase und Igel, the German version of his still-pop- ular Hare and Tortoise. (A list of “Spiel des Jahres Winners” gets two pages of its own.) Most of the games covered come from the U.S. and Germany, with a fair share from England, but also included are the authors and games of other European countries, including Russia, Ukraine, the Czech Republic and other Eastern Bloc states, and Asia as well. All are also listed in a thorough two-and-a-half-page index.
Are these the most important one-hun- dred games in history? Who’s to argue? In any case, Board Games in 100 Moves certainly lays out one-hundred of the best contenders for the title, in an authorita- tive, easy-to-read, copiously illustrated history. In January, the BoardGameGeek weekly newsletter #307 asked the survey question: “If you could only have one board game, what would it be?” I might pass on the board game and just take the book. Bruce Whitehill
Ian Livingstone and James Wallis: Board Games in 100 Moves. London: Dorling Kindersley 2019. 176 pages. Hardback. ISBN 978-0241363782. RSP £ 14.99.
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