Date: Sun, 6 Oct 1996 12:46:04 -0700
From: editor@gamecabinet.com (Ken Tidwell)
Subject: Hmmm...
Mike,
I was reading your essay and a thought struck me (ouch!):
"Since the days of ancient Sumer people have been playing games, presumably for enjoyment. However, with very few exceptions, it has been in the last twenty five years or so that games have grown beyond the classic abstract and Monopoly, 'roll two dice and move round the board' systems"
Do we know that this is true? Most of the ancient games are recreations that were invented by Victorian archeogligists and ethnologists. Now we know the Victorians had no boardgame technology better than simple track systems. Perhaps they projected their own dark age onto to the remains they found in the ancients' tombs. We don't really know for certain that these ancient games were in fact simple track systems at all! Perhaps we should have a go at dressing some of the ancient board game components in reasonable, modern board game systems!
ken "Time-consuming-thoughts'R'Us" tidwell