Getting newbies into board games

For the past two years, as Fly-A-Way and Playlogue took off, I’ve been carrying out a little project on the side. While introducing tabletop games to family and friends, I observed just when I was successful in sharing the joy of tabletop gaming and when I wasn’t.

A lot of the time it came down to the degree with which each of our expectations were met: my familiarity with tabletop game mechanics versus theirs; my level of immersion in a game versus theirs; my estimate of someone’s taste in games versus their actual taste.

Here are some things that I’ve learnt that might be useful to other gamers looking to bring more players to the table. Scroll to the end to also find some tricks, or underhanded ways, of getting converts to tabletop gaming. 😉

1. Embody the role of a game master

There’s probably nothing more discouraging to see while introducing a game than eyes glazed over in boredom or incredulity. To prevent this, you will want to make sure that you command everyone’s attention.

This doesn’t mean bossing them around but showing them that you know the game well enough that they can look to you as a guide. You don’t have to know every single thing about the game you are introducing, but you will want to avoid constantly going, “Erm, I’ll need to check about that.”

The more complex a game is the more it will be important for you to be a steady presence for others, which would mean familiarising yourself with the rules before a game session.

2. Get rid of distractions

Sometimes, despite your best efforts, people will struggle to focus on you because they are stealing glances at the television or their mobile phones.

Some people are used to having white noise while engaging in any activity, whether work-related or recreational. So, you could play music to prevent people from being restless, without competing with the eyeball-drawing screens of the television and the mobile phone.

The trickier part, in my experience, is getting people to avoid using their mobile phones. People are very attached to their devices because they are not just a means of making or taking calls but being connected to others through social media and chat apps.

So, tread carefully when broaching a rule against using mobile phones. If you do a good enough job as a game master, your fellow players might not even feel the urge to reach into their pockets or handbags for their phones.

3. Explain the game’s story before diving into the rules

In trying to explain all the intricacies of a game’s mechanic, you might end up running through all of the rules first.

While the rules are, of course, important, you will want to give players a sense of purpose when playing the game. Meaning, you will want them to know what the rules are for in the first place. And in a game that would be to serve an objective or to advance a story.

Laying out the purpose behind a game can be as simple as: “In Arboretum, we’re each building a garden and we get points based on different combos. The player with the most points wins.”

4. Get a sense of the types of gamers you are playing with

If you know the people you are going to play a game with, you probably have some idea of their interests. With this in mind, you can pick titles that would appeal to them.

People who play role-playing video games or love fantasy books, for instance, might fancy deckbuilding games with similar themes. At the same time, though, you need not typecast your friends and limit the selection of games you introduce to them.

In my experience, it pays to try out different games with your friends, once you’ve hooked them onto the practice of gathering to play tabletop games. Over time, you will get a better sense of the profile of each player. The player, in turn, will learn just what kind of tabletop gamer they are.

5. Do not talk down to players

People play games for a variety of reasons, from wanting to escape to a different world to enjoying a challenge. On a fundamental level, though, everyone is united in the goal of having fun. Or at least they should be.

So, if you’ve developed a love for heavyweight games, do not show contempt for lightweight and party games others like. When your family members and friends mention Monopoly, Scrabble and Uno as reference points, know that they are simply building on what they have been exposed to thus far.

The games they know, however vanilla they might seem, should be seen as entryways to broaden everyone’s gaming experience.

If you’re still struggling to get your friends and family members into board games, it might simply be because they’re not into them. And that’s fine. But if you think they just need an extra push, perhaps it’s time to trick them? You know, for their own good. 😬

1. Appeal to their competitive natures

Maybe you know that the friends you’re having over for game night have short attention spans. So, to get them to focus, add an incentive: “Loser does the dishes after dinner” or “Winner buys a round of drinks when we’re out next time.”

2. Spring a game on them like it’s an accident

If you have plans to hang out at a café one day, why not keep a quick-and-easy card game handy in your bag. When the time is right, look into your bag and pretend like you didn’t know that the game has been here since the last time you used the bag. Then tell them that all of you could play a round of the game since you already have it with you.

3. Cite the importance of game research

Need your friends to take board games seriously? Tell them you’re designing a game and need to do research by playing as many games as possible. Whether this is true or not, your friends will now feel a lot more obligated to give their best during game sessions.