If the name of a game is followed by an asterisk on this page, it means that we have tagged the game as advanced. Before choosing what games to use for your essay, you should have played at least five different games, of which at least one should be advanced. In addition, before you begin writing you should have played your two chosen games at least two times each.

Each website works differently, and so there's a slight technical hurdle each time you start up a game. We've added a quick description of where to reference the game rules for each website, but remember that you can also look at the Youtube tutorials playlist for a rundown of the rules for each game. How each respective website has implemented doing the actions in its games, however, is trickier to explain thoroughly in text. Whenever you can't seem to proceed or want help with how to do something in the game, reach out for help and we'll be with you as soon as we're available!

All games except Codenames and Dominion* are implemented on Board Game Arena, and are as such treated together at the bottom of this page. To recap, these are: 7 Wonders*, Carcassonne, Coup, Dice Forge*, Hanabi, Hive, Love Letter, Potion Explosion, Race for the Galaxy*, Red 7.

Codenames

4+ players (best with 6+ players and in even numbers)

Reaching each other:

One player heads to https://codenames.game
- choose English as your website language (so that you don't have to translate the rest of these instructions yourself), write your name and click 'create room' again.

Click 'create room',
Copy your website url and paste it in chat for the other players to join through it.

To play:

In the white middle column, make sure that the game is set at English and choose the Codenames option (the first option).
- Join as Operative means you will be one of the 'guessers' this round.
- Join as Spymaster means you will be (one of) the 'clue-givers' this round.

From here, you can either click 'randomize teams' or click 'create game' and let everyone choose the teams themselves.
To choose your own team, click one of the yellow buttons in either the red team (left) or the blue team (right). There has to be 1+ operatives and 1+ spymasters on each team.

For spymasters: Your board will show what cards belong to your team and where the assassin (black) card is. If it's your turn, fill out your one-word clue in the prompt box below the board and select the number in the dashed box next to the same box. Remember that you're not allowed to say anything while the game is going.
For operatives: To mark a card you're considering, you can click the card. If you click the pointing hand, however, you are 'tapping' that card, meaning that that card is guessed. Anyone of you can do this at any time. Other than that, you're left to talking clues and discussing your choices through Zoom.

To reference the rules:

The Codenames website only acts as a virtual game board for people who already know the game. You can download the PDF of the rules from their website here: https://czechgames.com/en/codenames/downloads/

Dominion*

2-4 players (2-3 players for free online)

Reaching each other

Go to https://dominion.games/
Create an account and log in.
Click 'Friend List' and add users by their username to your friend list.

To play:

One of you click 'My Table' to host a table, selecting the number of min and max players for the table (including yourself).
The other players select 'Matching'. To the right you'll see a column of friends games where your friend's hosted table should be.

To reference the rules:

At the bottom right in the main menu, there's a "How to play" link that sends you to the rules of the game.

Boardgame Arena

Boardgame Arena is a browser based service with multiple games available. While they have adapted the interface to suit each game somewhat, how you invite players to a game and start it up is always the same.

Boardgame Arena Premium

For some of the games, at least one player in the group needs a premium account. Reach out to us and we will provide you with the login details for one of our 8 premium accounts. As long as someone uses a premium account, they can invite non-premium members to play the games with them.

To reach each other

Go to https://boardgamearena.com
Create an account, using your first and last name as the account login
- This is so that we can help you easier with any questions and for your classmates to find your account easier
verify your email and log in
Go to the 'Community' tab, and under 'find friends' write your friends' logins and add them.
- Also add the following premium accounts to your friends list:
  - Staffan Björk,
  - MeepleLIkeUs (note the capital i),
  - Anders Sivertsson,
  - studentixd
  - studentixd01
  - studentixd02
  - test01cth
  - test02cth
  - test03cth
  - test04cth
  - test05cth
You could also search for the group DAT385-DIT248 2021 and join it. This way, you classmates might find you easier through the page.

To play

In some cases, the challenge doesn't so much lie in understanding the game, but in understanding how the (often automated) interface of Boardgame Arena works. If you find yourself having difficulties, don't hesitate to ask your classmates for help or ask us and we'll help get you going as soon as we're available.

Important tip: If at any time you happen to navigate away from the game board, you can find your active game tables using the table icon at the upper right of the screen.

The hosting player (e.g. the one with a premium account):

Click 'Play Now',
- If you did not add people as friends yet, you can also add friends right here.
- select 'real-time', and either 'friends'
- Underneath these dropdown boxes, there is now a button to invite friends to the game you're starting.
In the 'Find a Game' prompt, search for the name of the game you want to play and select it to open a server for the game.
- Important: do not click the name of the game; this will send you to information about the game rather than any place where you can play it.
  - That said, these information pages are useful for referencing the rules for the game and/or as references in your essay.
- Tip: You can click the yellow heart button on a game to save it to your favorites. These will show up above the 'find a game' section in the future, so that it'll be easy to play it with just a click.
On the left, choose the settings for the game.
- See "settings for each game" below.
- It is recommended that you always use 'training mode', meaning that players won't be timed out for taking too long during their turn. Since you're playing live, you might want to discuss the rules or the experience at some point, and that shouldn't suddenly oust the current player from the game.
When every player has joined, click 'start game' at the top!

The players getting invited:

At the top of your browser window, you should get an invitation to the game. If it is not there, you should also be able to see them in your notifications on the top right; click your profile picture and select notifications.
Once the hosting player has clicked start the game, there will be a blue 'Join the game' button at the top of the server settings!

Referencing the Rules

Whilst playing a game, Boardgame Arena has the rules written down at the bottom of the game window. Click the 'How to play?' tab to read the rules. In addition, remember that we have a Youtube tutorials playlist that will help you get started.

In addition, the rules of each game is available on Boardgame Arena's information pages for each game. To reach a games information page, navigate to the 'Games' tab and search for the game name there, or click the name of a game in the 'Play Now' tab.

Settings for Each BGA Game

Boardgame Arena implements several expansions and alternative rules. For good first game setups, set up the games according to the respective screenshot below.

Once you've gained some familiarity with the rules, you might want to explore other options here in future game sessions. This is allowed, but do note that if you want to write about those game sessions in your essay, you might need to mention what settings you played with (if they deviate from those in the image below).

7 Wonders*

3-7 players

Once you are in the game, each player should choose wonder side A for their first playthrough. This side is typically more straightforward and suitable for beginners.

Carcassonne

2-5 players

Coup

2-8 players (best with 3+ players)

Dice Forge*

2-4 players

Hanabi

2-5 players (best with 3+ players)

Hive

2 players

Love Letter

3-8 players

Potion Explosion

2-4 players

NOTE: This differs from the default settings, as we've toggled Simple Game to On. In future rounds, you can change this to Off for greater starting variety. This change does not need to be mentioned in the essay.

Race for the Galaxy*

2-6 players

NOTE: This is different from the default settings, as we've disabled New Worlds (a promo pack containing extra starter planets).

Red 7

2-4 players

NOTE: This setup is different from the default settings, as we've turned off Advanced draw rule and Action rule. (These rules make the game significantly more complex. They're fun additions but hard to learn if you don't already know the basic game.)