Hey there! My name is Steph & I run the Settler of the Boards blog. I’m someone that would rather play games than go pretty much anywhere, even when I’m not quarantined, I have bright red hair & 5 tattoos, & I like oversized sweatshirts. If you’ve been here before, you probably already knew at least some of that. But if you’re new here, hello! & welcome 🙂 I wanted to start off with a quick intro for Week One of this project, but let’s jump right into the 1st challenge – “The Game(s) That Brought You Into The Hobby.”
I remember liking games when I was a kid. I played a lot of Candyland, Dizzy Dizzy Dinosaur, and Slobberin’ Sam at my grandparents’ house because, well, that’s what was there, and I’m pretty sure my grandfather would let me win a lot. I would ask for games for most Christmases too, and my family would play them while we stayed up all night on New Year’s Eve and ate popcorn from those decorative tin cans (there’s gotta be someone out there who knows what I mean, right?). Those were mostly trivia games and DVD Scene It types. They were always fun though, and that’s really all that mattered. I didn’t play games a ton as I got older, but a Disney themed trivia game, or Pictionary could still be pulled out with friends from time to time.
My first year in college I was introduced to the board game hobby. My then-boyfriend (now-husband), who had always really liked games growing up, introduced me to Betrayal at House on the Hill. I agreed to play, not really knowing a ton about it because, why not, right? The first time we played was a simple 3-player game, and going into it I didn’t expect it to be all that special. I didn’t say anything at the time, but I was pretty much expecting something similar to Monopoly in many ways (move around a board, pick up some cards along the way, and maybe try to hinder other players – though it sounded like that came later in this one).
I was not only pleasantly surprised by this game, but excited by it. I was so impressed at everything that this game had in it, and everything I was able to do. I felt engaged in the story, and felt like I was my character. I was anxious for haunt rolls, excited when the traitor had a bad turn, and on the edge of my seat waiting to see what room would be revealed next, what would the traitor do, would something be lurking behind this corner if I entered this area, and most importantly – would the heroes survive? Every turn was exhilarating and it was so unlike anything I had experienced before. I’m usually not one for long games, and I’m sure it was longer than most board games I had ever played before, but I loved every minute of it.
I know I played other board games soon after which also helped me come into the hobby, but this is the experience I remember most vividly. I’m glad this was my first experience with hobby board games, because it made me want to play more games, and I’m not sure that would have been the case if I had tried others first. Since then, I’ve been able to introduce a lot of friends to this one, and while they’re not all necessarily as obsessed with games as me, I’m glad they could have that experience too, because it sure is a fun one.
*Another fun fact is that I also used Betrayal as the topic for my senior seminar final paper in college. It was a short story that you can read here on the blog.
Hey look! I earned my first merit badge! 😀
Happy Week One to all participants!
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