After working at a library with a well-developed and long running teen RPG (Dungeons & Dragons in this case) group it has come to me that Role-playing games (RPGs) are great for your library for several reasons: Immersive Storytelling: RPGs have rich and immersive narratives that allow players to delve into worlds and stories. The focus on storytelling enables players to become fully engaged in the game’s plot, characters, and setting, making the experience more compelling and memorable. In video games, the player is passive and the character does great things, in RPG’s they both do amaz ..read more

Harvest is a fantasy themed farming game for 2-4 players which plays in about 45 minutes. Players take the role of a character with unique abilities (or beginners can take a standard, dull old peon farmer) and need to get to work early to plant, nurture and harvest their crops. Additionally, you can construct buildings and expand your fields. This is a small box but pleasantly chunky game with minimal rules overhead with its tongue placed firmly in cheek. While seemingly lite at first glance, players are provided with a comfortable decision place and beginners may want a play or two to get int ..read more

Today I’m going to discuss the unpopular topic of collection maintenance. How, when, and why does my library remove board games from our collection. Space is always limited in a library. While I hope nontraditional collections in the library have an opportunity to grow and expand, I understand that eventually it’ll butt up against available space and other collections. When that happens we have to start culling. Your standard collection development policy may help with this. My original collection development policy (you can see a bit of it in my post on CAH) didn’t originally include informat ..read more

You are the paparazzi of medieval Japan — painters. Hiding behind bushing, sneaking around tree, jostling for position to get a quick sketch maybe even a watercolor study of someone famous. As you lay in wait behind the garden gates you hear the clink of an easel. The soft scrape of a gentle brushstroke. The deep husky breathing of an artist. You aren’t alone. Other painters have been tipped off as well. It’s Spring and the emperor is taking a walk. It’s time to get physical. In Sakura, players are painters hoping to get the best viewpoint of the emperor while he strolls through his garden adm ..read more

Introduction Decrypto is quick word game where teams attempt to relay information out loud to each other using coded clues without allowing the opposing team to “intercept” or figure out their message. Setup and Gameplay Each team has an upright dashboard with four red-screened windows numbered 1-4. In each window they tuck a card so that it reveals a word. Everyone on the team can see the four words displayed on the dashboard each corresponding to a numbered window. One player is designated the clue giver and they take a card showing a three digit code (for example, 3-2-1) using numbers 1-4 ..read more