Portal:Games

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A game is a structured type of play usually undertaken for entertainment or fun, and sometimes used as an educational tool. Many games are also considered to be work (such as professional players of spectator sports or video games) or art (such as games involving an artistic layout such as mahjong, solitaire, or some video games).

There are many types of games; popular formats include board games, video games, online games, and card games. Games can be played in a variety of circumstances, and some can be played even without any materials or company. Games can be played either for enjoyment or for competition; they can be played alone or in teams; they can be played offline or online.

In a notable, competitive setting, players may have an audience to watch them play. Examples of games that generally draw audiences are chess championships, e-sports, and professional sports. (Full article...)

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Hyborian War is a play-by-mail game published by Reality Simulations, Inc. It takes place during the Hyborian Age in the world of Conan the Barbarian created by Robert E. Howard. The game has been continuously available for worldwide play since its inception in 1985 and has changed little in its overall format. It uses a computer program to adjudicate player orders. Although it relies on postal mail or email and has turnaround times which are relatively long for the digital age of video games, Hyborian War has remained active into the 21st century.

The game is set within the heroic fantasy genre, also known as sword and sorcery. The central figure is Conan of Cimmeria, appearing in the game as a wandering hero whom players can employ until fortune takes him elsewhere. Game designer Edward Schoonover wove multiple aspects of Howard's stories into Hyborian War including diverse landscapes and cultures, grand armies, large-scale battles, wizards tipping the scales of power, and stories of courageous and heroic deeds. (Full article...)

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...that the virtual economy of massively multiplayer online games sometimes attracts virtual crime, which is punishable by real laws in some countries?
...that since 1998 All Nippon Airways has operated Pokémon Jets (pictured)?
...that the World Chess Hall of Fame originally used cardboard plaques to honor past grandmasters, and was located in the basement of a New Windsor, New York, building?
...that the Japanese role-playing game Night Wizard! was adapted into an animated television series consisting of thirteen episodes?
...that a 2009 Pennsylvania court case ruled that poker is a game of skill, thus not subject to the state laws related to gambling?

General images

The following are images from various game-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1A group playing a tabletop RPG. The GM is at left using a cardboard screen to hide dice rolls from the players. (from Role-playing game)
Image 2MUD interface for Furcadia (from Role-playing game)
Image 3A selection of pieces from different games. From top: Chess pawns, marbles, Monopoly tokens, dominoes, Monopoly hotels, jacks and checkers pieces. (from Game)
Image 4The Card Players by Lucas van Leyden (1520) depicting a multiplayer card game (from Game)
Image 5Tug of war is an easily organized, impromptu game that requires little equipment. (from Game)
Image 6Historically, card games such as whist and contract bridge were opportunities for quiet socializing, as shown in this 1930s magic lantern slide photo taken in Seattle, Washington. (from Card game)
Image 7Mamluk playing card (king of cups), c. 15th century (from Card game)
Image 8The modern German board game Catan is printed in 30 languages and sold 15 million by 2009. (from Board game)
Image 9The board game Monopoly is licensed in 103 countries and printed in 37 languages. (from Board game)
Image 10Mehen game with game stones, from Abydos, Egypt, 3000 BC, Neues Museum (from Board game)
Image 11Painting in tomb of Egyptian queen Nefertari (1295–1255 BC) playing senet (from Board game)
Image 12Playing Cards, by Theodoor Rombouts, 17th century
Image 13Association football is a popular sport worldwide.
Image 14Triple Threes! is a popular dedicated deck variant of a combination style rummy game. (from Card game)
Image 15This timeline was made with information from the Wikipedia articles on Board Game, Hasbro, Board Game Cafe, Tabletop Simulator, and Monopoly. All information on this timeline was from those Wikipedia pages as they were on November 24th, 2024 (from Board game)
Image 16Ancient Egyptian senet game board inscribed for Amenhotep III with separate sliding drawer, from 1390 to 1353 BC, made of glazed faience, dimensions: 5.5 × 7.7 × 21 cm, in the Brooklyn Museum (New York City). (from Game)
Image 17Chinese mother-of-pearl gambling tokens used in scoring and bidding of card games (from Card game)
Image 18 Men Playing Board Games, from The Sougandhika Parinaya Manuscript (from Board game)
Image 19Backgammon is a game of skill. Strategy can give players advantages, but there is also an element of chance. (from Game of skill)
Image 20A ball-in-a-maze puzzle requires fine motor skills. (from Game of skill)
Image 21A fantasy LARP group (from Role-playing game)
Image 22Parcheesi is an American adaptation of a Pachisi, originating in India. (from Game)
Image 23An adventurer finds a teleportation portal while exploring a dungeon in the role-playing video game Falcon's Eye. (from Role-playing game)
Image 24Preferans, a trick-taking card game version popular in Croatia (from Card game)
Image 25The Card Players, 17th-century painting by Theodoor Rombouts (from Card game)
Image 26Two Qataris playing the traditional board game of damah (from Board game)
Image 27Students in Laos using dice to improve numeracy skills. They roll three dice, then use basic math operations to combine those into a new number which they cover on the board. The goal is to cover four squares in the row. (from Game)
Image 28Young girls playing a board game in the Iisalmi library in Finland, 2016 (from Board game)
Image 29The number of board games published by year (1944–2017), as listed on BoardGameGeek. Expansion sets for existing games are marked in orange. (from Board game)