Gambiarra Board Games

GBG Turno de Comentários #107 - O que é, de verdade, um jogo de tabuleiro?

·15 min·1 clip
Gustavo Lopes questions whether Mario Party or Pokémon TCG can truly be considered board games.
In this solo episode, host Gustavo Lopes opens with provocative questions about whether games like Mario Party or Pokémon TCG qualify as board games. He frames the discussion as an epistemological debate about the hobby, noting that players often avoid questioning basic definitions, similar to Jim in The Office not asking what a 'rundown' is. Gustavo draws a parallel to a previous debate about card games, explaining that terms like 'card game' derive from a language of traditional deck games rather than just physical cards. He mentions the Carding Treaty, established by his group Biribeiros and his YouTube channel Jogos de Cartas e Afins, which sets basic rules for card games. Gustavo argues that 'board game' similarly suggests a cardboard board but is more about a cultural language of analog play. He uses the example of Tokyo Highway, a game without a traditional board, to show how people might resist calling it a board game due to imagery but still understand it as playful activity. The host emphasizes that board games are a form of culture that allows communication across languages, like playing a trick-taking game with people from different countries. He shares a personal anecdote about a challenge with his brother to listen to albums from every country, highlighting how music, like games, transcends language. Gustavo promotes their YouTube channel Brothers Indica, where they rank albums by bands like Iron Maiden and Metallica. He notes that in French, board games are called 'jeu de société' (social game), focusing on communion rather than components. The episode concludes by stating that Mario Party is not a board game because its digital automation represents a different play language, though hybrid games might exist in the future.
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